News Update

News Update
October 24, 2008

Register Now for Repro Strategies Symposium

Want to get the most out of your herd’s reproductive potential? Register now for the Robert Taylor Memorial Symposium: Applied Reproductive Strategies in Beef Cattle. The symposium will be Dec. 2-3 at the Hilton Hotel in Fort Collins, Colo. Speakers and trade show participants will focus on new methods and technologies to control and improve reproductive success in beef cattle.

Visit www.appliedreprostrategies.com for an overview of the conference and speakers and a link to online registration. Available through Nov. 17, preregistration is $75 for students and $150 for other attendees. After Nov. 17 registration increases to $200 for everyone.

“This meeting is for anyone interested in beef cattle reproduction, including producers, veterinarians, AI (artificial insemination) technicians and Extension specialists,” says Sandy Johnson, animal science specialist with Kansas State University (K-State) Research and Extension and one of the conference coordinators. Continuing education credit will be available for veterinarians.

The symposium is co-sponsored by Colorado State University (CSU) and the Beef Reproduction Task Force, which is composed of Extension animal scientists from K-State, the University of Nebraska, South Dakota State University, Iowa State University, the University of Idaho, the University of Illinois, the University of Florida and the University of Missouri with support from several industry sponsors.

Angus Productions Inc. (API) will provide online coverage of the event at www.appliedreprostrategies.com. Visit the site now for a program schedule, hotel and travel information, and links to online registration. After the meeting, visit the site for summaries and supporting materials for each presentation.

More information is available at www.appliedreprostrategies.com or by contacting CSU’s Jack Whittier at 970-491-6233, or Nancy Weiss at 970-491-7640.

Keep Deer From Eating Your Profits

A new deer exclusion fence surrounding the field crop plots and fruit and vegetable research trials at Ohio State University (OSU) South Centers at Piketon will be at the center of a workshop to educate producers and landowners about the best solutions for protecting their land and crops from deer damage.

“Are Deer Eating Your Profits?” will be Nov. 7 from 10 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. at OSU South Centers at Piketon, 1864 Shyville Rd., Piketon. Registration is $30 and includes handouts and lunch. Deadline to register is Nov. 4.

Specialists in deer biology and control will provide insight on how to exclude deer from land, crop fields, commercial fruit and vegetable fields, and gardens. Visitors will also learn about options available for deer deterrents on both a large and small scale. Deer fence displays and a tour of the new fence will also be included in the workshop.

For more information or to register, contact Julie Strawser at 740-289-2071, 1-800-297-2072 (Ohio only) ext. 223, or strawser.35@osu.edu.

— Release provided by OSU.

Smithfield frees itself of financially strapped feedlots

Divestiture of the nation’s largest cattle feeding operation will free Smithfield Foods Inc. of what had been a major money loser, according to Meatingplace.com.

Five Rivers Ranch Cattle Feeding, which boasts a one-time capacity of 811,000 head of cattle with lots in Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, and markets 1.6 million head per year, suffered losses nearing $19 million during the first three quarters of Smithfield’s fiscal 2008, compared with a profit of $1.6 million during the same period a year earlier, as feed costs soared. Those losses more than offset any profits the beef business made.

But now, JBS S.A. and Smithfield have completed the sale of Smithfield Beef Group and Five Rivers, a deal that originally was announced a week after Smithfield reported those results in late February.

According to Meatingplace.com, the deal excludes substantially all live cattle inventories held by Smithfield Beef Group and Five Rivers as of the closing date, along with associated debt. JBS will raise the excluded live cattle after the closing for a negotiated fee and sell them at maturity for market-based prices.

As of April 27, Smithfield had some 207,100 head of cattle at both company-owned and custom feedlots throughout the country, down from 320,450 head a year earlier, according to SEC filings.

— Adapted from a Meatingplace.com article.

— compiled by Mathew Elliott, assistant editor, Angus Productions Inc.