Bo Garcia, Micki Gooch, Clay Eastwood, and Drew Cassens at the Southwest Meat Association Convention and Suppliers Showcase

A number of undergraduate and graduate students from the Department of Animal Science at Texas A&M University participated in the Southwest Meat Association Annual Convention and Suppliers Showcase held at the Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort in San Antonio, Texas, July 19 to 22, 2017. Kirby Bohls and Jill Jobe served as student assistants for the convention. Faculty members Ray Riley, Davey Griffin, Leslie Frenzel, and Jeff Savell also were at the convention.

Bo Garcia and Leslie Frenzel

All of the students helped represent the department at the Suppliers Showcase answering questions about the meat science program and giving out goodies. As usual, the Texas Aggie Brand jerky and snack sticks were hits.

Many of the students received the Bob Ondrusek Memorial, SMA Hall of Honor, and SMA Foundation scholarships at the convention. In addition, the opportunity to network during the convention and to hear the presentations by key industry leaders were great benefits to them attending.

Front row: Jill Jobe, McKensie Harris, Spencer Tindel, Clay Eastwood, Micki Gooch, Katy Jo Nickelson, and Kirby Bohls; Back row: Anna Schmidt, Bo Garcia, Drew Cassens, Adam Murray, Marc Vogelsang, and Hannah Laird