Episodes

This special edition of TCA Talk features a New World Screwworm update with perspective from Dr. Samantha Beaty, the state veterinarian for Tennessee. With the recent news of the New World Screwworm fly cases in Texas and New Mexico, we wanted to get the latest insights from Dr. Beaty, who covers the current status of NWS in the U.S., the risks associated with NWS and the prevention strategies that are in place in the affected areas of the country. We also get an update on Tennessee’s preparedne...

Dale Parker, the Executive Vice President of the Tennessee Cattlemen’s Association, returns to TCA Talk to look back on a recent trip he made with other members of TCA leadership to Washington D.C. As Dale shares with us, the visit to the Capitol Hill provided TCA with an opportunity to meet in-person with Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn as well as several members of Tennessee’s Congressional delegation. The issues that the TCA delegation discussed with lawmakers during their time in Washing...

Jessica Young returns to TCA Talk as we continue to get her perspective on how the younger generations of cattle producers are meeting the challenges of balancing the demands of work on the farm, outside careers and raising a family. As you will hear, Jessica understands that being a beef producer is driven by a deep passion for the industry and the vital role of feeding the world. Despite challenges such as long hours, tough conditions, and rising input costs, she views the community as a tight...

Jessica Young joins us on TCA Talk to share her personal and professional journey into production agriculture. Through the first part of our conversation, we’ll learn how Jessica is balancing her role as an Extension Agent in Wilson County for the University of Tennessee with her home life as a wife, mother and cattle farmer. Although she grew up in the Atlanta suburbs, Jessica developed a passion for agriculture through visits to her grandparents' farm and by farm-sitting for others. By the ti...

In this edition of TCA Talk, we will share the remaining interviews from the collection of 15 Q&As that we did while we were onsite at the 2026 TCA Convention in Franklin. You will hear feature interviews with three vendors who had display areas at the convention. Our first stop on our vendor visits was to the Summertown Metals booth, and we learned how the Summertown Team utilizes the opportunities offered at the TCA Convention to network with producers to go into some depth on their range of s...

For this episode of TCA Talk, we will be sharing some of the vendor visits that we made with the experts in the booths that were set up onsite at the 2026 TCA Convention. Our first stop on this tour brought us to see the folks from AgCentral Farmers Co‑Op, which is based in Athens, Tenn. AgCentral, as we learned, operates 11 facilities and service producers across Tennessee, Kentucky, North Georgia, Virginia, and the Carolinas. The co-op provides agricultural retail and wholesale services, inclu...

Recorded on the final day of the Tennessee Cattlemen’s Association Convention earlier this year, TCA President Gary Dering shares his perspective on this year’s convention, the strong turnout and engagement across the state. He also talks to us about the importance of continuing to build momentum within the association. As you’ll hear, Gary highlights the growing involvement of youth in the cattle industry and why investing in the next generation is critical to the future of Tennessee agricultur...

While on-site at the TCA Convention in February, TCA Talk had the opportunity to meet J.D. Van Hooser, who dedicated 20 years of his life serving as the head coach for Murray State University’s Rodeo Team, which competed in the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association. Following his retirement from Murray State, where he also taught classes in the Animal Science Department, J.D. has stayed in the cattle industry by joining the sales team at Yarbrough Sales, which provides steel, fencing and pi...

Recorded on the ground floor of the TCA Convention earlier this year, we meet the Hodges family, owners of Flying H Farms, a fifth-generation operation in Sumner County. Founded in 1940, the 525-acre farm includes a cow-calf operation, a feedlot, a fencing business, and a retail store offering USDA-certified beef and pork directly to customers. Steve Hodges and his wife, Kim, share how cattle production and daily farm operations have evolved over the past 15 years, including their use of compute...

As the 2026 TCA Convention was preparing to wrap up, TCA Talk caught up with Dale Parker, who was overseeing the annual convention for the first time as the Association's Executive Vice President. We covered a number of topics with Dale, including the importance that was highlighted at the convention of placing a focus on the youth involved with the industry. As Dale shares, young producers are part of both the present and future as they are actively involved in raising cattle and showmanship. ...

