KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Chad Breeding, Miami, Texas, was named the new president of the American Hereford Association (AHA) during the Annual Membership Meeting Oct. 26, in Kansas City, Mo.

Breeding was raised working on his family’s registered Hereford operation, B&C Cattle Co. When he was 4 years old, he was already riding horseback with his granddad, Earl, checking the herd. After graduating high school in 1988, he attended Texas A&M University. Breeding returned home to the family operation, which markets about 100 Hereford bulls and 50 replacement females annually. Breeding’s love for the Hereford breed flourished when he returned home, as he started breeding cows and working in the show barn. 

Breeding’s knowledge, gleaned from his father, William, gave him the ability to compete with show cattle on a national level, while also producing beef cattle with the genetic merit the market demands. Through the continued use of AI and embryo transfer (ET), the B&C brand is trusted across the country for sound, functional cattle that work in the showring and excel in the pasture. While they sell a few show heifers, the majority of their cattle are sold to the commercial producer, mostly to Brahman cattlemen who produce the sought after F1 tiger stripes, known as the maternal queen of the South. Breeding and his wife, Erin, have five children — Austin, Blayke, Wyatt, Lillian and Blair. 

Fatherhood emphasized the importance of family and the value of passing down honesty, an outstanding work ethic and a better life. After returning to Miami, a small town in the Texas Panhandle, Breeding became active in the community. He was elected to the city council in November of 2005. He has been the Miami mayor since 2009. He also serves on the board of trustees of the First Christian Church. Breeding is an active member of the Texas Hereford Association, serving on the board since 2011, including stints as president in 2016 and 2017. 

Snedden selected vice president

Austin Snedden, Maricopa, Calif., was selected to serve as the 2024 AHA vice president. 

Austin Snedden is a fifth-generation rancher, central California, where his family has been raising cattle in the same county for more than 150 years. 

Snedden Ranch was founded in 1867 by Anna and Samuel Snedden and has been passed down through the generations. Austin grew up on the ranch in southwest Kern County and graduated from Azusa Pacific University in 2005 with a degree in business administration. Ranching is Austin’s full-time job; Austin and his wife, Sarah, partner with his parents, Richard and Susie, to operate Snedden Ranch. 

Austin and Sarah met in college and married in 2004. They have four children: Ryah, Rainey, Sonora and Ezra. Snedden Ranch is a family business with family members of all ages working in every aspect of the operation. 

Snedden Ranch consists of 350 to 400 commercial cows, 120 Hereford cows, and 40 Red Angus cows. The Snedden family raises bulls for their commercial herd and their annual production sale, held on the second Saturday of October every year. In addition to the cow herd and hosting a production sale, Snedden Ranch markets a select group of commercial replacement females every year. Their steer calves are merchandised at weaning or yearling age and sold off the ranch through auction and video markets. 

Snedden Ranch has raised primarily Hereford cattle for more than 100 years and registered its first cattle with the AHA 50 years ago in 1972. The ranch was recognized as a Gold TPR Breeder by the AHA in 2022. Austin and Sarah served as advisors for the California/Nevada Junior Hereford Association in 2017 and 2018. 

Austin has been involved with the Kern County Cattlemen’s Association for many years and served as president from 2014 to 2015. He was appointed to serve on the Trump Administration’s Rural and Agriculture Advisory Committee. Austin served as a delegate for the California Republican Party from 2021 to 2022 and is a contributing columnist to the Valley Ag Voice, a regional agricultural publication.

Additionally, Austin was recognized as the Kern County Cattleman of the Year in 2020, and Snedden Ranch was recognized in 2013 as California’s 18th Senatorial District’s Small Business of the Year. 

New directors elected 

During the AHA membership meeting, delegates elected three new directors, Jim Williams, Kearney, Neb., Danny Fawcett, Ree Heights, S.D., and Grant McKay, Marysville, Kan., to serve four-year terms on the 12-member Board. Completing their terms on the AHA Board were outgoing president Wyatt Agar, Thermopolis, Wyo., and directors, Jerome Ollerich, Winner, S.D., and Bob Schaffer, Spotsylvania, Va.

Danny Fawcett

Fawcett’s Elm Creek Ranch (FECR), Ree Heights, S.D., is owned and operated by Danny Fawcett and his family. Danny’s wife, Kyla, owns Focus Marketing Group that specializes in livestock marketing. She helps FECR market their seedstock and brand the ranch. The Fawcetts have two children, Hollis and Ivy, who are both involved in the family ranch. Danny’s mom, Cheryl, is a partner on the ranch and handles the accounting side of the operation. Kristin and Weston Kusser also partner with the Fawcett family and call FECR home. 

FECR calves around 1,000 cows each year, most of them registered Herefords. Most of the cropland is utilized for feed, but they also grow cash crops, such as corn, wheat and soybeans. Every October, FECR hosts a female sale where they offer 15 to 30 head, with the bulk of them being sold to South Dakota Junior Hereford Association members and to others across the country. The Fawcett family also sells around 100 bulls and a potload of elite baldy heifers each February in their annual production sale. FECR is currently working to develop yearling heifers to be sold as bred heifers using Hereford and Angus genetics in this process. 

Danny says the goal of FECR is to continue to stay relevant in the Hereford breed by producing genetics that can be used by seedstock and commercial producers. Danny hopes to continue making decisions that will keep FECR headed in the right direction. 

Danny attended South Dakota State University, where he studied animal science and agricultural journalism and marketing. Recently, he held a position on the South Dakota Hereford Association (SDHA) board of directors for six years. During his time on the board, SDHA reached another level, as the directors connected seedstock and commercial cow-calf producers with feedlot and packer representatives. 

