Video Feature: What should a steer be weighing four weeks before show?

Video Feature: What should a steer be weighing four weeks before show?

Purina Mills

Q&A: We want to feed the ddgs free choice to calves grazing stalks. Could it be cut with salt or another product to limit daily consumption?

Q&A: We want to feed the ddgs free choice to calves grazing stalks. Could it be cut with salt or another product to limit daily consumption?

Dr. Rick Rasby, Professor of Animal Science, Animal Science, University of Nebraska

A:   We have not fed ddgs free choice or limited intake using salt. You might think with the high fat content of ddgs, that fat alone would limit intake to a certain extent, but with the high palatability of ddgs, fat will likely not limit intake.

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Could Vilsack be Moved from Ag to Commerce?

Could Vilsack be Moved from Ag to Commerce?

Hoosier AG Today

  President-elect Barack Obama is trying to find a replacement for New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, who has withdrawn his name from consideration to be Secretary of Commerce in the Obama cabinet. Richardson has been sidelined by a federal ethics probe into a 1.5 million dollar state contract to CDR Financial Products of California.

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Ways to reduce hay loss in the winter

Ways to reduce hay loss in the winter

MARK MECHLING

Zanesville Times Recorder

Each winter we emphasize the need to reduce hay feeding waste by using a variety of techniques. My colleague in Guernsey County, Clif Little, has summarized some of those methods in reducing hay loss when feeding cattle in the winter.

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Jan. 16 `Webcast´ to cover feed strategies to curb air emissions for livestock operations

Jan. 16 `Webcast´ to cover feed strategies to curb air emissions for livestock operations

Southwest Farm Press

Livestock producers and others interested in hearing the latest information on feeding strategies to reduce animal manure air emissions can access a free webcast Jan. 16. The webcast is produced by the Livestock and Poultry Environmental Learning Center of eXtension.

eXtension is an educational partnership comprised of landgrant universities across the country. Kansas State University Research and Extension is a partner in eXtension.

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Utah ranchers build beef bridge to Baghdad.

Utah ranchers build beef bridge to Baghdad.

Alex Cabrero.

WSAV

A University of Utah agricultural extension agent is hoping a little bovine diplomacy will help strengthen relations between the United States and Iraq.

Lyle Holmgren’s is back after his first trip to Baghdad, and says he believes the Iraqis have a taste for U.S. beef.

He’s hoping to introduce Utah cattle to Iraqis, form a relationship with Iraqi ranchers, and build a partnership with the right people there to create a new beef market.

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Final U.S. Country-of-Origin Labeling Rule Draws Criticisms

Final U.S. Country-of-Origin Labeling Rule Draws Criticisms

Alan Bjerga

Bloomberg

Longtime supporters of U.S. regulations requiring meat and fresh produce to be labeled by country of origin say the government’s final rule on the matter doesn’t do enough to distinguish U.S. meat from competitors.

The rule announced today allows U.S. meat produced in a domestic facility that also is processing imported animals to carry a multicountry designation. That blurs the distinction between U.S. and foreign meat, according to critics, especially ranchers in northern states who compete with Canadian cattle. They pushed for a U.S.-only label to spur consumer purchases.

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The beef’s on for Guard members

The beef’s on for Guard members

Hutchnews.com

Military personnel on training weekend are served a prime-rib dinner as group’s thank-you for service.

The smell of cooking beef wafted about the parking lot of the National Guard Armory on Sunday.

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US beef producers hot over COOL flaws

US beef producers hot over COOL flaws

Alan M. Field

Pacific Shipper

For U.S. cattle producers, the concept of country-of-origin labeling seemed simple: Require all muscle cuts of beef to be labeled with their countries of origin, much like the labels affixed to televisions and furniture. That way, U.S. consumers could easily identify U.S. beef products, and buy them because of their reputation for safety and quality.

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Local cattle feeders struggling

Local cattle feeders struggling

The industry affects the Amarillo economy

Laura Rice

Connect Amarillo

Local cattle feeders say they are losing more money right now than they were during the mad cow disease scare and that does scary things to the Amarillo economy.

There are three reasons cattle feeders are hurting: about a year ago they bought cows at abnormally-high prices, then the cost of corn and other feed went up, and finally, when the economy started failing consumers switched from steaks to ground beef.

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Longhorn cattle make history at farm show

Longhorn cattle make history at farm show

JENNIFER FITCH

The Herald Mail

Monday marked the final day of the Pennsylvania Farm Show for many Franklin County exhibitors, as they took their cattle home to make room for the horses and other animals dominating the second half of the weeklong spectacle in the state’s capital.

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For These Heifers, A Lifetime Pardon , County Program Spares Animals From Butcher

For These Heifers, A Lifetime Pardon , County Program Spares Animals From Butcher

Tom Mitchell

Daily News Record

Thanks to a program formed by area beef farmers, the parting at market of youngsters and beef cattle they’ve raised is more than just sweet sorrow.

The initiative, known as the Rockingham County Beef Replacement Heifer Program, has changed the way youth livestock shows operate and is, accordingly, attracting more participants, say mentors of such ventures.

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ND wildlife officials monitor cattle tests

ND wildlife officials monitor cattle tests

BLAKE NICHOLSON

Fort Mills Times

If tests find bovine tuberculosis in a southwestern North Dakota beef cattle herd, wildlife in the area will be destroyed in what one state official calls a “very expensive, very complex and a very ugly business.”

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New cuts are worth the extra effort for both their flavor and their value

New cuts are worth the extra effort for both their flavor and their value

Mark Fisher

Dayton Daily News

Families reluctant to shell out the big bucks for premium cuts of beef and pork are finding new alternatives in their meat case.

And the folks who market and sell meats are promising there’s relief on the way in the form of more new “value cuts” that will help hold down grocery bills while still filling the families’ bellies.

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Economist Sees Another Year of Struggle for Livestock Producers

Economist Sees Another Year of Struggle for Livestock Producers

Voice of Agriculture

The health of the livestock industry is linked to the health of the broader economy, and producers of beef, hogs and chicken will have to wait for the global recession to end before they can expect any significant price improvement.

Chris Hurt, a Purdue University professor and Extension economist, said livestock producers were hit with the “double whammy” of a recession and high feed costs in 2008. In 2009, lower feed costs will benefit livestock producers, but the recession will continue to hurt demand.

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