The 2025 Cattle Industry Convention was recently held in San Antonio, Texas, and a number of Wisconsin cattle farmers attended to participate in Beef Checkoff programs and meetings. Checkoff activities at convention included: interviews for leadership roles; committee meetings, where contractors update producer leaders on year-to-date progress on checkoff-funded projects; Cattlemen’s Beef Board (CBB) and National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) board meetings; Consumer Market Research updates; and Beef Quality Assurance forums.

Wisconsin Beef Checkoff leaders were appointed to national leadership roles at the event. Terry Quam, Lodi, was selected as the Secretary-Treasurer of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board and Amy Radunz, Ellsworth, was elected to NCBA’s Region III Federation of State Beef Council’s Vice President position. Tammy Wiedenbeck, Lancaster, was also recognized at convention for completing a three-year term on CBB.

Radunz’ Role in the Federation The vision of the Federation of State Beef Councils is to build beef demand by inspiring, unifying and supporting an effective and coordinated state and national Checkoff partnership. It provides a voice for producers and qualified state beef councils (QSBCs) to collectively give direction to the Beef Checkoff.

“I continue to be amazed by the demand from our consumers for beef despite some of the economic headwinds,” said Radunz. “I am grateful for all those associated with contributing to the success of the Federation and look forward to seeing those investments continue to build on this success.”

Among other duties, the regional vice president works closely with state beef councils, coordinates regional activities, facilitates Federation Division regional elections and champions Checkoff efforts within the region, especially state beef council engagement in the Federation.

Radunz raises stocker cattle on her farm in Pierce County and is a beef cattle technical specialist for Purina. She has been a mentor for young cattle producers across the state, helping them grow their passion for the beef industry. Radunz is currently serving as the president of the Wisconsin Beef Council. She is also involved with the Wisconsin Cattlemen’s Association, where she currently represents the organization on the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture’s Export Advisory Council.

The Wisconsin Beef Council is a producer-led non-profit organization funded by the $1.00 per head Beef Checkoff. Half of the dollar remains in Wisconsin for local beef promotion, while the other half is used by the Cattlemen’s Beef Board to fund national projects. The purpose of the Council is to fund beef promotion, research and consumer education activities to grow beef demand and support Wisconsin’s $2.1 billion beef industry. The WBC operates under the guidance of its Board of Directors. The Board is comprised of representatives from cattle-related organizations around the state of Wisconsin.

Submitted by Wisconsin Beef Council