Featured Sessions

KEY NOTE SPEAKER
Jim Yahn : Manager, North Sterling Irrigation District
When it comes to diminishing water supplies, Jim Yahn knows what he is talking about, especially related to working
with an over-appropriated system, well curtailment, and the impact on a community when wells are shut off. The similarity to circumstances in the San Luis Valley makes what Yahn has to say highly relevant.
Jim Yahn is the manager of the North Sterling and Prewitt Reservoirs, a position that he has held for over 29 years. He is responsible for overseeing the diversion and distribution of water to over 350 farmers. Together the reservoirs are a source of irrigation water for approximately 70,000 acres.
Yahn was appointed by the Governor to the Colorado Water Conservation Board to serve as the South Platte Director in 2016 where he served for five years, including one year as chairperson. Jim has also been a member of the South Platte Basin Roundtable since its inception in 2005, serving as chair from 2009 – 2012. He currently serves as the roundtable’s representative to the Interbasin Compact Committee
Jim is a registered professional engineer, receiving his B.S. in Agricultural Engineering from Colorado State University. Prior to his employment with the North Sterling and Prewitt he worked as a private consulting engineer in Fort Collins for 5 years. He is a native of Colorado growing up on a family ranch, which used water from the North Sterling Reservoir System.
Jim Yahn is our Keynote Speaker, presenting on Wednesday at 1:30pm

CHEF
Chef Jason K. Morse, CEC : Owner of 5280 Culinary, National Spokesperson / BBQ Expert – Ace Hardware Corporation
Chef Jason has spent a lifetime behind the grills and smokers and is now able to interact with consumers daily to help them cook better with some of the best grilling and smoking tools on the market. As the Ace Hardware National Spokesperson and BBQ Expert, Chef Jason is proud to call Ace his culinary home. Chef Jason helps make grilling fun, tasty and makes it easy to create bbq magic in your own backyard.
Jason is a Certified Executive Chef and member of the American Culinary Federation. Jason has been featured on the Food Network, National and Local Media segments, was a morning show chef for a Denver Radio station and currently produces the Colorado Department of Agriculture monthly recipes for local Colorado media.
Jason has been published in the Colorado Classique Junior League of Denver Cookbook, and various local publications. Chef works with many Colorado Agricultural groups like, Colorado Farm Bureau, Colorado Beef Council, Colorado Pork Producers, Colorado Potatoes, Colorado Wool Growers Association and the Colorado Department of Agriculture.
Jason works with and supports groups like the Ace Foundation, Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and The Colorado FFA Foundation.
Chef Jason attended Johnson and Wales University in Charleston, SC and graduated Summa cum laude and was honored with the Apprenti Cuisinier award for Classic French pastry, among other prestigious culinary honors.
Chef Jason Morse is presenting a potato cooking demonstration on Tuesday for Social Hour at 5pm

AG LABOR LAW (Previously SB087)
Dan Waldvogle : Director of External Affairs for Rocky Mountain Farmers Union
Learn the new regulations affecting Ag Labor some including; hand weeding, overtime provisions, shade and water restrictions, access to service providers and arbitration process.
For more information about Ag Labor laws, please visit these websites:
Dan Waldvogle is the Director of External Affairs at the Rocky Mountain Farmers Union where we represent family farming and ranching operations and rural communities across New Mexico, Colorado and Wyoming. Dan has a ranching background and has also worked in land access and succession programming to ensure the stewardship of our working lands.

POTATO PROFIT VALUE
Tanner Ehmke : CoBank Lead Economist, Dairy and Specialty Crops
In Tanner’s session, he will help producers find economical ways to farm in these current conditions and economy.
Tanner Ehmke is lead economist for dairy and specialty crops in CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange research division, where his focus is on providing market and industry research for the dairy and specialty crops sectors. Prior to joining CoBank in 2015, he marketed seed for his family’s seed company in western Kansas, where his family has farmed since 1885.

SUCCESSION PLANNING
Jeff Tranel : CSU Regional Extension Specialist – Agricultural & Business Management Economist
Jeff will lead farm succession planning sessions on both days to help new and old generations navigate transitioning farm ownership.
