GENE COPENHAVER TAKES THE HELM AT NCBA
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trusted partners— but the forage strategy is cautious.
“ We try to have at least a half-crop ahead in case of dry weather,” he said. Milder winters than those he remembers from decades ago have helped extend grazing seasons, further lowering cost of gain.“ We depend on our grass for grazing to put the pounds on.”
In the stocker business, however, land is only half the equation. The other half is people. Copenhaver is quick to say relationships matter as much as rainfall. He has sold cattle to the same feedyards in the Midwest for years, and he stays in close contact throughout the feeding period.
“ We want feedback once the cattle hit those feedyards,” he said.“ We depend on that— and we want repeat customers and reputation.” Accessibility, honesty and communication are not marketing buzzwords for him; they’ re the currency of the business.
That emphasis on trust was reinforced by a parallel career that shaped much of Copenhaver’ s thinking. After graduating from Virginia Tech in 1983 with a degree in animal science, he launched into agricultural lending, encouraged by longtime mentor Professor Emeritus David Kohl. Across the next 38 years, he worked with USDA, Farm Credit and First Bank & Trust, all while continuing to manage the family’ s cattle operation.
“ My ag lending job helped me with my farm operation, and my farm operation helped me with my ag lending job,” he said.“ They went side by side.”
From the banker’ s desk, Copenhaver developed a clear-eyed view of risk— and of people. He has seen succession planning done poorly and done well, and he believes the industry is improving.
“ Too often, the 65-year-old son took over the business after the patriarch died— without ever seeing the books,” he said.“ I think my generation sees the positive in having a plan. If you
have a plan, you get the younger generation excited to come in.”
Risk management, in his view, is inseparable from education. Over the years, he has used nearly every available tool: hedging, forward contracts, options and insurance.“ LRP is great because you can use it whether you have one animal or 25,000 head,” he said. Smaller producers, he argues, are the backbone of the cattle industry and deserve access to the same tools as larger operations— whether through insurance products, buying cooperatives or countylevel groups that pool inputs. Even participation in associations matters.“ Membership is a form of risk management,” he said.“ Having a seat at the policy table helps protect your business.”
That belief naturally spills into advice for firstgeneration producers. Copenhaver doesn’ t romanticize the challenges, but he refuses to be discouraging.“ Start small and don’ t get frustrated,” he said. He has watched neighbors and former clients grow from a handful of cattle into sizable operations, sometimes becoming the largest producers in their area.“ You don’ t have to inherit it,” he added.“ Be innovative. You may need an off-farm job at first and that’ s fine. We’ ve all been there.” What sustains people, he believes, is passion.“ It’ s hard to get cozy with an ear of corn,” he laughed.“ But you can get cozy with a cow.”
Family has always been central to his passion. Copenhaver worked alongside his father and uncle for years, and today he farms with his son, Will, the sixth generation.“ Will brought himself into the operation,” he said, recounting his son’ s early ventures in firewood, landscaping, hydroseeding, fencing and other enterprises before coming into the cattle business fulltime. The transition has been deliberate and structured. Will now owns more of the operation than Copenhaver, with a
8 FEBRUARY 2026 www. NCBA. org