Increasing Feeder Calf And Cull Cow Value Focus Of Chandler Cattle Conference

Increasing Feeder Calf And Cull Cow Value Focus Of Chandler Cattle Conference

Cattlenetwork.com

Cattle producers can get a peek inside the thought process of an experienced order buyer at the Central Oklahoma Cattle Conference Oct. 25 in Chandler, and that knowledge could potentially result in increased value for their animals.  “One of our goals with the conference was to clear up some confusion producers can have about why their cattle don’t bring the same price as those of somebody else,” said Kent Barnes, Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service area livestock specialist.

To accomplish that goal, conference planners sought out Jim Loftin, a highly experienced and respected order buyer and rancher from Tahlequah, to provide insights into real-world evaluation of live feeder calves and cull cows.

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Beef Quality » Understanding The Chemistry Of Beef Flavor

Beef Quality  » Understanding The Chemistry Of Beef Flavor

Beef Magazine

How does beef get its flavor? Meat is generally composed of water, proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins. Of these, proteins, lipids, and carbohydrates play primary roles in flavor development because they include several compounds capable of developing into important flavor precursors when heated. The factors that contribute to beef flavor, according to the July-August “Issues Updates” from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association include:

·         Cattle diets — High-energy grain diets produce a more acceptable intense flavor in red meats than low-energy forage or grass diets. More than 40% of the variation in beef flavor between grass- and grain-finished beef, unaged and aged, is attributed to diet.

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Reserve Your Seat On The BEEF Tour Of South America

Reserve Your Seat On The BEEF Tour Of South America

BEEF Magazine

Join the 2008 Beef Study Tour to South America and experience the beef production systems of Argentina and Brazil, Jan. 19-Feb. 1, 2008. The tour includes a full itinerary of organized cattle-industry stops — various commercial and seedstock cattle farms, feedlots, agribusinesses, retail beef outlets and a packing plant.

Informative, interesting and fun, this “all-beef” tour is designed for anyone interested in sizing up the South American beef situation. Travelers will gain insight into the comparative advantages and disadvantages of these two beef powerhouses, and earn a first-hand assessment of the competitive factors we all face in our day-to-day business.

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Experiment Station scientist named fellow of prestigious science

Experiment Station scientist named fellow of prestigious science

High Plains Journal

Dr. Ron Randel, an East Texas based researcher with the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, has been named a fellow of the American Society of Animal Science.

“Fellow” is an academic term of respect and in this case, reserved for a senior researcher whose work has had wide-ranging, positive impacts on the industry, said Dr. Charles Long, resident director of research at the Texas A&M University System Agricultural Research and Extension Center at Overton.

“This is a prestigious award presented by the society, which is the foremost animal science research society in the world,” Long said.

“Moreover, the ASAS award is just one of many professional awards that Ron has received.”

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In-shape cows make rebreeding easier

In-shape cows make rebreeding easier

By Joe Benton

OSU Extension Educator

News-Star.com

Why is body condition important?

Early fall is a great time for cattle producers to examine body condition of cows. The weather is moderate and we still have forage.

If you have thin cows, with just a bit of supplement they can be moved up in body condition before winter.

One of the major constraints in the improvement of reproductive efficiency of beef cows is the number of days between calving and the start of heat cycles. If cows are to maintain a calving interval of 12 months, they must conceive within 80 to 85 days after calving. Body condition at calving time determines to a great extent the rebreeding performance of beef cows in the subsequent breeding season.

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NAIS Business Plan is a template for moving forward with animal ID

NAIS Business Plan is a template for moving forward with animal  ID

By Doug Rich

High Plains Journal

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) officials presented their Business Plan for the National Animal Identification System (NAIS) at the ID-Info Expo in Kansas City, Mo.

“We need to build on systems that already exist,” Dr. Clifford Clark, USDA-Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Veterinarian Services said. “This can be done by providing common data standards across all programs.”

Individual animal identification is nothing new. USDA has been doing this for years with programs designed for specific animal disease such as scrapie, tuberculosis, and brucellosis. Dr. Clifford said that these programs are focused on a single disease and when that disease is eradicated the identification program stops. These programs have separate identification numbers and data collection procedures.

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Club teaches teens about caring for cattle

Club teaches teens about caring for cattle

By Dennis Sherer

TheDailyTimes.com

Johnny Gist only recently started raising cattle, but a new club for youths is helping him learn to care for his heifer, Dixie.

Gatlin Hill’s family has raised cattle for years, and his grandfather ran a dairy, but he too is learning much about beef production in the Lauderdale County chapter of the Alabama Junior Cattlemen’s Association.

“It’s a great club. You learn a lot about how to care for your cattle,” Gist, a ninth-grader at Rogers High School, said as he brushed his 7-month-old heifer’s coat. Dixie is his only cow.

