AMES, Iowa – Growing up on a grain and livestock farm in central Illinois, Aimee Wertz-Lutz said the most valuable skills she learned from that experience were work ethic, dedication and adaptability.

“Being involved in agriculture is a continuous use of problem-solving skills and innovation to overcome challenges,” she told Farm World. “I also gained an understanding of agriculture values. These skills and values have been irreplaceable to me in my career.”

On July 1, Wertz-Lutz started a new chapter in her agricultural career as the new director of Iowa State University’s (ISU) Iowa Beef Center and extension feedlot specialist, returning to ISU where she was a post-doctoral research associate in ruminant nutrition and nutritional physiology from 2001-2003.

“I have always had a tremendous amount of respect for Iowa State University, the heritage of Iowa cattle production, and the producers that make that happen,” she said. “My academic side loves questioning ‘what if’ and seeking the answers that propel our industry forward; and my industry side is rooted in assessing what is the best technology available to date to address a problem, and then making a decision that balances the optimal path for production and economic soundness.”

Prior to returning to ISU, she was a ruminant nutritionist at Devenish Nutrition North America in Fairmont, Minn., from 2019 to just recently; manager of ruminant nutrition research at ADM Animal Nutrition in Quincy, Ill., from 2011 to 2019; and an associate professor of animal and range sciences at South Dakota State University in Brookings, S.D., from 2003 to 2011.

“These opportunities gave me the ability to apply science and tools I learned from that research to solve problems,” she said. “It also gave the perspective beyond what I would have if I had only been exposed to a single feeding operation.

“One of the greatest things about American agriculture is there are many ways to do it successfully,” she added. “While working in industry, I also had the opportunity to grow a network of allied industry partners, both in Iowa and across the U.S. This network is very powerful, and the synergy of those interactions is incredibly important.”

Moreover, she said, “In agriculture and through Iowa State University, we are fortunate to have the land-grant system in place with a structure to seek solutions, convey solutions to producers, and communicate with the public the impact of these solutions.

“The value the Iowa Beef Center brings is from being presented with a newly emerging challenge and using our skill, to identifying solutions, conveying those to producers, and making the impact known to consumers,” she added. “It’s also important for the Iowa Beef Center to remain an objective source of information and maintain relationships so that objective information can be shared with regulatory bodies and policymakers.”

As Iowa Beef Center director, she said, “Twenty-five percent of my time will be dedicated to administrative duties such as budget management; being a liaison between the Iowa Beef Center, and the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association and the Iowa Beef Industry Council; working with field staff to develop state and regional programming; and working with extension administration to assess impacts of programming.

“An additional 35 percent of my time will be dedicated to my role as extension feedlot specialist,” she added. “In this space, I am interested in pre-weaning nutrition and its impacts on feeder cattle performance and health; non-traditional feeding practices of dairy-beef and the impacts on efficiency of starch utilization, inorganic and organic mineral sources; and the impact of calf growth and health. The balance of my position will be teaching- and research-focused.”

In addition, she said she will be making connections with other regions of the state, “getting them to participate in as many ongoing activities as possible. There are six extension beef-focused field specialists in regions across the state of Iowa. Each of these individuals has programming to meet the needs of producers in their region.

“These programs include pasture walks, feedlot short course, Beef Quality Assurance (a program that provides systematic information to U.S. beef producers of how good animal husbandry techniques can be coupled with accepted scientific knowledge to raise cattle under optimum management conditions), farm management planning, and many others,” she said.

“I am scheduled to attend a number of these meetings, and it is a goal of mine to get to each region in the coming months,” she added. “I have also been participating in Iowa Cattlemen’s Association and Iowa Beef Industry Council meetings. The boards of these organizations are composed of producers from across the state. I am working with other beef faculty to organize some tours of feedlots across the state to meet producers, and gain a perspective of challenges they face.”

Among the goals she has in her new roles, she said, “I would like to develop a series of short courses for the experienced cattle feeder, whether on-farm or working in the feed industry. I have worked with a number of producers with backgrounds in agribusiness, agronomy, or agricultural economics. But in their day-to-day tasks, they have a significant role in cattle feeding and management.

“Depending on their degree program (if they had previous college coursework in agriculture), they may or may not have had an animal nutrition course, or it may have been a number of years since they participated in an animal nutrition class and their needs now exceed original training,” she added.

She said, “Feeding practices and feed ingredients evolve and because feed cost accounts for over half of the cost of cattle production, providing opportunities to brush-up on or learn new skills that can improve feed management, feed efficiency, or survivability of cattle, can impact the fiscal and environmental sustainability of cattle feeders and the beef industry.

“I would like to work with other faculty to develop an advanced feed formulation class for our students that want to enter the feed industry,” she added.

Regarding advice she would give for anyone interested in agriculture careers, she said, “Careers in agriculture are very diverse. While fewer people live on farms, we all still eat and there is a need for the well-trained in the agriculture sector. I think it is important to get some hands-on experience, and to work in as many roles as possible to gain a greater understanding of agriculture practices and life.

“I am also a firm believer of science with practice,” she added. “The combination is more powerful than either alone: learning to problem solve, and using science to solve problems and improve cattle production and sustainability. The other piece is to grow your professional network. Those interactions may seem insignificant at initiation, but as you mature in an agriculture career, they are mutually beneficial and very valuable.”