Micah Fox called the meeting to order and Cliff Parker led the Invocation and Pledge of Allegiance.
Announcements
- Happy Birthday to Dick Fisher, visiting Rotarian from the Burlington Rotary Club.
- Please let Micah know if you are interested in a Rotary flag/banner to take with you to community events.
Happy Clams
- Micah invited us to join the Chamber of Commerce on April 20th at 5:30 at the Alliance Convention Center for the Chamber’s new marketing brand reveal.
Frank Bell – Alamance County Cattle Farmer
Don Jennings is a native of Elizabeth City and is currently a Senior Vice-President for Select Bank. He and his wife, Beth, have two sons and currently live in Elon.
Don introduced our speaker, Frank Bell, an Alamance County cattle farmer. Frank came to Burlington in 1960 and started breeding cattle in 1973. He previously worked in the retail and wholesale business and is currently a member of the Farm Bureau Board of Directors.
Frank shared details of the Cattle BQA (Beef Quality Assurance) program that was formed with the state of NC and the NC Extension Service. The goal of BQA is to evaluate the safety of our beef products. Cattle farmers must be certified to be a beef producer. BQA helps to ensure the animals are healthy.
Frank also shared details of his involvement with Alamance County’s Cattleman Association. He helps to bring producers together in order to increase their individual revenue. By bringing the small producers together, they can weigh and ship their cattle on a “truck load lot” for distribution. Frank helps to manage seven breeders in Alamance County.
The US has the safest meat in the world. While beef prices are up today, it’s important for us to remember we are paying a premium for a safe product. The cattle farmer is in business to produce a quality product.
Frank encouraged us to think about where we would be without farmers. Farmers supply everything from honey and cattle to apples and seed. Farming is one of the most important industries because they “feed the world.”
Program Schedule
- April 12 – Sang Ho Lee
- April 19 – Ryan Keur
- April 26 – Sid Little (Bernie Mann, Our State Magazine Publisher)
- May 3 – Frank Longest
The meeting was adjourned and we all stood to recite the Rotary Four Way Test.