Nicole Wardner and Jason Zahn are new faces at the North Dakota Beef Commission. NDBC manages the state beef checkoff program.

Wardner is the new consumer marketing and industry relations specialist. She will work in the areas of consumer marketing and education, as well as develop programs to inform beef producers and allied industry groups about what their beef checkoff dollars are doing to enhance consumer demand for beef.

A Redwood Falls, Minn., native, Wardner grew up on a purebred Limousin cattle operation. She attended South Dakota State University and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in animal science, beef production.

Following college, she worked for the Red River Farm Network as an on-air farm broadcaster. Wardner then served with the USDA Farm Service Agency as a program technician in Sheridan County, N.D., and transitioned to North Dakota State University Extension as the agriculture and natural resources agent for Sheridan County.

She currently resides in Mercer, N.D., where she and her family operate a commercial cow-calf operation and farm small grains and row crops.

Gov. Doug Burgum appointed Zahn, a Towner, N.D., rancher, to the NDBC board of directors.

Zahn and his family run a commercial cattle operation consisting of Red Angus and Simmental genetics.

Zahn has been on the North Dakota Stockmen’s Association board of directors for seven years. He served as president from 2012-2014. He has also represented North Dakota at the Young Cattlemen’s Conference. Zahn has been involved in his community, serving on his church council and township and irrigation boards.

“The past few years have had some tough times for the cattle industry, and I felt I could help my friends and neighbors in the beef business by getting involved in the Beef Commission as an advocate for the cattle industry and the programs that the beef checkoff makes possible,” Zahn says.

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