Danny grew up in the Hereford breed, exhibiting at the JNHE himself. His kids currently show at the JNHE and other national shows. Aside from his kids’ involvement, Danny has judged national shows across the country. 

Currently, Danny sits on the South Dakota Beef Breeds Council where he helps to promote beef in South Dakota. He is a past board member for the Hand County Livestock and Crop Improvement Association. 

Danny is a past Hereford Herdsman of the Year, as well as SDHA Hereford Enthusiast of the Year. Aside from his awards and recognitions, Danny says his biggest achievement has been positively impacting the juniors involved in the Hereford breed. 

Grant McKay

Grant McKay, Marysville, Kan., owns and operates GLM Herefords with his wife, Linda; daughter, Bailey; and late son, Seth. GLM’s day-to-day operations are handled by Grant and Linda. Bailey works to keep the business in the public eye by managing GLM’s marketing efforts and social media platforms. Two years after moving to the U.S., Grant started GLM with the purchase of one Hereford heifer from G&R Polled Herefords in 1993. Today, GLM partners with Sue Rowland of G&R Polled Herefords. 

GLM Herefords currently runs approximately 100 head of registered cows alongside diversified crops and forage acres. Since its start, GLM has relied on the collection and use of performance data tools. GLM uses an extensive AI and ET program to help maintain their focus of raising high-quality seedstock cattle. GLM’s goal since the beginning has been to produce high-performing cattle with moderate birth weight and convenience traits that fit the needs of many different producers. 

GLM sells their bulls through private-treaty sales. The operation’s females and steers are all sold privately. GLM has consigned to the Ladies of the Royal sale and currently consigns cattle to the Nebraska Cornhusker Classic, National Western Stock Show Herefords in the Yards Sale and the Generations in the Making online sale. GLM was named the Kansas Polled Hereford Association New Breeder of the Year in 2000. 

Grant earned his associate’s degree in applied science from Cloud County Community College in Concordia, Kan. He is an active and past member in multiple Hereford associations, both in America and Canada. In the past, Grant served as a board director for the Nebraska Hereford Association, and he and Linda were advisors for the Nebraska Junior Hereford Association. Grant served as a chairman for the 2012 JNHE, held in Grand Island, Neb. Aside from Hereford associations, Grant has been active in multiple livestock and cattlemen’s associations. 

While growing up in Canada, Grant gained extensive industry experience working for several prominent Canadian Hereford breeders. His work at WTK Polled Herefords, Circle D Polled Herefords and Haroldson’s Polled Herefords helped him build a solid foundation of knowledge. Currently, Grant works for Ag Sale Day. He credits his management skills and industry knowledge to the many different operations where he has worked along the way. 

Jim Williams

Jim Williams and his wife, Sheila, raise registered Hereford cattle at their operation, Valley View Cattle Co., in Kearney, Neb. Jim’s history in the Hereford breed goes back to 1960, when his grandfather, Harry, purchased his first registered Hereford bull. 

Jim’s career path has led him down many roads in the Hereford breed. Majoring in animal science, he attended The Ohio State University and jumped headfirst into the cattle business. After graduation, he spent eight years between Lone Star Hereford Ranch in Texas and EE Ranches in Mississippi. 

In 1992, before the AHA merger, Jim began working as a field representative, covering Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and Arkansas. Three years later, post-merger, he assumed the role of vice president of supply with Certified Hereford Beef® (CHB). During that time, Jim helped develop relationships with cattle feeders, working hard to ensure Herefords found a seat at the table in the commercial marketplace. 

Through the ’90s, Jim worked closely with Olsen Ranches in Harrisburg, Neb., to develop a process to quickly recognize Hereford sires with genetic merit. That initial data collection laid the groundwork for the National Reference Sire Program. 

After a stint of working in feedyard-packer relations, he returned to Hereford. In 2001, Jim resumed his role as the vice president of supply for CHB and worked to promote Hereford beef. Jim, along with many others at CHB, helped the brand make significant strides. The network of feeders pursuing Hereford genetics broadened, and the Hereford Verified® program was developed. 

In 2009, Jim returned to the fed cattle sector, working in third-party research for animal health companies. In 2013, he accepted a new challenge and began working as a cattle buyer for Greater Omaha Packing (GOP). 

Jim was a useful asset to GOP, helping grow two USDA recognized branded beef programs that both highlight Hereford genetics, 1881 Omaha Hereford™ and Omaha Classic Hereford Beef™. Successfully creating programs like this was not easy, but Jim has always believed in connecting people within the industry. Leveraging his relationships, Jim aided in placing Hereford and Hereford-influenced calves for cattle feeders looking to take part in GOP’s value-added programs. 

Jim is the current head of cattle procurement and a member of the senior management team at WR Reserve in Hastings, Neb. He plays a major role in upholding WR’s goals of providing consumers with the best product, while working to double harvest capacity by 2026. His passion has been, and always will be, promoting the Hereford breed and the cattle industry. Jim is active in his community and volunteers at many local 4-H and youth livestock events and is a member at the Kearney eFree Christian Church. 

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The American Hereford Association, with headquarters in Kansas City, Mo., is one of the largest U.S. beef breed associations. The not-for-profit organization along with its subsidiaries — Certified Hereford Beef (CHB) LLC, Hereford Publications Inc. (HPI) and American Beef Records Association (ABRA) — provides programs and services for its members and their customers, while promoting the Hereford breed and supporting education, youth and research. For more information about the Association, visit Hereford.org.