AgriLife Extension hires new economics specialist in Amarillo
Day to provide risk management strategies for agricultural producers
Lessons learned from a cow-calf operation in Akron, Alabama, shaped Merri Beth Day and her passion to help agricultural producers and make their lives easier.
Her passion will now be put into action as the new Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service economics specialist based at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center in Amarillo and an assistant professor in the Texas A&M Department of Agricultural Economics.
Day, Ph.D., earned her bachelor’s in agricultural business and economics at Auburn University, her master’s in agricultural economics at the University of Arkansas, and her doctorate in agricultural economics at Kansas State University.
“Growing up around agriculture, I’ve just seen how difficult and rewarding it can be, and so my goal, my passion, is to help producers manage risks in their operations and succeed,” Day said.
Helping find the right resources
Production agriculture involves a lot of risk but can also be very rewarding, Day said. Many factors are within the producer’s control, but others aren’t. Weather and prices are things producers don’t always have a lot of control over.
“But they can be prepared for them,” she said. “I think being prepared and knowing where their resources are located and how to access them is one of the biggest ways to manage risk in production agriculture. So, that is what I want to do; I want to be a resource for them and make sure they know what risk management strategies are available and how to access and utilize those.”
Day said that’s where AgriLife Extension and academia come in. While producers may come in thinking they want to grow crops or raise cattle – the lifestyle they want to live – they may not come in saying I want to be a businessman. But that is inherently a part of production agriculture.
“That’s where AgriLife Extension and my role fits in – helping producers to learn how to manage the business side of it,” she said. “The producer is the real expert on their operation; they know how it works better than anybody. We are here to help them when they get stuck or offer the resources when they don’t know where to look.”
Expertise beyond cattle
Day’s applied research has primarily been on the economics of livestock production technologies and disease management, specifically in feedlots, with additional work on grazing and irrigation management.
“I want everyone in the Panhandle to know that even though I’m from a livestock economics background, I’m here to serve them,” she said. “If that’s related to livestock production, great. But I’m here to serve as an economist and resource for anything the producers and county agents in the Panhandle need.”
