Production costs, marketing top ranch workshop agenda

Nevada's ranchers will gather in five communities across the state and around interactive video sites in early January to talk about ways to overcome the challenges of sky-high production costs.

Among the big subjects for discussion will be international marketing of beef, bio-security issues and country-of-origin labeling.

"The price of a gallon of diesel has outpaced a fast-food restaurant value meal hamburger or the price of a gallon of milk," says Ron Torell, a livestock specialist with the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension Service. "Never before have our input costs been this high in relation to the price received for our product."

Cost of the workshops is $10 per ranch.

The schedule:

* Jan. 5, 10 a.m. Washoe County Extension Office, Reno. (Interactive video sites: Eureka Extension Office; Caliente Extension Office; Tonopah

Extension Office; Logandale Extension Office, Lovelock Extension Office and Klamath Falls, Oregon Extension office. Sites are tentative; for verification call (775) 784-1377.)

* Jan. 5, 6 p.m. Multipurpose Building, Fallon.

* Jan. 6, 5 p.m. White Pine County Convention Center, Ely.

* Jan. 7, 12:30 p.m. Elko Convention Center, Elko.

* Jan. 8, 10:30 a.m. Humboldt County Extension Office, Winnemucca.

* Jan. 10, 10 a.m. Wellington Community Hall, Wellington.

The workshops are sponsored by the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension Service, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Pfizer Animal Health and the Nevada Cattlemen's Association.