Jeff’s Professional Expertise:
- Estate Planning and Succession Planning
- Facilitating Family Communications
- Management of Federal Income Taxes
- Business Organizational Structures
- Financial Analysis – Enterprise Budgeting and Feasibility Analysis
- Human Resources Management
CSU RESEARCH FARM & EXTENSION
Hear from CSU Research Farm and Extension on what research is being conducted and new staff in the valley. Meet our new pathologist and plant breeder at the research farm. Hear research from CSU campus faculty. (Many topics covered)
SOIL HEALTH
Gabriella Coughlin and Annie Overlin will both be presenting on Soil Health topics for crops and livestock. Understand how to incorporate soil health practices into your operation.
LIVESTOCK SESSIONS
We will have a slate of livestock producers discussing nutrition, calving, vaccine protocols, and an entire panel on meat goat production. Featured speakers: Micheal Fisher CSU Extention, Tim Holt CSU Vet, Alpine Vet Clinic, Meat Goat Panel: Kendra Carpenter, Remington & Kendra Durre, and Jordan Neeley
WATER IN THE SLV
Come to the conference for Thursday’s hard hitting conversation about all things water in the SLV. We will discuss the current state of our aquifer, climate and snowpack. Presentations will include Hard Truths about Groundwater, Anatomy of an Augmentation Plan, and intro to Master Irrigators course
HANDS-ON DEMOS
Come see exciting hands-on demos such as a Bubbler Package on Pivot Irrigation, How to set up your Combine for grain harvest, and Powder River Livestock Handling Equipment
Conference Agenda
Join is at this year’s Southern Rocky Mountain Ag Conference.
Discuss the latest on potato research, profitability and seeds. Engage in breakout conversations on grazing, family farm estate planning, cattle nutrition, soil health and irrigation. Dive into the current water and drought conditions in the Valley, be part of equipment demonstrations and much more. Hear from CSU Extension specialists, researchers from the CSU San Luis Valley Research Center, and experts from across the region.
Tuesday – February 1st
Date | Time | Topic | Presenter | Title | Location |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tuesday – 2/1 | 8:00-8:10 | Welcome, Intro & Survey | Larry Brown | CUS Area Extension Director & Agent | Main Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 8:10-8:45 | Ag Labor Law Update | Dan Waldvogle | Director of External Affairs, Rocky Mountain Farmers Union | Main Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 8:45-9:15 | Legislative Update | James Henderson | Vice President, Colorado Farm Bureau | Main Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 9:15-10:00 | Potato Profit Value | Tanner Ehmke | Lead Economist, CoBank | Main Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 10:00- 10:20 | * BREAK * | |||
Tuesday – 2/1 | 10:30-12:00 | Family Farm Estate Planning | Jeff Tranel & Norm Dalsted | Regional Extension Specialist, CSU Extension / PhD, Professor CSU | Blue Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 10:30-10:50 | Input Costs | Trevor Geist / Chad Hodgson | Colorado Area Manager / Division Marketing Manager, Nutrien Ag Solutions | Main Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 10:30 | DEMO: Bubbler Systems | Wade Henderson | PE, Ski Hi Engineering | McMullen Building |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 10:50-11:25 | NPC Political Update | Mike Wenkel | COO, National Potato Council | Main Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 11:25-12:00 | Marketing Update | John Toaspern | Chief Marketing Officer, Potatoes, USA | Main Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 12:00-1:30 | * LUNCH * | |||
Tuesday – 2/1 | 1:30-2:30 | Reveille Seed Panel | Samuel Essah, Doug Scheuring & Jeff Koym | Associate Professor, Texas A&M / Texas A&M Potato Breeding Program | Main Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 1:30 | DEMO: Powder River Livestock Equipment | Justin Gilmore | Monte Vista Coop | McMullen Building |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 2:30-3:00 | Introducing Dr Jessica Chitwood-Brown, SLVRC New Potato Breeder | Dr. Jessica Chitwood- Brown / Zach Czarnecki | SLVRC Manager, CSU | Main Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 2:30-3:00 | Running on all Cylinders-cultivating being healthy and happy | Dan Waldvogle | Rocky Mountain Farmers Union | Orange Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 3:00-3:20 | * BREAK * | |||
