The U of S Stockman’s Club (pictured) has approximately 75 members.

With one of the largest agriculture colleges in western Canada, it should come as no surprise that the University of Saskatchewan Stockman’s Club is thriving on campus.

Approximately 75 members of the club travel to conferences and competitions around the continent in hopes of pursuing a career in livestock, one of the province’s most lucrative industries.

“We facilitate learning, competing and getting together to learn about agriculture,” said club president Breanna Anderson.

Each month, hundreds of members from stockman’s clubs across Canada and the United States meet at livestock events to network with industry professionals. One U of S team is currently attending a range management conference in Sacramento, Calif.

The club is separated into five teams: range, rodeo, beef, dairy and judging. Range team, for example, focuses on the management of grass and feed. Each team’s overall focus is cattle production.

“We had a student interested in a poultry team, but the bulk of producers in western Canada are beef operations,” said vice-president and beef team chair Jessica Hextall.

Each team participates in five or six events per year. The largest livestock event in western Canada is the Canadian Western Agribition, which is held in November of each year in Regina.

“There are students from England and all over the United States,” said Hextall. “They’ll have speakers coming in to talk about industry issues, new research, things like that and lots of producers are there to interact with.”

Both Anderson and Hextall are fourth-year agriculture students majoring in animal science. Although the club’s membership is primarily agriculture students, it is not a prerequisite for joining the club.

“We have a couple students in business, one in geology, some in the vet college and a couple in nursing,” said Anderson. “We have students who aren’t from farms and who just want to learn about the industry.”

In January, Saskatchewan’s agriculture minister Lyle Stewart announced that the provincial government is putting $3.8 million into livestock research through the Agriculture Development Fund. Third-party groups like SaskMilk, the Saskatchewan Pork Development Board and the Western Grains Research Foundation are putting another $1.2 million into this research.

“It’s nice to know that we have support,” said Anderson. The College of Agriculture has “10 per cent of the faculty and 30 per cent of the research. It’s one of the best agriculture colleges in western Canada.”

Saskatchewan holds approximately 20 per cent of the national cattle herd, an industry which employs nearly 50,000 farmers provincially.

“Saskatchewan doesn’t have an economy without agriculture,” Hextall said.

According to Anderson and Hextall, professors have been very supportive of the club’s travels, even if it means missing a class or two.

”If we’re going to a competition they have no problems with that,” said Hextall. “They’re glad to see us go to these competitions and conferences.”

The University of Regina does not have a stockman’s club, but many smaller colleges — such as Lakeland College in Lloydminster. Alta. — do have clubs.

The club is sponsored by the U of S College of Agriculture, the department of biology, Outlaw’s, Shaw Media Group, MD Ambulance, the Saskatchewan Cattlemen’s Association, the Agriculture Students’ Association and Blair’s agriculture. In addition, the group does a significant amount of fundraising including steak nights, perogy sales and beer nights. The club plans to hold a fundraiser pub on March 20 at the Sutherland Hall.

Two years ago, Anderson and Hextall travelled to a conference in Oklahoma for free due to sponsorships. The group’s budget also allows them to host events in Saskatoon. In the fall, the club hosted a rodeo and a competition.

Anderson and Hextall have both been involved in the club since 2011. After graduation, Anderson hopes to pursue a Master’s in agriculture. Hextall plans to enter the workforce and focus on animal nutrition sales.

The group has meetings on the first Tuesday of every month. Meetings are held at 5:30 p.m. in Agriculture 5C61. The individual teams usually have meetings every week.

Hextall said the club offers “lots of networking opportunities. It’s a good way to find a job.”

Students wanting more information on the Stockman’s Club can visit their Facebook page or email the group’s organizers at uofs.stockmans@gmail.com.

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Photo: Brittany Sundby Photography