UNL honors Texas cattle feeder Paul Engler Tell North Platte what you think
by George Lauby (North Platte Bulletin) - 5/1/2011
Courtesy Photo�Image
Paul Engler
Courtesy PhotoImage
Cactus Feeding locations
Paul Engler, the chief operating officer of Cactus Feeders, the largest privately owned fed-cattle operation in the world, has become the 77th member of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Block and Bridle Hall of Fame.
NebraskaLand National Bank FREE Mobile Banking NOW AVAILABLE!
Engler was honored April 29 at the annual Department of Animal Science and Block and Bridle banquet.
Engler was born in 1929 in Nebraska in the town of Stuart. As a boy, he milked a small herd of cows and sold the milk around town. He entered the freshman class at the University of Nebraska at age 15 and graduated with a degree in animal husbandry.
Emgler worked briefly as a teacher after graduation and also entered the cattle business, where he has been a force most of his life.
He built one of the world�s largest cattle feeding businesses in the Texas panhandle, where he helped Iowa Beef Packers, later Tyson Foods, build one of the largest beef processing plants in the world.
He currently lives in Amarillo, Texas.
Engler credits the NU Department of Animal Science and his years as a student for some of his success, NU officials said when they announced the award.
A year ago, Engler made a major contribution to UNL, donating $20 million for a new Agribusiness Entrepreneurship Program.
He said he wanted �to expose students to a curriculum that teaches risk � how to evaluate it and how to manage it � because if you do not take risk as an entrepreneur, you are not going to make it.�
The Block and Bridle Hall of Fame honors individuals who have made contributions to Nebraska agriculture.
Inside the beef industry, Engler is most recognized for devising a formula, or value-based grid, for beef marketing, which he created in 1987 and is used today, NU officials said.
Engler made national headlines in 1996, when he led a lawsuit against talk show host Oprah Winfrey and on of her programs that featured a vegetarian activist who warned of a possible outbreak of mad cow disease in the United States.
Engler started in the livestock business at age 13, purchaing 100 head of cattle and using the proceeds from the sale of cattle to attend college.
�We lived in a very small town of about 400 people and my dad had the neighborhood filling station,� Engler said in a 2002 profile by the Texas Cattle Feeders. �However, because he grew up on a farm, he felt it necessary that every young boy should learn how to milk a cow.�
Engler�s father expanded the milk cow herd to about 10 cows, and Engler sold milk �by the quart in a little coaster wagon,� he told writer Burt Rutherford of the Texas Cattle Feeders Association.
Engler�s father soon arranged another job for his son � overseeing a small acreage where they ran some steers. But Paul didn�t get paid. At age 13, he borrowed money and bought 100 head of his own cattle.
When Engler sold the cattle, he used the money to enter the University of Nebraska, bidding goodbye to his father�s job at age 15. He studied animal husbandry and true to his work ethic, finished college in seven semesters instead of eight, according to the TCFA profile.
After college graduation, he taught vocational agriculture and ran cattle on the side, but he suffered what he called his �first serious losses in the cattle business,� which forced him to find a better job. He took a job as a feeder cattle buyer.
In 1955, at age 26, he went to work for Nebraska cattle feeder Louis Dinklage. Dinklage owned a feeding business near Wisner and by the late 1960s was considered one of the largest cattle feeders in the country.
The Dinklage operation today is centered in Sidney, with feedyards in Colorado and Wyoming, according to the company.
Engler traveled widely as he bought cattle for Dinklage, including Texas, where he saw an opportunity to build his own cattle operation.
With some encouragement from Dinklage, he moved to Texas in the early 60s, bought land, put together a group of investors including bankers, ranchers and grain people, and began building Hereford Feedyard, according to a 2009 report in the Cattlemen�s Hall of Fame, of which Engler was the first honoree.
Dinklage eventually joined Engler's new effort, and when he did, the feedyard boomed. Engler kept growing and expanding his business interests, adding feedyards and ranches. Always interested in finding investors, he once joined with an oil well servicing company and formed a cattle-feeding venture called Prochemco.
In 1972, the Iowa Beef Packers (IBP) company offered Engler a position � heading the carcass division and overseeing sales of byproducts. During his three years with IBP, he also initiated the establishment and design of the IBP beef slaughter plant at Amarillo, which after it was built became the largest cattle slaughter plant in the United States.
But Engler didn�t really like the packing business, so he negotiated his way out of a 10-year IBP employment contract and in 1975 he started Cactus Feeders.
The original Cactus feed yard is, appropriately, in Cactus, Texas. It now has a 75,000-head capacity, according to the Cactus Feeders company.
Cactus Feeders itself is headquartered in Amarillo. The company also claims 10 more large-scale cattle feed yards from the Texas panhandle to western Kansas.
In total, Cactus Feeders can feed at least 520,000 head of cattle at any time, making it the world�s largest privately owned cattle feeding company. The company employs more than 500 people, one employee per 1,000 head.
