Eastern Oklahoma State College in Wilburton is very well known throughout the meats industry not only for the excellent students but also for its Meat Judging Team. This not only brings recognition to the school but also makes our faculty and students proud to be a part of such a strong program. Our meat judging team participates in 5 or 6 contests annually and since 1982 we have won eight National Championships, each year we anticipate the new judging season and prepare accordingly.

On the Meat Judging Team our students get to visit several major Universities throughout the Midwest and also have an opportunity to enter some of the largest packing plants in the world. You could interview almost any person that has been on the meat judging team here at Eastern and they will tell you that it is one of the greatest experiences they have ever had the privilege of being a part of. We have developed a tradition of being one of the most competitive teams setting scoring records and by having many high individuals in most of the contests. Eastern is one of few meats programs that have won at every contest that we participate in, and that is a tradition that we want to continue.

Meat judging allows our students to compete, learn and make contacts throughout the meats industry and with there own peers. Students are eligible to compete for one year and compete at the National Western Stock Show in Denver, Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show in Fort Worth, Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo in Houston, American Royal in Emporia Kansas, and Excel Hi-plains in Plainview Texas.

We offer very competitive scholarships to our students that judge meats because we expect them to perform at such a high level. All of our students are eligible to (and many do) go on to judge meats at the University level and some even go on to coach their own judging teams. Students that participate in judging teams are much more readily hired in the meats industry because of the experience and knowledge that they gain through meats judging. The universities that we practice at include Oklahoma State University, University of Arkansas, Kansas State University, Texas Tech University, Texas A&M University, Colorado State University, and University of Wyoming.