LEXINGTON, Ky. – Gregg Rentfrow’s career journey as a university meat science professor can be traced back to his hometown IGA grocery store, back in the day.

“My path is different from most meat scientists,” the University of Kentucky (UK) Extension professor of meat science, told Farm World. “I was working in a grocery store in my hometown as a bag boy, back when we bagged your groceries in paper bags, and carried them to your car.”

Having turned 18 in 1989, which was the legal age for insurance to cut meat, he transferred to the meat department of that very IGA, where, he said, he officially started his career in the meat industry.

“My education was not going as I planned, so my father (who, he said, doubled as his ag teacher) suggested meat science, which until then I had no idea there was such a thing,” he said. “I visited with the meat scientists at the University of Illinois (U of I) and got inspired, and went back to salvage my GPA at my junior college, and a couple years after that visit, I transferred to the U of I (where he graduated with a bachelor of science in animal science).”

Eventually, he joined the U of I Meat Judging Team and the Meat Animal Evaluation Team, and after graduation, stayed on to work toward his Master of Science in meat science: “During my Master of Sience program, I helped coach the U of I meat team, as well as coaching the Illinois 4-H Meat Judging Team.

“Between coaching and teacher assisting at the U of I, I got the teaching bug,” he added. “I further honed my skills at the University of Missouri where I earned my Ph.D. (in meat science and muscle biology).”

He said he utilized his experience from retail meat-cutting and marketing in his Extension programming, as well as his undergraduate teaching: “I had several years of experience in the meat industry before I got serious about my education. Starting young is how you rack up over 37 years of experience.”

Rentfrow recently received the 2026 American Society of Animal Science (ASAS) Extension Award, which recognizes his Extension programming, and his role in enhancing the economic competitiveness of the animal and meat industries, organization officials said.

His work has reached professional livestock and meat audiences in 42 states and Canada, and his carcass fabrication videos have drawn more than 2 million views on YouTube, officials added.

“We are incredibly proud of Dr. Rentfrow and this well-deserved recognition,” said Jennifer Hunter, UK Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food, and Environment (UK-CAFE) associate dean for extension, and director of UK’s Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service.

“For more than 35 years, he has dedicated his career to advancing meat science, while making complex research accessible to and relevant for producers, processors, youth and consumers,” she added. “His commitment to education and service has had a lasting impact on Kentucky agriculture and beyond.”

Among the programs contributing to the recognition of the award is the UK Meat Cutting School, which has trained thousands of meat cutters from across the United States and Canada, UK officials said. Rentfrow also provides leadership for the Kentucky 4-H Country Ham Project, which has grown from a few hundred youth participants to about 1,100 over the past two decades.

In addition, he supports programming through UK’s Food Systems Innovation, and has helped develop educational opportunities that connect meat science with Kentucky food culture, UK officials said. One example is UK’s BBQ Basics, a program that takes participants on a national barbecue tour without leaving the parking lot.

Officials added his current attention is on UK’s Meat and Food Industry Advancement Center, which is nearing completion at UK’s Oran C. Little Research Center in Versailles, which will be a “one-stop shop” facility supporting the state’s multibillion-dollar animal agriculture industry through workforce development and meat science research.

Rentfrow said regarding winning the award, “It’s always an honor, especially for a national award like this. I’m humbled, and it’s always good to be recognized by these organizations and by your peers. I’m very appreciative, and to be recognized nationally is really special.”

In addition to his current award, his previous honors include the ASAS Animal Industry Innovation Award; American Meat Science Association Distinguished Extension Award; ASAS Southern Section Extension Award; M.D. Whiteker Award for Excellence in Extension from the Kentucky Association of State Extension Professionals; ASAS Midwest Section Outstanding Young Extension Specialist Award; and Outstanding Service to Kentucky’s Beef Industry Award.

For Rentfrow, the ASAS Extension Award represents both personal recognition and acknowledgment of the collaborative nature of extension work, he said: “The colleagues you work with day in and day out are the ones who nominate you. That makes it meaningful.”

As for his advice on pursuing a career in meat science, he said, “Don Tyson (former Tyson Foods, Inc., chair and CEO) said it best: ‘As long as people are hungry, we have a job.’ There are numerous career paths in meat science that do not involve holding a knife in a cold room, cutting meat. But I feel you need to gain some experience in the basics.

“A student could follow my path: working in a grocery store or a local butcher shop, or at a university meat lab,” he said. “Learning the blue-collar basics of the business will better prepare you for one of those career paths.”

He added, “So overall, my advice would be to learn the basics, develop a relationship with your meat professors and be open to opportunities, as well as don’t be afraid to move away from home.”