Rhedona Rose is a long-time friend of the Tennessee Cattlemen’s Association, and her career with Farm Bureau Insurance spans most of the history of the association. Rhedona was onsite at the 2026 TCA Convention and TCA Talk spent some time looking back at her lifelong connection to the agricultural community, beginning with her family in Smith County. From Rhedona’s perspective, the TCA has evolved significantly since its inception in 1985. As she shares with us, each generation of leadership h...

During the 2026 TCA Convention, TCA Talk had the opportunity to spend some time with Dr. Bob Coley, who served as the first President of Tennessee Cattlemen’s Association when the organization was founded in 1985. In addition to looking back at the early years of TCA, Dr. Coley discusses how some of those early grassroots efforts that were a part of building the association still apply today. As an example, Dr. Coley points to the work that goes into strengthening TCA’s county-level groups and i...

With this episode of TCA Talk recorded at the TCA’s Annual Convention, we have the opportunity to be introduced to Casey Matzke. Our interview was recorded just days after Casey began her term as the President of the American National Cattlewomen, Inc. As you will hear, we talked with Casey about ANCW's mission and ongoing initiatives as the organization operates under three core pillars: education, promotion, and legislation. The ANCW has active affiliate organizations in 28 states, including T...

TCA Talk had the opportunity at the TCA Convention to catch up with Andy Holt, the Commissioner of Agriculture for Tennessee. In addition to his position with the state, Andy is also a beef cattle producer in Northwest Tennessee and he is a member of TCA. Along with talking about his work with the state as the Commissioner of Agriculture, we explored how Andy was inspired to become a first-generation cattle producer and how his efforts on the ground inform his work in his position with the state...

At the 2026 TCA Convention, we had the privilege of spending some time with Dr. Temple Grandin. An award-winning author, livestock expert and Autism advocate, Dr. Grandin spoke to the TCA Convention in featured breakout sessions during both days of the event. During this interview, we talked with Dr. Grandin about being onsite and meeting with cattle producers and vendors in settings like the TCA Convention. We also heard Dr. Grandin address the importance of talking to young people to get them ...

TCA Executive Vice President Dale Parker returns to the show as we enter the final countdown to the TCA Convention, happening Feb. 6-7 at the Williamson County Ag Center in Franklin, Tenn. In addition to discussing the value of attending the Convention, Dale looks ahead to some of the goals for the TCA in 2026. As you will hear, Dale talks about the importance of membership growth for the TCA, and he talks about how the association is focused on addressing current challenges in the cattle indus...

For this episode of TCA Talk, we feature our conversation with Dr. Samantha Beaty, the state veterinarian for Tennessee. Dr. Beaty will be one of the featured presenters at the upcoming Tennessee Cattlemen’s Association Convention and Expo, which is taking place February 6-7 at the Williamson County Ag Center in Franklin, Tenn. Along with talking about what Dr. Beaty is looking forward to experiencing at this year’s TCA Convention, we ask Dr. Beaty to look back on her journey into veterinary me...

In this episode of TCA Talk, Dale Parker makes his first visit to the show since beginning his new position as the TCA’s Executive Vice President on November 17, 2025. Dale talks about his initial weeks on the job, noting a focus that involves serving members, being involved with sales and county meetings, listening to members' concerns, and never losing sight of the huge legislative portion of the job as a voice for producers. You’ll hear about Dale’s background as he looks back at growing up i...

With the second episode of TCA Talk, the official podcast of the Tennessee Cattleman's Association puts the spotlight on Valerie Bass, the Executive Director of the Tennessee Beef Council. We’ll get to know in detail how the Beef Checkoff Program is working to help create demand among consumers for the beef products that producers are bringing to market. We’ll learn how the growth of digital marketing platforms has helped the Beef Council with its promotion of beef products and the mission to ed...

With the first episode of our TCA Talk Podcast Series, we'll get an update from Gary Dering, the President of the Tennessee Cattlemen's Association. The podcast opens with Gary talking to us about the hiring of Dale Parker as the new Executive Vice President of TCA. Gary looks back at the first year of his two-year term as TCA President, noting the excellent support he received from the TCA Board and the organization's staff. Looking ahead to 2026, Gary is focused on supporting the work of Dale...