�We believe that one employee to every 1,000 head of cattle is a good ratio,� Engler said.
Cactus Feeders is among the 50 largest companies in Texas and on the Forbes list of the top 500 private companies in the United States.
At Cactus Feeders, Engler established an employee stock ownership plan, according to the Cattlemen�s Hall of Fame profile. By 2002, employees owned a little more than 30 percent of the company, Englert said.
Greater impact
Dave Wright, the president of the Independent Cattlemen of Nebraska, is concerned about the size of Engler�s Cactus Feeders and its close relationship with Tyson Foods, formerly IBP.
Wright said undue control of cattle by packers and/or retailers makes it more difficult for ranchers to make a living without going to work for big meat companies, which has harmful effects on areas of the country such as Nebraska.
Chris Abbott, a long-time Nebraska sandhills rancher and another founding member of the Independent Cattlemen organization, agrees.
Abbott said Engler was instrumental in moving the market away from open cash transactions and increasing the use of confidential deals -- deals that keep smaller cattle feeders from getting equivalent prices.
Abbott and Engler were on opposite sides of a federal courtroom in 2004 during the Pickett v. Tyson case, an antitrust case centered on cattle prices. Tyson prevailed after the judge overturned a jury verdict.
Abbott still has strong feelings.
�It�s good to see Paul Engler give back to the cattle and beef industry through his donation to the University of Nebraska, from what he took in the form of so called �sweetheart deals� with the major packers,� Abbott said. �The new GIPSA rules concerning the Packers and Stockyards Act would make these deals or contracts more transparent, so the prices of cattle, especially at large industrial feedlots such as Cactus Feeders, is reported for all to see.�
Rural prosperity
When Engler made the $20 million donation to UNL, he expressed concern about the health of rural communities.
�A lot of these rural communities are in tough shape economically,� he said. �They have lower populations, and then services move out of the town. That is true not only of Nebraska but in other ag states as well. Statistics will show that in Nebraska we have a higher percent of the population living in small, rural towns than do other states. I want those communities to not only survive but to become more active.�
Date
The block and Bridle banquet was held April 29 at the Nebraska East Union on UNL�s East Campus. A reception for Engler and his family, friends and past honorees preceded the banquet.
The North Platte Bulletin - Published 5/1/2011
Copyright © 2011 northplattebulletin.com - All rights reserved.
Flatrock Publishing, Inc. - 1300 E 4th St., Suite F - North Platte, NE 69101
by George Lauby (North Platte Bulletin) - 5/1/2011
Courtesy Photo�Image
Paul Engler
Courtesy PhotoImage
Cactus Feeding locations
Paul Engler, the chief operating officer of Cactus Feeders, the largest privately owned fed-cattle operation in the world, has become the 77th member of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Block and Bridle Hall of Fame.
NebraskaLand National Bank FREE Mobile Banking NOW AVAILABLE!
Engler was honored April 29 at the annual Department of Animal Science and Block and Bridle banquet.
Engler was born in 1929 in Nebraska in the town of Stuart. As a boy, he milked a small herd of cows and sold the milk around town. He entered the freshman class at the University of Nebraska at age 15 and graduated with a degree in animal husbandry.
Emgler worked briefly as a teacher after graduation and also entered the cattle business, where he has been a force most of his life.
He built one of the world�s largest cattle feeding businesses in the Texas panhandle, where he helped Iowa Beef Packers, later Tyson Foods, build one of the largest beef processing plants in the world.
He currently lives in Amarillo, Texas.
Engler credits the NU Department of Animal Science and his years as a student for some of his success, NU officials said when they announced the award.
A year ago, Engler made a major contribution to UNL, donating $20 million for a new Agribusiness Entrepreneurship Program.
He said he wanted �to expose students to a curriculum that teaches risk � how to evaluate it and how to manage it � because if you do not take risk as an entrepreneur, you are not going to make it.�
The Block and Bridle Hall of Fame honors individuals who have made contributions to Nebraska agriculture.
Inside the beef industry, Engler is most recognized for devising a formula, or value-based grid, for beef marketing, which he created in 1987 and is used today, NU officials said.
Engler made national headlines in 1996, when he led a lawsuit against talk show host Oprah Winfrey and on of her programs that featured a vegetarian activist who warned of a possible outbreak of mad cow disease in the United States.
Engler started in the livestock business at age 13, purchaing 100 head of cattle and using the proceeds from the sale of cattle to attend college.
�We lived in a very small town of about 400 people and my dad had the neighborhood filling station,� Engler said in a 2002 profile by the Texas Cattle Feeders. �However, because he grew up on a farm, he felt it necessary that every young boy should learn how to milk a cow.�
Engler�s father expanded the milk cow herd to about 10 cows, and Engler sold milk �by the quart in a little coaster wagon,� he told writer Burt Rutherford of the Texas Cattle Feeders Association.
