By Ramsey Sullivan
Riverbend News
The 2017 National Forestry Queen and teacher at Anderson Elementary School, Shelbi McCall, isn’t like most other pageant queens; she isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty and take care of the farm that has been in her family for six generations.
After the death of her father in 2013, Shelbi and her mom, Sharon, faced a difficult decision: step up and take care of their family owned farm, or let the land go to waste. The McCalls decided to continue the tradition and continue taking care of McCall Farm, in Mayo.
“Five generations before me walked the same ground and worked the same land, and I believe I owe it to my ancestors to ensure that the next generations will have the same blessings I have,” said Shelbi. “I believe that God made farmers to tend the land and feed the people.”
McCall Farm specializes in show cattle, timber and wildlife preservation. Shelbi’s main role on the farm is animal husbandry and management, as well as marketing and herd advancements.
When she was growing up, Shelbi’s family allowed her to become a stockholder in the family agricultural enterprise. Although her family’s main focus was pine production, she knew she needed to expand her enterprise. Shelbi started her registered herd of cattle with two Angus heifers. With the money she saved from the Angus heifers, she purchased five shorthorn heifers. This has now turned into a club calf operation, specializing in shorthorn influenced cattle.
New technologies are constantly impacting the quality of Shelbi’s goat flock and cattle herd. Using embryo transfers and flushing her competitive cattle allow her to sell their progeny and create new lines of genetics in her herd, as the cattle industry is now expecting fresh genetics and replacement animals that are phenotypically superior animals. With embryo transfers, Shelbi can buy quality blood lines at a lower cost, and by flushing cattle, she can distribute on a larger scale.
“My cows can produce calves in a strict calving interval for superior production,” said Shelbi. “Artificial insemination and embryo transfers also allow me to achieve better genetics, thus allowing me to accomplish my ultimate goal of becoming a cooperator with a larger ranch who can market my genetics on a national or international scale.”
Shelbi’s main focuses in her business are not the animals, though they are important. Her two main focuses are helping her family farming operation thrive into the next generation of McCalls and encouraging young ladies to become active in the agriculture industry.
“Women are becoming major stakeholders in more operations throughout the country and now that the ‘glass ceiling’ is being busted, it's time for women to shine in the industry,” said Shelbi. “I was the Florida FFA State Star in Agribusiness and won numerous other awards for beef and natural resource managemen. It's a demonstration that all women can be a part in this wonderful industry.”