Tuesday – 2/1 | 3:30-4:00 | Storage and Warehouse Practices to Improve Tuber Quality | Sastry Jayanty | PhD, Associate Professor, Post Harvest Physiologist, SLV Research Center, CSU | Main Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 3:30-4:00 | Soil Health Research | Jorge Ibarra Caballero & Jane Stewart | PhD / PhD Assoc Prof Ag Biology CSU | Orange Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 3:30 | DEMO: Nutrition by Hubbard | Monte Vista Coop | McMullen Building | |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 4:00-4:30 | Historical Perspectives for the Value of Potato Varieties Grown in Colorado | Rebecca Hill | Research Scientist/Scholar II, Ph.D, CSU | Main Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 4:00-4:30 | Colorado Certified Seed Update | Andrew Houser | PhD, PCS Manager, SLV Research Center | Orange Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 4:30-5:00 | The Risk of Powdery Scab in Potatoes – Increased knowledge on Environmental Factors that encourage disease development | Yuan Zeng | PhD, Dept of Agricultural Biology, CSU | Main Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 4:30-5:00 | Introduction and Q&A of New Pathologist | Mohamed Chikh Ali | New Pathologist | Orange Room |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 5:00 | * SOCIAL HOUR – Gourmet Cooking (Sponsored by CPAC & Sunflower Bank) | Chef Jason K. Morse, CEC | Owner of 5280 Culinary, National Spokesperson / BBQ Expert – Ace Hardware Corporation (Sponsored by CPAC & Sunflower Bank) | Main Room |
Wednesday – February 2nd
Date | Time | Topic | Presenter | Title | Location |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Wednesday – 2/2 | 8:00-8:10 | Welcome, Survey | Larry Brown | CSU Area Extension Director & Agent | Main Room |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 8:10-8:45 | Soil Health Connection to Water Conservation | Gabriella Coughlin | Middle Rio Grande Conservation District in New Mexico, Agronomist/Agroecologist | Main Room |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 8:10-10:00 | Grazing Management in Drought – Soil Health for Pasture Systems | Annie Overlin | Regional Extension Range Specialist, CSU Extension | Orange Room |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 8:45-9:10 | Current Insurance Programs | Chayito Espinoza | Mountain West Insurance | Main Room |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 9:00 | DEMO: Soil Moisture Sensors | Patrick O’Neill | Soil Health Services | McMullen Building |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 9:10-10:00 | Drought Tolerant Alfalfa Varieties | Ian Ray | PhD, Professor of Agronomy-New Mexico State University | Main Room |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 9:30-10:00 | * BREAK for Orange Room* | |||
Wednesday – 2/2 | 10:00-10:30 | * BREAK * | Diamond Sponsor | Yara | |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 10:30- 11:30 | Third Trimester Nutrition for Cattle | Michael Fisher | Interim Extension Co-Regional Director, CSU | Orange Room |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 10:30-12:00 | Family Farm Estate Planning | Jeff Tranel & Norm Dalsted, Professor | Regional Extension Specialist/ PhD, Professor CSU Extension | Blue Room |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 10:30- 11:15 | Alfalfa Deficit Irrigation | Perry Cabot | Water Resources Specialist – Western Region, Western Colorado Research Center, CSU Extension | Main Room |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 10:30 | DEMO: Combine Calibration for Grain Harvest | US Tractor & Harvest | McMullen Building | |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 11:15- 12:00 | CSU Extension Roll out, Recognition of Stakeholders & Friends of Ski Hi- Kathy Woods and Karla Shriver | Larry Brown / Zach Czarnecki | CSU Area Director / SLVRC Manager, CSU | Main Room |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 12:00-1:30 | * LUNCH * | |||
