Ranchers who battled the harsh winter know that to keep calves alive many had to be vaccinated.But will all that vaccine affect the number of cattle entering the natural beef market? To qualify as natural the animal can never be given antibiotics or growth enhancing feed additives.
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‘Just One Nut Case With A Blog’
Amanda Nolz
Beef Daily Blog
To wrap up the week, I thought I would share a blog entry from the Vegetarian Star that might pique your interest. Of course, from the title of the website alone, you probably already know the topic area and the reader demographics. However, you might be surprised to learn that one entry is about me and this little old blog.
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BeefTalk: Top 10 Suggestions for Change
Kris Ringwall, Beef Specialist, NDSU Extension Service
As we age, we gain wisdom through life experiences. Although these experiences may be very difficult at times, we generally emerge with more insight and understanding as we follow the many trails we take in life.
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Manageable crossbreeding systems help drive profitability
Tri State Livestock News
Every crossbreeding system has its advantages and disadvantages, cattle experts agree, so producers must evaluate programs in terms of providing the best possible performance within their own unique situations.
Scott Greiner, Ph.D., an Extension animal scientist at Virginia Tech, said an ideal crossbreeding program should optimize, but not necessarily maximize, hybrid vigor (heterosis) in both the calf crop and, particularly, the cow herd; use breeds and genetics that match the enterprise’s feed resources, management and marketing strategy; and be easy to apply and manage.
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Planning the Feeding of Your Beef Herd This Winter – Part II
Dr. John F. Currin, VA-MD Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, VA Tech; Dr. Mark A. McCann, Animal & Poultry Sciences, VA Tech
Last month’s article focused on the feed availability and nutrient requirements of beef cows. This month we will look at a couple of the farms and implementation of a planned feeding program. A planned feeding program involves quantifying what feedstuffs are on hand combined with the nutrient requirements of the cow herd and feeding the feedstuffs at the appropriate time and providing any needed supplementation.
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Genetic type and feed efficiency
Drovers.com
Are Brahman-influenced cattle more or less efficient than English breeds? Results of one study from the University of Florida suggest it depends on how you measure it. Researchers evaluated efficiency among 581 calves of six breed types, including full-blood Angus and full-blood Brahman, and combinations ranging from ¾ Angus – ¼ Brahman, 5/8 Angus – 3/8 Brahman, ½ Angus – ½ Brahman and ¼ Angus – ¾ Brahman.
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Red Angus age and source certificates accessible online…
BARN OnAir & OnLine
Proper genetic, age and source verification is imperative for Red Angus cattle enrolled in the Feeder Calf Certification Program (FCCP) to continue through the marketing channels. The Red Angus Association of America (RAAA) recently developed a new tool streamlining access to this documentation.
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Four cattle operators are Red Angus GridMasters
The Cattle Business Weekly
Four cattle operations – Summers Cattle Co., Shuey Stock, Pinnacle Ranch and Schuler-Olson Ranch -all from the region earned the prestigious GridMaster Award at the National Red Angus Convention in Mahnomen, Minn. The Red Angus Association of America (RAAA) presents the GridMaster Award to producers and feeders owning cattle that meet and exceed strict carcass quality specifications.
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Pay Attention to Management of Bulls During Development Period
Stephen B. Blezinger, Ph.D., PAS
Cattle Today
About this time of the year many producers begin giving thought to the future of their cow herd and what the New Year will bring. One major decision they will make will be whether or not they will need to buy a new bull or bulls to replace current animals in the herd. In many cases these decisions have already been made and bulls have been bought at fall production sales or are currently being bought.
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How does ranch life create engine stress?
Kristen Hall-Geisler
How Stuff Works
Most of us rely on our cars to get us to work or school every day — a commute that can be long or short, smooth or stop-and-go. But when you’re living on a ranch, the truck you rely on doesn’t just get you to work; there are times when it has to do the work once you get there, too. Ranch life, similar to farm life or heavy-duty construction work, is much harder on a truck than merely sitting in traffic on your daily commute.
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Would You Eat Artificial Beef?
Damon Gambuto
A Hamburger Today
A couple of weeks ago various news sources ran headlines announcing that scientists have figured out how to make artificial meat.* Basically the hullabaloo is that, for the first time, meat has been made in the lab (fish have been cultured previously).
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Pasture Calving Fuelled Expansion
Debbie Furber
AG Canada
The Braaten’s cattle drives have become a highlight of the spring and fall for many families around Birch Hills, Sask. But Diane and Dwight Braaten didn’t make the switch to pasture calving just for the fun of cattle drives. It was a matter of time — they wanted to keep their well-established careers and stay in the beef business.
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Organic Beef…It’s a Growing Market
Gary DiGiuseppe
American Cattlemen
Ranchers around the country are capitalizing on the trend by going organic.
When cattlemen meet the strict rules of USDA’s Organic Marketing Program, they can use the government’s “Certified Organic” logo and provide assurances to demanding consumers. In some cases, cattle producers are pursuing it as a local enterprise, marketing the beef to nearby restaurants and grocery stores.
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Mycotoxins in Grain For Feedlot Cattle
Dr. Galen Erickson, Associate Professor of Animal Science, Animal Science, University of Nebraska
There are published guidelines on all mycotoxins. Some of those are based on legal limits to trade grain as well. There is information on mycotoxins in grains and this can be accessed at: http://marketjournal.unl.edu/harvest2009.
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Joel Salatin’s salad days
Dave McNair
The Hook
It’s been quite a year for Joel Salatin. The Shenandoah Valley farmer starred as himself in two popular food documentary films and received a $100,000 award from the Heinz Family Foundation for his creative, eco-friendly practices.
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The Beef Blog 