2026 OCA Steer Carcass Challenge Registration

Description

OCF Steer Carcass Challenge

The Oklahoma Cattlemen's Foundation (OCF) Steer Carcass Challenge offers cattle producers, families, and industry supporters the opportunity to invest in the future of Oklahoma's beef industry while participating in a friendly and educational competition. Participants donate a steer to the OCF as a tax deductible charitable contribution. Donations directly support the OCF, helping provide scholarships, youth leadership opportunities, educational programming, and other initiatives that strengthen the next generation of Oklahoma agriculture.

More than a competition, the Steer Carcass Challenge provides valuable information about how cattle perform beyond the pasture. Participants receive real world data that reflects feedyard performance, carcass merit, and overall profitability. The results offer insight into how management decisions, genetics, and nutrition influence the end product, allowing producers to better evaluate the strengths of their herd and make informed decisions for future breeding and management programs. Heifers are not allowed.

Unified County organizations are also encouraged to participate in the OCF Steer Carcass Challenge. When a calf is entered under the official name of a Unified County organization, 50 percent of the net proceeds from the sale of that calf at harvest will be returned to the participating Unified County organization to support local programs, educational opportunities, and county activities. To ensure your county receives its share of the proceeds, please register the calf under the official name of the Unified County organization at the time of entry.

OJCA Steer Carcass Challenge

The Oklahoma Junior Cattlemen's Association (OJCA) Steer Carcass Challenge gives young cattle producers the opportunity to experience the beef industry beyond the show ring and pasture. Contestants follow their cattle through the feeding and harvest process, gaining firsthand knowledge of how management decisions impact feedyard performance, carcass quality, and overall value.

The challenge serves as a valuable educational experience by helping OJCA members understand how their cattle actually feed out and perform on the rail. Participants receive detailed carcass data that demonstrates how genetics, nutrition, and management influence carcass characteristics, quality grade, yield grade, and profitability. These results provide a true reflection of how a herd finishes and the carcass fundamentals it possesses, giving young producers practical information they can use to improve their operations for years to come. Entries must be made as a pen of three steers. Heifers are not allowed.

Unlike the OCF Steer Carcass Challenge, the OJCA Steer Carcass Challenge is not a charitable donation program. Participants pay an entry fee to cover the cost of the program, and once the steers are harvested and sold, all the proceeds from the sale of the animals are returned to the OJCA exhibitor. This allows participants to gain valuable educational experience while also receiving the market value of their steers.