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Family puts stock in winners

Family puts stock in winners

Raising beef for market is (mostly) just business

By TERESA McMINN

Yotk Daily Record

 “I love cows,” 13-year-old Adrianna Burton said as she used her cell phone to photograph a calf on display at the York Fair on Saturday. The Central York Middle School student hopes to one day own a farm and raise cows and other animals as pets.

“But, I would never eat them,” she said.

Many farm animals shown at the York Fair, however, are not raised as pets. They are future hamburgers, steaks and beef stew. According to the Pennsylvania Beef Council Web site, the state in 2006 produced 1.2 million pounds of red meat.

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US Livestock Farmers: Ethanol Is Hogging Their Corn, Profits

US Livestock Farmers: Ethanol Is Hogging Their Corn, Profits

Cattlenetwork.com

ST. LOUIS (AP)–As a chief advocate for corn farmers around the U.S., Rob Litterer will be working the halls of Congress this fall to push for increased ethanol production. But he’s facing stiff opposition from what on the surface seems an unlikely source – the farm lobby.

The burgeoning ethanol industry is creating a wave of prosperity for rural towns throughout the Midwest, but the energy bonanza is also pitting farming groups on separate sides of the fence.

Corn farmers are pushing for more ethanol production as the industry creates an enormous new market for their crop, giving corn prices the kind of lift they haven’t seen in years. But the corn farmer’s win is the hog farmer’s loss. Meat, dairy, and other food producers are pushing back against the ethanol boom as higher grain prices cut into their already slim profit margins.

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Ag secretaries’ jobs are different

Ag secretaries’ jobs are different

By Russ Oechslin

Sioux City Journal

SPENCER, Iowa — Even Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey says he’s surprised that he and his counterparts in Minnesota, and North and South Dakota have such different jobs.

“You’d think we’d all be working on the same things. But agriculture is very different in each state,” he explained during a town meeting at the opening weekend of the Clay County Fair.

Even the job titles and the way each official gets his job is different. North Dakota and Minnesota have ag commissioners, while Iowa and South Dakota have Secretaries of Agriculture.

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Producers may be considering grazing alfalfa in drought areas

Producers may be considering grazing alfalfa in drought areas

By Lura Roti

Minnesota Farm & Ranch Guide

In drought, consider grazing alfalfa using flash grazing. 

In areas where the recent drought dried up any chances of getting a third alfalfa cutting, some beef producers may consider turning their livestock out to graze.

Before opening the gate, it is important to consider the health of the alfalfa and livestock, says Vance Owens, forage research agronomist for South Dakota State University.

“The question comes up every time we have areas in drought – do producers go out and clip it off or do they graze to get some re-growth going,” Owens said. “Sometimes, if there is stress on the plant the new growth will be inhibited. If you do not have moisture after grazing or cutting then it won’t come back naturally. My rule of thumb is, if there is not enough forage to harvest, I would just let it go.”

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NCBA: Expanded Trade Necessary For Opening Global Markets

NCBA: Expanded Trade Necessary For Opening Global Markets

Cattlenetwork.com

Washington, D.C. (Sept. 14, 2007)  -  As expected, USDA has finalized its rule that will open trade with Canada to cattle born after March 1, 1999, and to beef from cattle of any age.  USDA estimates the rule will go into effect on November 19, 2007, or 60 days from its upcoming publication in the Federal Register.

 “Once this rule enters into effect, the primary result is expected to be additional imports of Canadian non-fed beef – rather than live cattle – which will replace lean beef imports from other countries such as New Zealand and Australia,” said Gregg Doud, chief economist for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA).

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Identify and prevent BVD ‘persistently infected’ calves

Identify and prevent BVD ‘persistently infected’ calves

By Bethany Lovaas, DVM, University of Minnesota Beef Team

Minnesota Farm Guide

Even though you’ve vaccinated your calves, don’t expect that they are going to be 100 percent protected.

You can do everything exactly according to label directions, and follow recommendations to the letter on nutrition and calf health, and the calves may still be vulnerable to a BVD outbreak.

There are a few factors that contribute to this. One factor is that when the calves are on feed, their nutritional stress levels are higher than when they are on pasture. This leads to a propensity for respiratory disease.

Also, many calves are commingled with strange calves that could be from a completely different region of the country. This creates a social stress in the pen, but more importantly, it exposes the calves to different strains of the BVD virus.

