PITTSFIELD, Ill. — The Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA), along with the University of Illinois Extension, is hosting the Certified Livestock Manager Training. There will be two training options for this year: eight in-person workshops and an online training, which will provide Illinois livestock producers the manure management training they need to meet the requirements of the state’s Livestock Management Facilities Act.
To attend an in-person workshop, registration is required at go.illinois.edu/CLMT. Registration will open December 1, 2022, and class size is limited in some locations.
The 2023 workshop dates and locations are:
- February 7, Bank of Springfield Center, Springfield
- February 8, Warren-Henderson Farm Bureau Building, Monmouth
- February 9, DeKalb County Farm Bureau Building, Sycamore
- February 10, Stephenson County Farm Bureau Building, Freeport
- February 21, Effingham County U of I Extension Office, Effingham
- February 22, Clinton County U of I Extension Office, Breese
- February 23, Pike County Farm Bureau Building, Pittsfield
- February 24, IDOA Building auditorium, Illinois State Fairgrounds, Springfield
The workshops will all begin at 9:00 a.m. The training lasts 3 ½ hours, and after the workshop, those with over 1,000 Animal Units (AU) will be required to take a paper exam. The training manual used will be the “Livestock and Poultry Environmental Stewardship Curriculum.” It is available at go.illinois.edu/manual.
Producers also have the option of taking online training that consists of nine modules of 10-20-minute videos that can be viewed at an individual’s own pace. The videos were all updated last year and are available on the CLMT Moodle site. The online training can be access through the CLMT webpage at go.illinois.edu/CLMT. Producers who prefer to complete the online training will have access to enrichment content (optional videos) for three months.
Those who have more than 1,000 animal units may take the exam online and will remain available all year around. Multiple attempts on the online exam are allowed. Producers with less than 1,000 AUs will work through the lessons only. Having more than 1,000 AU requires completing the lessons and passing the online exam, which will also be available in Spanish.
The certification for the 2023 season will be 50 questions on both the paper-based and online exams. An individual must answer 70% of the questions correctly to pass.
University of Illinois Extension’s in-person or online training fee is $40 and IDOA’s certification fee is $30: $70 total. Any questions relating to the CLMT program can be directed to the University of Illinois Extension at 815 235 4125 or Stanley Solomon at jssolomon@illinois.edu.
“This partnership between IDOA and the University of Illinois Extension provides the tools, education, and training for our state’s certified livestock managers to become skilled in best management practices,” said IDOA Director Jerry Costello II. “The goal is for our livestock facilities to be good neighbors and stewards of the land.”
The Livestock Management Facilities Act of 1997 requires:
- Facilities with 300 or more animal units to have at least one employee certified in proper manure handling procedures.
- Facilities with 300 to 999 animal units, the employee either must complete online CLM training or workshop or pass the Illinois Department of Agriculture’s Certified Livestock Manager online exam.
- The employee of facilities with more than 1,000 or more units must complete one of the training options and pass the Certified Livestock Manager online exam to achieve certification.
The “Livestock and Poultry Environmental Stewardship Curriculum” continues to serve as a resource manual for CLM training. The manual provides more depth and additional topics than can be covered in a workshop or online training. This curriculum is available for free online at go.illinois.edu/manual.