Voting is underway for next year’s inductees into the Cattle Feeders Hall of Fame (CFHOF). Two of the nominees have ties to Kansas, including Joel Jarnagin and Jordan Levi.
Jarnagin was raised in Jetmore on his family’s farming and cattle feeding operation. He graduated from Washburn University in 1987 and headed to Fred Waldron Feeds in Hawaii, then Emery Commodities in Texas. Jarnagin joined Grant County Feeders in Ulysses in 1995 as feed mill manager and became general manager in 1998. In 2015, he became the chief executive officer (CEO) of Cobalt Cattle Company, where he helped grow the business to seven feedyards, four of which are in Kansas. Jarnagin served as KLA Cattle Feeders Council chairman in 2016. He and his wife of 40 years, Vicki, have two children and five grandchildren.
As founder and CEO of Arcadia Asset Management, Levi played an instrumental role in bringing Five Rivers Cattle Feeding back under U.S. ownership in 2018. His leadership was central to aligning stakeholders, designing the transaction structure and helping set the strategic direction of the cattle feeding operation, which has one location in Kansas—Grant County Feeders. He continues to serve on the holding company board. He and his wife, Shannon, reside in Colorado with their son, Jack.
Other CFHOF nominees are Tom Basabe, Simplot Livestock Co. and Simplot Land and Livestock Group, Idaho; Kirk Olson, Olson Farms, Nebraska; and Mike Smith, Tejas Brokerage LLC, Texas. Two nominees will be inducted into the hall of fame based on the number of ballots cast.
Three individuals have been nominated for the Industry Leadership Award. Pete Anderson of Colorado is the director of research for Midwest PMS LLC, a leading provider of nutritional products and consulting services for cattle feeders. Temple Grandin is a professor of animal science at Colorado State University whose designs for livestock facilities and writings on animal behavior have helped reduce cattle stress during handling. Duane “Chub” Klein from Nebraska is the north regional president for Animal Health International.
Click here to vote for inductees and award winners.