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Beef Demand Ceiling Squeezes Packer & Feedlot Margins

Beef Demand Ceiling Squeezes Packer & Feedlot Margins

Cattlenetwork.com

As is often is in the beef cattle industry, assessing whether the market situation is good or bad depends on which side of the fence you are on.  Feeder cattle prices are generally strong and likely to stay strong given the limited feeder cattle supplies that are available the rest of this year and for 2008 as well.  At some point we may try to save some heifers for replacements and that would squeeze feeder supplies even more for several months.  Of course, feeder prices will likely decline seasonally this fall but even that may be less than usual.  In Oklahoma, it will depend in large part on how much and how fast wheat pasture develops in the next few weeks.  It appears at this time that wheat pasture demand will develop more slowly than usual as there have been some delays in planting wheat for pasture.

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Annual forage testing program is in full swing

Annual forage testing program is in full swing

By RANDY ROSS, County Extension Agent

Marshall News Messenger

Just a reminder to all beef and forage producers who would like to get their forage tested to help them plan and better manage their winter feeding program, that the annual forage testing program is in full swing.

With poor quality hay being harvested in the earlier parts of the season, producers need to know what kind of quality forage they have on hand.

For example, you will want to feed you lower quality hay early in the winter feeding season and save you higher quality forage for later when the cattle’s nutritional needs will call for it.

If you have not already planned or thought about planting winter forage, you might want to. This is another part of planning a good winter feeding program.

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Food Chain Dangers

Food Chain Dangers

Farm bill needs to ensure cleaner air, water

Dallas Morning News

The sprawling feedlots you see across the Panhandle are living proof that we want our beef tender, and we want it now. Ranchers ship their cattle to the lots, where they get fattened up on corn, animal feed and who knows what else and then head straight to the slaughterhouses. No lazy days in the pasture, chewing hay and grass. Just bulk ‘em up so steaks get to our tables and get there fast.

There’s no doubt feedlots have revved up beef production. They also have become notorious for the pollution they send into the air and water supplies of rural Texas. Bulked-up cattle produce tons of manure, which can end up in creeks, streams and aquifers, thanks to feedlot runoff. The manure also fouls the air of the communities around these operations

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U.S. to allow import of older Canadian cattle

U.S. to allow import of older Canadian cattle

By Christopher Doering

Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States said on Friday it would expand cattle trade with Canada and urged beef-importing nations to eliminate unnecessary barriers erected after the mad-cow scare earlier this decade.

Under a rule to take effect on November 19, the United States will accept imports of older cattle and all beef from Canada. U.S. Agriculture Department officials said the regulation reflected international consensus on mad-cow safeguards.

“We expect our trading partners to follow the same science as we do on this,” said John Clifford, USDA’s chief veterinarian.

The World Organization for Animal Health gave the United States and Canada a “controlled risk” status on May 22 for mad cow disease. U.S. and Canadian officials say the ranking shows their beef is safe and that trading partners such as Japan and South Korea should open their markets.

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Zimmerman: Brazos County cattle experts offer tour

Zimmerman: Brazos County cattle experts offer tour

By Eric Zimmerman

The Eagle

Beef cattle production in Brazos and surrounding counties continues to be the top income-producing agriculture enterprise for producers. In addition to our traditional cow/calf producers, this area also serves as a hotbed for beef cattle research and the incorporation of science into traditional cattle operations.

In 2006, beef cattle production resulted in over $23 million of economic impact for Brazos County in beef sales alone. To address current issues facing beef cattle producers and to assist these operations, both large and small, The Brazos County Beef and Forage Committee will sponsor the 21st Annual Brock Faulkner Cattleman’s Clinic and Beef Tour on Oct. 5.

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Livestock disaster program signup underway in Montana

Livestock disaster program signup underway in Montana

Prairie Star

The USDA Farm Service Agency (FSA) began signup Sept. 10, 2007 for two disaster programs, the Livestock Compen-sation Program (LCP) and the Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP).

“FSA is happy to provide these two programs for livestock producers who incurred feed and livestock losses,” stated Randy Johnson, FSA State Executive Director.

Producers in primary counties declared secretarial disaster areas or certain counties declared presidential disaster areas between January 1, 2005 and February 28, 2007 or producers located in counties contiguous to those counties are eligible. Also producers in a primary (or contiguous) county that received an Administrator’s Physical Loss Notice directly associated with a disaster declaration made by President Bush may also be eligible for LCP and LIP.

LCP compensates livestock producers for feed losses occurring between January 1, 2005, and February 28, 2007 due to natural disaster.

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‘Steak’holders get introduction to study looking at meat quality print this article

‘Steak’holders get introduction to study looking at meat quality print this article

DARRELL COLE

The Amherst Citizen

NAPPAN – What makes a good steak?

It’s a question a researcher with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada is attempting to determine through a demonstration study that is looking at the quality of meat from Maritime steers from the field to retail cuts.

Through the Maritime Carcass Value Discovery Program, which is in the first of three years, John Duynisveld is tracking the food intake and care of 44 beef cattle from across the region that have been sent to the Nappan research centre.

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