It's Party Time!

Written by: Guest   |   August 12, 2021

Liquid Feed Symposium, Guest perspective

By: Cathy Bandyk, AB Vista

There can be a lot of reasons to throw a party – recognizing a milestone, launching a new venture, making time to have fun with old friends, creating an informal opportunity to build business relationships, honoring an achievement, or – after months of pandemic restrictions – just celebrating the opportunity to get together!

I have an invitation for you that rolls all of that (and more!) together in a single event. From Sept. 7-9, the American Feed Industry Association’s Liquid Feed Committee will be hosting the 50^th celebration of the Liquid Feed Symposium and we’d love to see you there! We’ll be in Chicago, a city rich with Liquid Feed Symposium history, and that historic link will be echoed throughout the event.

The committee has been compiling a history of the liquid feed industry for several years, highlighting the people, companies and events that helped shape this uniquely close-knit industry segment. It will be on display, along with a “Walk Down Memory Lane,” featuring a range of memorabilia.

The first afternoon of the program is also devoted to “Our Golden Liquid Past.” Richard Sellers, AFIA retiree, will start us off with what we all know will be an insightful and entertaining look back from a legislative and regulatory perspective; the session will wrap up with a panel that I’m really looking forward to on how the industry came to be. I know all of these guys have great stories to tell (and some they probably shouldn’t!).

But there’s going to be much more than just looking back. The program on Wednesday is dedicated to a “Golden Liquid Present,” with a morning full of the latest science and an afternoon packed with the hottest industry issues. We’ll wrap up Thursday with (you probably saw this coming) a look to our “Golden Liquid Future,” with a legislative update, ingredient forecasts and of course, Art Douglas, of Creighton University, with his weather outlook and Randy Blach, from CattleFax, with his market outlook. The committee has always prided itself on putting together top-tier educational programs and despite the challenges of planning by virtual meetings, they are once again offering an impressive agenda. I won’t try to list all the speakers here; you can check out the full details here.

That’s all well and good…but how about that party? 

Well, we will set the stage Tuesday evening during our Critical Liquid Supplementation Hour. With Randy Davis back as auctioneer, there’s no doubt the benefit auction for the Kenny Berg Liquid Feed Research and Education Fund will generate a lot of laughs and good-natured competition, along with the much-appreciated financial contributions. 

And then, Wednesday night, it’s truly party time. In honor of the 50^th celebration, we are having a reception. The Liquid Feed Hall of Fame inductee will be announced here, in addition to the Liquid Feed Facility of the Year winner, followed by a nationally recognized speaker I’m sure everyone will appreciate.

So there you have it – milestones, opportunity, old and new friends, recognition, entertainment and a wonderful chance to get together again. I think it’s time for you to register!