Cornhusker NAMA had an exciting tour on May 12 that included a first-hand look at a branding operation and a tour of Reinke Irrigation.

The tour kicked off at Bar V Ranch, which is a commercial Angus cow/calf and finishing operation. Dave Van Boening, owner of Bar V Ranch, has over 35 years of experience in the cattle industry and raises his herd on the same ground his grandfather farmed. Dave’s son, Jeremy Van Boening, DVM, is the owner of Republican Valley Animal Center and Genetics and brought state-of-the-art breeding programs to the operation including artificial insemination and embryo transfers. Beth Landau handles all record keeping of the cattle and marketing of beef products for the Bar V Ranch and is also a Programs and Communications Co-Chair for the NAMA Cornhusker Chapter, along with being the Nebraska Territory Sales Representative for Fastline Media Group.

Jacob Knipp, Marketing Administrator for Reinke, gave us a 90-minute tour around their plant in Deshler, NE which was Richard Reinke’s family farm when it started in 1954.  Between their plant in Deshler and an operation in Belleville, KS they have 90 acres of ground with 14 acres under roof.  Their product lines include center pivots, lateral move systems, towables, specialty systems, control systems and water application components.  In Deshler, the group was able to see how they use a combination of skilled laborers and robots to manufacture all their center pivot products.  They have 450 dedicated employees that support their 225 dealers in the US & Canada along with their 60 international dealers in 30 other countries.

The tour included members from Bader Rutter Associates, Big Cob Hybrids, Firespring and Midwest Producer.