Benton County Pasture to Plate

08/13/2026

On Monday, our “Pasture to Plate” kids and families had the opportunity to take an in-depth tour of the College of the Ozarks Farms and Ag department. Its small school feel and hands-on style of curriculum truly make it a special campus. We were able to learn about the daily operations of the Dairy, Swine, Agronomy, and Beef departments while also getting a good look at what goes on behind the scenes at the feed mill. We were also fortunate to be the very first to get to tour the new processing facility and compare its efficiency to the old facility. A big thank you to Jake Cartwright for having us and investing his time in these kids.

Also, if you are ever in the Branson area and want to look at some cool old tractors, the museum is absolutely amazing.

07/28/2026

***Only 2 months away***
If you or anyone you know would like to be a sponsor of our program, this is all the information you need. These donations will help us with awards, field days and our year end awards banquet.
We greatly appreciate all the support that we have received from the AG community helping make this program become a success. We couldn’t make it happen without you.

Become a Sponsor of the 2026 Benton County Fair! 🎡🐄

From animal sponsorships to major fair sponsorships, we have opportunities available for businesses and individuals of all sizes.

Your support helps us continue providing educational opportunities, youth programs, agricultural exhibits, entertainment, and family traditions for our community.

Interested in becoming a sponsor?
📧 [email protected]
📞 479-616-2997

06/13/2026

When we asked the kids what they would like to learn more about his year in our Pasture to Plate program the same answer kept popping up…
They wanted to know more about how to breed top notch genetics. They asked…. And we put it together.

*****Reproduction Day*****

And boy was it a dandy. We are well aware that understanding heat cycles, synchronizing, EPD’s artificially insemination, and semen testing bulls may be a lot for one day and may be a little over some of the younger kiddos heads. But you know what? They can now not only say they got to witness it….. but they got to be a part of it. And it was great.

Big thanks to those that made it possible for them to learn more about the cattle industry.

Big thanks goes to Mr. Johnny, the Evans kids, and Mr.Gregg T for walking them through the basics of AI and EPD’s.
Steve and Kellye Smith at Steve Smith Charolais for allowing us to visit their beautiful ranch and learn about their pure bred seed stock operation.
And last but not least, Dr. Schoenecke and Lunsfords veterinary Care Center for allowing the kids the opportunity to learn about Bull Reproductive Health.

03/23/2026

Wow what a day. Big thanks to everyone that helped out on Saturday with our weight in. Kids got great hands on education from the best in the business and we can’t wait to see how far these kids can take these steers in the next 180 days. Time to put some pounds on some beef.

03/20/2026

Toaday is the last day to get your county fair steers regestered onto show works.
Pasture to plate steers are eligibile for the regular market steer show and showmanship.

We are excited to see everyone tomorrow at the Mathias Ranch for weight in and to get this party officially started.

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12/23/2025

Tis the season….
We would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and tons of luck while halter breaking the 2026 Pasture to Plate steers. If you would like to participate in the 2026 program it is not too late to find a steer and get started. If you need help finding a steer or have any questions about the program feel free to send us a message or reach out to Johnny and Wes.

Our start up meeting is scheduled for January 31st and our official steer weight in will be on March 21st. Hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year.