Wednesday – 2/2 | 1:30-2:30 | Keynote Speaker | Jim Yahn | Manager, North Sterling Irrigation District | Main Room |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 2:30- 3:00 | What are PAP EPD’s and How to use them | Tim Holt / Curtis Crawford | DVM, Clinical Sciences / DVM, Alpine Veterinary Clinic | Orange Room |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 2:30- 3:00 | Producer Input for $20,000 Investment in SLV Value Added Ag | Becca Jablonski | PhD, Asst. Prof. Ag and Resources Economics | Main Room (will continue at 5pm in Blue Room) |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 3:00-3:20 | * BREAK * | Diamond Sponsor | Advantage Hay Products | Main Room |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 3:30-5:00 | Meat Goat Panel | Kendra Carpenter / Remington Durre / Jordan Neeley | Main Room | |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 3:30- 4:30 | Ag Adventures Kids Kamp | Morgan Young | 4-H Youth Development and Coordinators | Green Room |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 3:30- 4:30 | Calving, Neonatal Nutrition & Care | Tim Holt & Curtis Crawford | DVM, Clinical Sciences, CSU/ DVM, Alpine Veterinary Clinic | Orange Room |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 4:30- 5:00 | Demo: “Nose Knows Scouting” Potato Virus Y Detection Using Trained Dog | Andrea Parish & Andrew Houser | McMullen Building | |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 5:00 | * SOCIAL HOUR * | with Ag Adventures Kids Kamp by CSU Extension in Green Room | ||
Wednesday – 2/2 | 5:00 | Continuation of Producer Input | Becca Jablonski | PhD, Asst. Prof. Ag and Resources Economics | Blue Room |
Thursday – February 3rd
Date | Time | Topic | Presenter | Title | Location |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Thursday – 2/3 | 8:00-8:10 | Welcome, Survey | Marisa Fricke | Program Manager Subdistrict 1 | Main Room |
Thursday – 2/3 | 8:10-9:00 | Water Conditions Update | Craig Cotten | Division Engineer, Colorado Division of Water Resources | Main Room |
Thursday – 2/3 | 9:00-10:00 | The Hard Truths of Groundwater | Marisa Fricke / Amber Pacheco / Chris Ivers / Clinton Phillips | Program Manager Subdistrict 1 / Program Manager Subdistrict 2,3, & 6 / Program Manager – Subdistrict 4 & 5 / PhD, Davis Engineering | Main Room |
Thursday – 2/3 | 10:00-10:20 | * BREAK * | Diamond Sponsor | ||
Thursday – 2/3 | 10:30-12:00 | Anatomy of Augmentation | Heather Dutton / Marisa Fricke / Nathan Coombs / Jim Yahn | Manager, SLV Water Conservation District / Program Manager Subdistrict 1 / Manager CWCD / Manager, North Sterling Irrigation District | Main Room |
Thursday – 2/3 | 12:00-12:15 | Intro to Master Irrigators | Main Room | ||
Thursday – 2/3 | 12:15:-1:30 | * LUNCH * | |||
Thursday – 2/3 | 1:30 | Commercial Applicators & Private Applicator Continuing Education 7-Core Credits | Don Henderson | DP Ag Services | Orange Room (Register at door) |
DEMOS
Date | Time | Topic | Presenter | Title | Location |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tuesday – 2/1 | 10:30 | Demo: Bubbler Systems | Wade Henderson | P.E., Ski Hi Engineering | McMullen Building |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 1:30 | Demo: Powder River Livestock Equipment | Justin Gilmore | Monte Vista Coop | McMullen Building |
Tuesday – 2/1 | 3:30 | Demo: Nutrition by Hubbard | Monte Vista Coop | McMullen Building | |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 9:00 | Demo: Soil Moisture Sensors | Patrick O’Neill | Soil Health Services | McMullen Building |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 10:30 | Combine Calibration for Grain Harvest | US Tractor & Harvest | McMullen Building | |
Wednesday – 2/2 | 4:00 | “Nose Knows Scouting” Potato Virus Y Detection Using Trained Dog | Andrea Parish & Andrew Houser | McMullen Building |