Video Feature: Tennessee, Kentucky Beef Producers Enhance Cattle Marketing

Video Feature: Tennessee, Kentucky Beef Producers Enhance Cattle Marketing

University of Tennessee

As the years go by, one thing remains constant in Tennessee agriculture – beef cattle farming is our number one commodity. Tennessee farmers are joining with producers from a border state to enhance markets and improve their overall product.

The Politics of Ethanol Seem To Be Changing – A Little

The Politics of Ethanol Seem To Be Changing – A Little

Troy Marshall

Beef Magazine

Even though ethanol has been the primary driver in our industry the last couple of years, the beef industry has always been on the outside looking in on the debate. It makes issues like BSE, country-of-origin labeling, industry consolidation and international trade seem trivial by comparison.

Initially, the argument seemed to be over whether ethanol made economic sense, the answer to which is obviously “no” or it wouldn’t require massive subsidization. So ethanol advocates argued that it might make sense down the road, which ethanol opponents couldn’t much refute. It seemed that ethanol’s support came from the no-harm, no-foul mentality – while it might not help, it’s preferable to pay U.S. farmers than sheiks in the Middle East.

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High quality forages are important for cattle producers

High quality forages are important for cattle producers

Jennifer Bremer

High Plains Journal

High quality forage is important to all producers, but determining how to get the high quality forage is different for all producers.

Gary Zimmer, president of Midwestern Bio-Ag, a biologically-based agricultural consulting company based in Wisconsin, spoke to a group of cattle producers at a grazing conference held in Sioux Center, Iowa, recently.

“As we move agriculture into the 21st century, we remain biological farmers,” he said. “Our goal is to mineralize and balance our soils to provide healthy food and feed, and sustain healthy, profitable farms.”

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Now is time to plan for summer forage

Now is time to plan for summer forage

Rusty Evans

Leaf Chronicle

Last year’s drought showed many cattle producers that summer is a critical time in a cow-calf operation.

Droughts can be devastating to the feed supply. Late April and May are the months to start working on your summer forage production.

If you wait until summer is here, you have waited too long. You can’t depend on tall fescue/orchardgrass pastures to provide much forage during July and August.

Start thinking about planting a few acres of grass that will provide production during the summer. These grasses are generically called warm-season grasses.

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Got calving problems?

Got calving problems?

Fond Du Lac Reporter

Ahead of calving, your dry cows look great, only to have several fresh cows develop complications within a few days post partum.

What to do?

You’ve analyzed your forages and balanced the dry cow ration in hopes that your cows would transition through calving with minimal problems. With all the fresh cows you calved this winter, you were expecting to increase your milk production so you could pay cash for a substantial amount of your spring crop inputs, especially this year with fertilizer prices going through the roof.

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Fertilizing Forages Probably Still Pays

Fertilizing Forages Probably Still Pays

Hay and Forage Grower

Fertilizing hayfields and pastures might still be a paying proposition given today’s high hay prices, says Eric Peterson, a University of Wyoming extension educator in Lincoln, Sublette, Sweetwater, Teton and Uinta counties. Hay growers have asked if it makes sense to apply high-priced fertilizer to hay meadows, he says.

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Drylot Feeding For Beef Cows

Drylot Feeding For Beef Cows

cattlenetwork.com

Conventional wisdom tells us that low-cost cow/calf operations are frequently characterized by minimal use of harvested feedstuffs. Letting cows harvest more of their own feed, through combinations of warm- and cool-season pastures, annual forage crops, and extensive utilization of field crop residues or stockpiled grass, can typically result in significant savings in the total feed bill.

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