Meat Quality Assurance MQA Certification Program
4-H and FFA members enrolling in any market and/or breeding livestock or small animal projects for the first time regardless of age, must attend a Colorado Meat Quality Assurance (MQA) program. A Colorado Meat Quality Assurance (MQA) program is considered to be a training conducted using a Colorado 4-H MQA trailer.
4-H and FFA members will be required to attend a Colorado MQA program a minimum of twice during the course of their 4-H career – once as a junior (8-13 years old, 4-H age) and once again within one year after becoming a senior (14-18 years old, 4-H age) 4-H member. Members are encouraged to review the information and best practices found in the Colorado Meat Quality Assurance program annually.
As we told you in the 4-H newsletter, due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak all face to face MQA Programming using the MQA Trailer has been suspended, all MQA Training will be done using the Online Course and testing materials. This online MQA Training is only good for the 2020 4-H year only, next year we will return back to the face to face training as we have used before. All Online MQA training must be completed by June 1, 2020, no exceptions, so get started on this as soon as you get your materials.
Below you will find a list of our MQA spreadsheet, look at that list and see if your name has “Need Meat Quality Assurance” in red next to your name, if it does not you are up to date with your MQA for 2020.
If you do have “Need Meat Quality Assurance” in red next to your name, you need to watch the online MQA program and take the MQA test. There are three attachments below for the MQA testing materials – Junior (8-10), Intermediate (11-13) and Senior (14-18), select the one that fits your age group. These are your age as of December 31st.
After you have read the slides in the pdf file, on the last page, there is a link to take the MQA test to complete the course. A score of 80 percent will be needed to pass the course, if you score below the needed 80 percent you can re-take the exams as many times as necessary to obtain an 80 percent score.
When you complete the MQA test with a 80 percent or higher score, you need to take a screen shot of that score for your records to verify your score.
For Example: Certifications such as the Youth for the Quality Care of Animals (YQCA) may be required by fairs, shows or sales. In such a situation, The Colorado 4-H MQA certification is not a substitute for any fair, show or sale’s additional certification requirement.
Weld County Fair is requiring and accepting only MQA Certification. Colorado State Fair will accept either MQA or YQCA Certification.
Meat Quality Assurance List - Updated May 20, 2020
Junior (8-10 years old, as of December 31st) Meat Quality Assurance Class
Intermediate (11-13 years old, as of December 31st) Meat Quality Assurance Class
Senior (14-18 years old, as of December 31st) Meat Quality Assurance Class
Colorado State Fair New Market Nomination Information
Attention Market Beef, Sheep, Goat and Swine Exhibitors:
We were just notified two things from the Colorado State Fair (CSF):
- CSF is requiring DNA in place of retinal scanning for this year.
- CSF is allowing Family nominations in market beef, sheep, goat, and swine this year, here is a statement from Robyn Toft –
“Nominations DO NOT need DNA attached when they are sent in by the extension agents. Nominations need to contain animal identification information (county tag) for all animals your market exhibitors MAY show at the Colorado State Fair. It is then the exhibitor's responsibility to request DNA envelopes from my office and have those to the Colorado State Fair by July 1st. Regarding DNA envelopes, those will not be available until JUNE 1st and will be available for online ordering at Colorado State Fair. If exhibitors choose to print the envelope request form and mail it in with payment, that will be fine, but the exhibitor's mailing the envelopes may take extra time.
Because I know a lot of families are reducing the number of animals on feed this year, I will allow family nominations for 2020. The animal to be nominated as a family animal must be listed on ALL nomination forms for those individuals who may show the animal, with the notation "family" next to it.
At the time of entry (August 1st deadline), it must be declared which exhibitor will show the animal. The same animal cannot be entered by more than one exhibitor to be shown at the Colorado State Fair. We are doing everything in our power to make sure market exhibitors are able to show at the Colorado State Fair. Any decision about cancelling the Colorado State Fair will be made by the CSF Board of Authority at their June 24, 2020 meeting (unless something comes down earlier from the Governor's Office or the Colorado Department of Public Health).”
Since we were able to retinal scan our market beef animals, you will not need to send in DNA envelope, nomination forms with the retinal scans attached will be accepted.