Noted cattleman goes out on top

Noted cattleman goes out on top

FRED PACE

The Herald Dispatch

For nearly 30 years, Champion Hill, based in Bidwell, Ohio, has had one of the top Angus cow herds in the country. "We strive every breeding season to consistently produce cattle that have the ingredients to make top show heifers and go on to become functional brood cows," said Paul Hill, a partner of Champion Hill. "Our philosophy has always been to breed cattle that not only perform in the show ring, but also make positive contributions to the beef cattle industry."

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Weakened demand brings tough time for Lynchburg-area beef, dairy, grain farmers

Weakened demand brings tough time for Lynchburg-area beef, dairy, grain farmers

Margaret Carmel

Lynchburg News & Advance

For Keith Tuck, a beef cattle farmer in Bedford County, dropping prices means he has had to innovate to keep his profits up. Instead of making hay to feed his cows, he sections off small areas of the field for the cows to graze on the grass in the pasture and moves the animals every few days so they can continue grazing throughout the year.

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Gestation length – calves arrive sooner than they used to

Gestation length – calves arrive sooner than they used to

Rusty Evans

Leaf Chronicle

There are several factors known to affect the length of gestation in cattle. One of those is sex of the calf. On average, bull calves arrive later than heifer calves for cows bred on the same day.

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The critical leg of the journey from replacement heifer to mature cow investigated

The critical leg of the journey from replacement heifer to mature cow investigated

Karla H. Jenkins

High Plains Journal

As spring approaches, so does calving for most beef cattle producers. Spring also begins the most critical part of the journey for the replacement heifer becoming a cow. A spring calving replacement heifer with a target mature weight of 1,200 pounds is likely weighing about 950 pounds entering the last trimester of pregnancy and would need to gain about 2.0 pounds per day prior to calving even if she was in a moderate body condition.

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Investigation Adds to Questions About Federal Beef Promotion Program

Investigation Adds to Questions About Federal Beef Promotion Program

Joe Wertz

Flatland

On a brisk and busy January morning at the Oklahoma National Stockyards, cattle arrive for auction in trailers pulled by pickup trucks — and leave in double-decker cars towed by semis. The Oklahoma City auction is one of the largest markets for young calves that aren’t quite old enough or fat enough to be slaughtered. The day’s haul was a good one: More than 10,000 head of cattle were sold off. These large auctions and ones in much smaller sale barns across the country collectively take in about $80 million every year from a $1-per-head “check-off” fee paid every time ranchers and producers sell an animal.

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Understanding how to create the highest-valued animals in the beef industry

Understanding how to create the highest-valued animals in the beef industry

J. Tom Brink and Shawn T. Walter

AgWeb

As price premiums become more commonplace in the U.S. beef industry, producers of high-quality cattle are finding opportunities to earn greater returns.  With approximately 70% of all fed cattle now marketed on carcass-merit grids and formulas, superior cattle now capture sizable premiums above the average market price—no matter whether that base market price is high or low.

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Measuring a wild card

Measuring a wild card

Justin Sexten

Farm Forum

When the season’s first calves arrive, you begin to see results of your genetic decisions, perhaps eager for more or thinking about what a new bull could bring. Poring through bull catalogs and looking at expected progeny differences (EPDs), keep in mind the environment affects what your calves are now and what they will become.

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Beef Production Efficiency and Herd Expansion

Beef Production Efficiency and Herd Expansion

John Nalivka

Drovers

USDA’s annual Cattle Report found a 2% increase in the total cattle inventory on Jan. 1, 2017. That’s no surprise.  When good forage conditions and record profits cross paths, the end result is herd expansion.

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Hemp for Cows? Colorado Approves Hemp-animal Feed Study

Hemp for Cows? Colorado Approves Hemp-animal Feed Study

AG Web

Colorado livestock could be eating hemp under a bill that passed the state Senate Tuesday. The state Senate voted 34-0 in favor of bill directing the Colorado Department of Agriculture to study the feasibility of allowing farmers to use hemp in animal feed. Currently the practice is forbidden.

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