The executive director of Missouri Farmers Care will headline the fifth annual Pearls of Production: Women in Agriculture workshop Nov. 3-4.

Ashley McCarty, executive director of Missouri Farmers Care, will talk about the organization's Agri-Ready county certification program, which promotes Missouri's top industry through the joint efforts of 36 commodity groups and agribusiness leaders. Missouri Farmers Care designates counties "Agri-Ready" after reviewing county ordinances and other activities.

McCarty and her husband operate McCarty Cattle Co. on their Kirksville, Mo., farm. The University of Missouri graduate is a representative on the Missouri Clean Water Commission, has worked for the Missouri Department of Agriculture, and served on her local MU Extension council.

The first day of the event will be held in Fulton, Mo., this year, says Marcia Shannon, MU Extension swine specialist. The change was made, in part, because there is a Mizzou football game during the event.

Pearls of Production kicks off 1 p.m. Nov. 3 at the MU Extension Center in Callaway County. After McCarty speaks, attendees may take a tour of Central Missouri Meat & Sausage, Fulton, Mo. The company processes locally raised, antibiotic-free meats at its butcher shop and smokehouse. There is an on-site restaurant and retail shop.

Dinner speaker Amber Henry will talk about marketing your own meat. She and her family sell local, farm-raised beef and pork at Henry Meat Co. of De Soto, Mo.

MU Extension specialists and others will offer a full day of hands-on workshops Nov. 4 at MU farms.

Topics include:

• calf processing — including castrating, implanting, vaccinating and ear tagging — in addition to cattle body condition scoring and aging

• shop safety, and chainsaw safety and maintenance

• pasture and forages demonstrations on temporary fencing, weed identification and control, hay testing, and assessing pasture conditions

MU Extension and College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources sponsor the event. Register by Oct. 13 for a discount and a free T-shirt. For more information, go to MU's Pearls of Production: Women in Agriculture  website.

Source: University of Missouri Extension