Engler�s father soon arranged another job for his son � overseeing a small acreage where they ran some steers. But Paul didn�t get paid. At age 13, he borrowed money and bought 100 head of his own cattle.
When Engler sold the cattle, he used the money to enter the University of Nebraska, bidding goodbye to his father�s job at age 15. He studied animal husbandry and true to his work ethic, finished college in seven semesters instead of eight, according to the TCFA profile.
After college graduation, he taught vocational agriculture and ran cattle on the side, but he suffered what he called his �first serious losses in the cattle business,� which forced him to find a better job. He took a job as a feeder cattle buyer.
In 1955, at age 26, he went to work for Nebraska cattle feeder Louis Dinklage. Dinklage owned a feeding business near Wisner and by the late 1960s was considered one of the largest cattle feeders in the country.
The Dinklage operation today is centered in Sidney, with feedyards in Colorado and Wyoming, according to the company.
Engler traveled widely as he bought cattle for Dinklage, including Texas, where he saw an opportunity to build his own cattle operation.
With some encouragement from Dinklage, he moved to Texas in the early 60s, bought land, put together a group of investors including bankers, ranchers and grain people, and began building Hereford Feedyard, according to a 2009 report in the Cattlemen�s Hall of Fame, of which Engler was the first honoree.
Dinklage eventually joined Engler's new effort, and when he did, the feedyard boomed. Engler kept growing and expanding his business interests, adding feedyards and ranches. Always interested in finding investors, he once joined with an oil well servicing company and formed a cattle-feeding venture called Prochemco.
In 1972, the Iowa Beef Packers (IBP) company offered Engler a position � heading the carcass division and overseeing sales of byproducts. During his three years with IBP, he also initiated the establishment and design of the IBP beef slaughter plant at Amarillo, which after it was built became the largest cattle slaughter plant in the United States.
But Engler didn�t really like the packing business, so he negotiated his way out of a 10-year IBP employment contract and in 1975 he started Cactus Feeders.
The original Cactus feed yard is, appropriately, in Cactus, Texas. It now has a 75,000-head capacity, according to the Cactus Feeders company.
Cactus Feeders itself is headquartered in Amarillo. The company also claims 10 more large-scale cattle feed yards from the Texas panhandle to western Kansas.
In total, Cactus Feeders can feed at least 520,000 head of cattle at any time, making it the world�s largest privately owned cattle feeding company. The company employs more than 500 people, one employee per 1,000 head.
�We believe that one employee to every 1,000 head of cattle is a good ratio,� Engler said.
Cactus Feeders is among the 50 largest companies in Texas and on the Forbes list of the top 500 private companies in the United States.
At Cactus Feeders, Engler established an employee stock ownership plan, according to the Cattlemen�s Hall of Fame profile. By 2002, employees owned a little more than 30 percent of the company, Englert said.
Greater impact
Dave Wright, the president of the Independent Cattlemen of Nebraska, is concerned about the size of Engler�s Cactus Feeders and its close relationship with Tyson Foods, formerly IBP.
Wright said undue control of cattle by packers and/or retailers makes it more difficult for ranchers to make a living without going to work for big meat companies, which has harmful effects on areas of the country such as Nebraska.
Chris Abbott, a long-time Nebraska sandhills rancher and another founding member of the Independent Cattlemen organization, agrees.
Abbott said Engler was instrumental in moving the market away from open cash transactions and increasing the use of confidential deals -- deals that keep smaller cattle feeders from getting equivalent prices.
Abbott and Engler were on opposite sides of a federal courtroom in 2004 during the Pickett v. Tyson case, an antitrust case centered on cattle prices. Tyson prevailed after the judge overturned a jury verdict.
Abbott still has strong feelings.
�It�s good to see Paul Engler give back to the cattle and beef industry through his donation to the University of Nebraska, from what he took in the form of so called �sweetheart deals� with the major packers,� Abbott said. �The new GIPSA rules concerning the Packers and Stockyards Act would make these deals or contracts more transparent, so the prices of cattle, especially at large industrial feedlots such as Cactus Feeders, is reported for all to see.�
Rural prosperity
When Engler made the $20 million donation to UNL, he expressed concern about the health of rural communities.
�A lot of these rural communities are in tough shape economically,� he said. �They have lower populations, and then services move out of the town. That is true not only of Nebraska but in other ag states as well. Statistics will show that in Nebraska we have a higher percent of the population living in small, rural towns than do other states. I want those communities to not only survive but to become more active.�
Date
The block and Bridle banquet was held April 29 at the Nebraska East Union on UNL�s East Campus. A reception for Engler and his family, friends and past honorees preceded the banquet.
The North Platte Bulletin - Published 5/1/2011
Copyright © 2011 northplattebulletin.com - All rights reserved.
Flatrock Publishing, Inc. - 1300 E 4th St., Suite F - North Platte, NE 69101