Cameron to present Beef Cattle Improvement Conference Nov. 20

Dr. Rod Hall, state veterinarian with the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, will deliver the keynote address at Cameron University’s 36th annual Beef Cattle Improvement Conference on Nov. 20.

Hall will discuss “The Importance of Traceability and Biosecurity in the Beef Industry.” The event, which begins at 3 p.m., is open to all beef cattle producers, educators and students in Oklahoma at no charge. Attendees are required to register online for the keynote banquet at https://www.cameron.edu/ag-bio-health/events/annual-beef-cattle-improvement-conference.

The conference kicks off at 3 p.m. with simultaneous moderated sessions focusing on agribusiness. Both sessions will be repeated at 4 p.m.

At 5 p.m., the conference will offer a question-and-answer session aimed at students in agriculture. The panel, which takes place in Room 100 of Cameron’s Sciences Complex, will include area professionals covering topics related to beef cattle, including education, research and production.

At 6 p.m., the action shifts to the McCasland Ballroom of the McMahon Centennial Complex with a barbecue dinner for attendees. Hall’s keynote presentation will start at approximately 6:30 p.m.

In his presentation, Hall will address animal disease traceability or knowing where diseased and at-risk animals are, where they have been, and when it is important to ensuring a rapid response when animal disease events take place.

Although animal disease traceability does not prevent disease, an efficient and accurate traceability system reduces the number of animals and response time involved in a disease investigation, which ultimately reduces the economic impact on owners and affected communities, Hall said. He also will discuss biosecurity, a set of everyday methods, practices, and protocols that will prevent or reduce the introduction of diseases or pests to a herd or flock of animals.

Raised on a dairy farm in Stonewall, Hall is a graduate of the OSU College of Veterinary Medicine. After operating the Tishomingo Animal Clinic for 28 years, he joined the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry in 2006 as director of the state’s cattle program.

Appointed state veterinarian in 2011, Hall is responsible for disease tracing and monitoring the flow of animals in and out of the state. He was named Oklahoma’s Veterinarian of the Year in 2016, was honored by the Oklahoma Cattleman’s Association with its Distinguished Service Award in 2019 and with the Oklahoma Pork Council’s Distinguished Service Award in 2022.