Animal Welfare at Risk in Experiments for Meat Industry

Animal Welfare at Risk in Experiments for Meat Industry

MICHAEL MOSS

New York Times

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.

At a remote research center on the Nebraska plains, scientists are using surgery and breeding techniques to re-engineer the farm animal to fit the needs of the 21st-century meat industry. The potential benefits are huge: animals that produce more offspring, yield more meat and cost less to raise.

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Webinars benefit livestock producers

Webinars benefit livestock producers

The Courier

The beef industry had record prices last year. The availability of beef was tight because of herd reductions during years of high grain prices and limited forage caused by droughts in the West.

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Select Sires to Celebrate its Golden Anniversary

Select Sires to Celebrate its Golden Anniversary

AgriMarketing

Select Sires Inc. was formed 50 years ago when four farmer-owned cooperatives joined forces to offer a wider variety of genetic options to their members and improve efficiencies. Since then, Select Sires has grown into the largest A.I. organization in North America that provides industry-leading products, services and programs to beef and dairy producers around the world.

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Web Tool Underscores Value Of Cow’s Right Body Condition

Web Tool Underscores Value Of Cow’s Right Body Condition

Ray Baynton

Blackburn News

Some beef industry officials think the importance of maintaining cows’ fat cover at an optimal level is underrated. That’s prompted the creation of a new website to producers how much thin or over-fat cows hurt their bottom line.

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Impact of ethanol production methods on distillers grain for cattle feeders

Impact of ethanol production methods on distillers grain for cattle feeders

Laura Mushrush

Drovers

As the U.S. corn based ethanol industry makes continued advancements in technology, new production methods have had a direct impact on cattle feeders. 

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Livestock Mortality Composting Manual

Livestock Mortality Composting Manual

Kathy Voth

When concerns about mad cow disease reduced rendering service availability and also increased the cost of using this service, livestock producers needed alternatives for disposing of livestock mortalities. But it needed to be a method that would protect the environment from contamination and prevent the spread of pathogens to live animals.

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Is Scrotal Circumference a Good Indicator of Heifer Fertility?

Is Scrotal Circumference a Good Indicator of Heifer Fertility?

Paige Nelson

Angus Beef Bulletin Extra

“If we want to improve economic efficiency in our herds, what’s the best thing that we can do? Have more calves,” said Matt Spangler, University of Nebraska beef genetics extension specialist at the Applied Reproductive Strategies in Beef Cattle (ARSBC) symposium hosted in Stillwater, Okla., last fall.

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What a Cow Can Teach You About Big Data

What a Cow Can Teach You About Big Data

Ben Potter

AgWeb

“I didn’t see this one coming.” So says Brandon Perkins, product marketing manager with GE Industrial Data Intelligence. Perkins was sitting in on a talk at his company’s Intelligent Platforms User Summit this fall when Stuart Fisher from Zoetis took the stage.

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New Purdue animal science building top priority

New Purdue animal science building top priority

Meghan Grebner

Brownfield Network

One of the goals for Purdue University’s College of Agriculture in 2015 is to upgrade the facilities in the animal science department.  Jay Akridge, Purdue’s Dean of the College of Agriculture says Purdue is in the process of asking the Indiana General Assembly for funding.

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Does feeding heifers in late gestation increase dystocia?

Does feeding heifers in late gestation increase dystocia?

Deke Alkire, Bryan Nichols

Progressive Cattleman

According to the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, 28 percent of all calf deaths before weaning are due to birth-related problems. Therefore, managing females to calve with minimal difficulty is extremely important.

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