Beef Talk: CHAPS Herd Benchmarks
Kris Ringwall, Beef Specialist, NDSU Extension Service
Performance in the beef business is evaluated by reviewing the overall herd. If there are indications that overall herd performance needs to be addressed, the first step is to compare the herd’s performance with a benchmark to gauge what is normal. Understanding normal, or in this case average, performance allows producers to better understand how to guide the herd.
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Range Beef Cow Symposium Generational Transition Focus
Adele Harty
iGrow
Generational transition is a topic that many farmers and ranchers know is critical to the future of their operation, but may not know how to start the conversation. This year’s Range Beef Cow Symposium offered presentations that helped address this issue and offer alternatives.
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Merck says it’s too early to plan Zilmax’s return
David Cooper
Progressive Cattleman
Beef market economists and feedlot specialists continue to preach the critical role beta agonists have played in building the national beef supply. Yet no one can say exactly when one beta agonist will return to the market.
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Dr. Griel Honored for a Lifetime of Caring and Sharing
Penn State University
The Penn State Graduate School Alumni Society will be honoring Dr. Lester Griel, Professor and Program Coordinator of the Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences Undergraduate Program, with their 2014 Lifetime Achievement Award this spring.
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Meat and greens
The Economist
Editor’s note: Stories of this ilk are included in the blog to inform those in our industry how agriculture is being presented to and perceived by the public.
So the question is, what sort of livestock farming can satisfy the growing appetites, while using land, water and food crops more rationally? Environmentalists have an answer for that: small-scale, traditional pastoralism, of the sort practised for thousands of years. Such farming is, says Worldwatch Institute, a think-tank in Washington, DC, “essential to combat the destructive trend of factory farms.”
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West Central Angus Plan Meeting
WCIAA (West Central Indiana Angus Association) will sponsor the first of three planned 2014 Winter Informational Meetings on Thursday, January 30, 2014 at 7:30 PM in the Turkey Run Inn, 8121 E Park Rd., Marshall, IN 47859.
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Take Care of Lactating Livestock in Extreme Cold
Aimee Neilson
Beef Today
Near-record lows and bitter wind chills have taken over much of the U.S. and livestock producers can take precautions to ensure the safety of lactating animals.
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Meat quality improvement is topic of Jan. 29 Carcass Challenge event
The Cattle Business Weekly
Cattle producers who want to understand more about cattle production issues that impact meat quality are encouraged to attend the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association Carcass Challenge educational event on Wednesday, Jan. 29 in Ames.
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Mycotoxins Can Be a Problem for Cattle Producers
Stephen B. Blezinger, Ph.D., PAS
Cattle Today
Over recent years, producers have become increasingly familiar with the term “mycotoxins.” Unfortunately many cattle owners, while they have heard the term and know that consuming enough of these materials can be detrimental to the animal, still do not have clear understanding of what mycotoxins really are, where they come from and the problems they can cause.
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Where Backfat, Marbling & Money Meet
Steve Suther
Angus Journal
It’s a wonder any cattle feeder can judge the marbling inside the ribeye by
guessing fat thickness just under the hide. It shouldn’t work, but grid marketing of finished cattle is largely based on this acquired skill.
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The Beef Blog 