THOMPSONVILLE, Ill. — Tom Saxe is known by almost every beef producer around these parts. And he has been retired for nearly two decades.

He spent more than 30 years with University of Illinois Extension and is still active in beef education in southern Illinois. His Southern accent, folksy style and straight talk is familiar to thousands of livestock producers and others in Illinois agriculture.

Editor’s note: This is part of an ongoing series on leaders, educators and innovators in the livestock industry in the Midwest.

MILAN, Mo. — On a late March morning, after Oscar Mensa finished his chores, he headed inside his home on his Sullivan County farm and fixed himself a cup of tea. Spring officially arrived that day, and on sunny days, his farm in the Green Hills region of north central Missouri — down the road from Green City and Greencastle — was starting to show signs of green in the pastures.

Earlier in the week had marked 44 years to the day since he arrived at Milan, Missouri, from Argentina with his wife and two young sons, not speaking any English but wanting to learn more about raising cattle. There was snow on the ground, accentuating the change of pace from the La Pampa region of Argentina he had come from, where snow was a rare sight.

STUART, Iowa — Rex Wilhelm graduated from Iowa State’s vet school in 1968 and figured this western Iowa town was a good place to start.

“There were a number of practices available to me, but I needed to stay within driving distance of Ames,” he says. “You see, I had met this young lady there, and I didn’t want to get too far away.”

CARLYLE, Ill. — Despite some concerns, Ken Maschhoff is bullish on pigs. The co-founder and head of The Maschhoffs, one of the world’s largest pork production companies said he believes the industry has a solid footing. But he is also aware of outside forces that could shake things up.

“We’re in a tremendously good position because we have the world’s best product, and one that consumers around the globe want,” he said. “It’s pure economics. Fundamentally, I still believe in the industry. I still believe in owning pork assets long-term. But this short-term geopolitical stuff is scary.”

Editor’s note: This is the first of a series on leaders, educators and innovators in the livestock industry.