The National Junior Hereford Association’s (NJHA) Fed Steer Shootout contest teaches juniors about the opportunities and challenges of the cattle feeding industry. In the 2023 contest, hosted at HRC Feed Yards LLC, 67 members from 18 states entered 207 steers in the program. This year’s winners received more than $15,000 in cash prizes and awards from the Hereford Youth Foundation of America (HYFA) on Oct. 20 at the American Hereford Association’s (AHA) Annual Membership Meeting and Educational Forum in Kansas City.

Each year, accompanying the cattle performance awards, the top three junior members, in both the junior and senior age divisions, are recognized for their efforts and knowledge of the cattle feeding industry. Those top three in the age divisions gave speeches and went through an interview process with a panel of judges prior to the awards ceremony.

This year Jarrett Worrell, Mason, Texas, was named the contestant of the year in the junior division and Abigail Billing, Newton, N.J., earned the contestant of the year title in the senior division.

This year’s award winners are:
Contestant of the Year – Top Three Finalists – Junior Division:

Jarrett Worrell, Mason, Texas, Junior Contestant of the Year
Jayna Blume, Pierre, S.D.
Jackson Chastain, Arlington, Texas

Contestant of the Year – Top Three Finalists – Senior Division:

Abigail Billing, Newton, N.J., Senior Contestant of the Year
Dellana Muck, Caledonia, Ill.
Pecos Worrell, Harper, Texas

Overall Champion Steer – Kathryn Coleman, Modesto, Calif.
Champion Pen of Three Purebred Steers – Teegan and Tiernan Frederickson, Spearfish, S.D.
Reserve Champion Pen of Three Purebred Steers – Jackson Chastain, Arlington, Texas
Champion Individual Purebred Steer – Connor McArthur, Pittsford, Mich.
Reserve Champion Individual Purebred Steer – Madeline Braman, Refugio, Texas
Champion Pen of Three Commercial Steers – Luke Daniels, Dalhart, Texas
Reserve Champion Pen of Three Commercial Steers – Mahaya Jones, Ansley, Neb.
Champion Individual Commercial Steer – Kathryn Coleman, Modesto, Calif.
Reserve Champion Individual Commercial Steer – Kathryn Coleman, Modesto, Calif.

Special recognition awards go to:
Highest Marbling Score Purebred Division – W. Zeb Murphree, Hamilton, Texas
Highest Marbling Score Commercial Division – Kathryn Coleman, Modesto, Calif.
Highest Average Daily Gain Purebred Division – Grayson McArthur, Pittsford, Mich.
Highest Average Daily Gain Commercial Division – Kathryn Coleman, Modesto, Calif.

About the contest:

Contestants collected feedyard performance and carcass data on their pen of three and individual entries of Hereford and commercial Hereford-influenced steers, while gaining comprehensive industry knowledge on topics such as animal health, nutrition and marketing. All steers were fed at HRC Feed Yards, Scott City, Kan., and were hauled to and harvested at National Beef Packing Co. in Dodge City, Kan., as candidates for the Certified Hereford Beef® brand. Industry partners such as Merck Animal Health, Allflex Livestock Intelligence and Neogen played a vital role in the success of the program as well as involvement from Cargill Inc. in the educational portion of the program and generous sponsors such as Texas Stardance Cattle and Bar One Ranch.

Furthermore, contestants entered performance portfolios from data reports they received throughout the feeding period and answered short answer questions summarizing what they learned while participating in the program. The top three contestants, in both the junior and senior divisions, were selected from the submitted portfolios and had the opportunity to compete for the NJHA Fed Steer Shootout Contestant of the Year title.

Find the full press release and photos HERE.