The University of Hawaii Manoa Cooperative Extension (UH) and Utah State University (USU) collaborated to provide risk management education to Hawaii cattle producers. The aim was to serve the underserved audience of Hawaii cattle producers. We also partnered with knowledgeable agents certified with RMA, Bonnie Lind from Lind Insurance Services and Jacqueline Da Rocha from ProAg. The agents provided Livestock Risk Protection Programs.
The educational topics for Hawaii cattle producers included understanding market price risk for feeder cattle through online decision support tools, comprehending Livestock Risk Protection (LRP) Insurance, evaluating production risk associated with grass-finishing cattle in Hawaii, understanding consumer attitudes to Hawaii grass-finished beef, and enhancing financial record keeping. The educational materials were presented at workshops in Hawaii, Maui, and Kauai counties.
An online video webinar was conducted following a series of in-person workshops. During the webinar, participants watched pre-recorded presentations and attended a follow-up session with live Q&A and demonstrations of decision-making tools. Webinar videos are available on the UH Livestock Extension YouTube page and will be made public after the project period. The participants' evaluations showed positive responses and increased knowledge across the topics presented. In addition, eight podcast episodes were produced on risk management for producers.