In this episode, your hosts, Joe, David, and Korbin are taking you Underground once again! After sharing a brief update on each of their ranches, they welcome on their special guest of the evening, Weston Merill!

Born and raised a ranch kid in central Montana, Weston is the Marketing Officer for the Montana Department of Agriculture. He is serving a very integral role in helping Montanans expand agriculture exports to all parts of the world.

David and Weston both recently had the special opportunity to be a part of a trade delegation that was led by the Montana Department of Agriculture to the South American country of Colombia — which is the topic of today’s episode! They discuss the unique opportunities that are internationally available in the cattle industry, recount the stories of what they saw and learned in Colombia, and highlight the differences in how Colombian cattle ranchers run their operations. Weston also shares key insights on the market in Colombia, how they were able to build relationships with some of the producers there, and more.

Mentioned in this Episode:

The Montana Bred for Balance Bull and Female Sale — Call David at 406-210-5605 or send an email to [email protected] if you’re searching for semen from balanced trait sires!

Rafter 5M Land & Cattle

Connors State College Bull Test Sale — Dec. 2nd, 2021

Shady Brook Angus Farm

Bruin Ranch

Facebook @AngusUnderground

Instagram @AngusUnderground

American Angus Association

Montana Department of Agriculture

US Livestock Genetics Export (USLGE)

US Department of Agriculture (USDA)

Creek Insurance — To protect and preserve your livestock investments!

AGROEXPO - Corferias

Quotes:

“As a Marketing Officer, I have to help connect Montana ranchers, farmers, [and] value-added Montana ag businesses to markets — whether they’re domestic or international.” — Weston Merill

“A lot of my strengths lie in that international market space [as a Marketing Officer for the Montana Department of Agriculture] — specifically Spanish-speaking countries because I’m fluent in Spanish.” — Weston Merill

“I think there’s an opportunity, specifically in our case, for Montana … to fit into what [Colombia is] looking for.” — Weston Merill

“In reality, some countries would kill for what we have [with regard to ag], so we should really look in the mirror [sometimes].” — Weston Merill

“You look at this Colombian [Angus] Association and there’s no doubt in my mind that they look at the American Angus Association and they see that that’s the mecha; that’s what [they] want to be.” — Weston Merill

“I think there’s some stuff we really have an obligation to follow through [with] and make sure that our product is doing a great job for these countries because … they’re forward-thinking enough [and] excited enough that they’re going to find what it is that they’re after — and we better hope that it’s US genetics.” — Weston Merill

Learn more about our sponsor, Montana Ranch, by visiting

MontanaRanchAngus.com.