News Update
May 27, 2010

American Angus Association Now on Twitter

The American Angus Association continues to expand its social media presence; the organization joined Twitter Wednesday.

“Twitter allows Association members and anyone interested in Angus immediate access to what’s going on at the Association and in the animal agriculture industry,” Crystal Young, assistant director of public relations, says.

The American Angus Association will tweet using the “@AngusAssoc” handle. Read more.

Stockmanship and Stewardship Program: The right message at the right time

The checkoff’s Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) and producer education programs are once again teaming with industry partners to present an educational cattle handling seminar to producers. The Stockmanship and Stewardship Tour, funded in part by the beef checkoff, travels the country and uses live cattle handling demos to inform cattlemen about the importance and benefits of proper cattle handling — and its critical role in increasing consumer confidence in beef.
The tour includes special hands-on training sessions at livestock auction markets and other venues where cattle producers and others meet to discuss improved stockmanship methods, as well as the pivotal role producers play in sustaining beef quality for consumers.

The Stockman and Stewardship sessions teach handling methods that improve gathering, penning, chute work, and hauling. Much emphasis is placed on ways to increase cattle performance by reducing handling stress, and interactive discussions show how cattlemen can actually shape consumers’ perceptions of beef. Other topics include how the principles presented actually have a significant economic — as well as “quality of life” — benefit when applied in one’s operation.

Ryan Ruppert, director of beef quality assurance for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), says this tour is important to cattle producers and the industry for three vital reasons:

1. Welfare: Improved cattle handling leads to improved public perception; less injury to handlers and cattle; less carcass damage and trim loss
   
   
2. Performance: Increase efficiency; increased gain; less investment in veterinary intervention; less investment into facilities and repair
   
   
3. Quality of Life: Improved profitability; sustainable family operations; enjoyment of the ranching lifestyle

The tour is led by renowned Montana horseman, rancher and stockmanship instructor Curt Pate and lifelong cattleman Ron Gill, Texas A&M livestock specialist and cattle handling advisor.

If you would like to schedule a session at your auction market, contact Tom Field at tfield@beef.org or 303-850-3378 or Grace Webb at gwebb@beef.org or 303-850-3338. For a complete schedule of upcoming events and more information about the checkoff’s BQA program go to www.bqa.org.

— Release by The Beef Checkoff Program.

Study shows ground beef from grain-fed cattle
more beneficial in protecting against cardiovascular disease

Grass-fed beef may not have the health advantage some perceive, according to results from a recent Texas AgriLife Research study. Stephen Smith, an AgriLife Research meat scientist, and a team of researchers have found that contrary to popular perception, ground beef from pasture-fed cattle had no beneficial effects on plasma lipid compared to ground beef from grain-fed cattle.

However, high-monounsaturated-fat ground beef from grain-fed cattle increased HDL cholesterol, increased LDL particle diameters and decreased insulin, suggesting that ground beef produced by intensive production practices provides “a healthful, high-quality source of protein.”

“We wanted to see from this study if product from pasture-fed and corn-fed cattle had different effects on LDL or HDL cholesterol,” Smith said. “We looked at the scientific literature and could not find any justifications for the statement that pasture-fed beef is better for you. All we found were rat studies in which they were fed omega-3 fatty acids, so we wanted to know if this applied to beef from grass-fed cattle.”

The study, funded by the NCBA, used Angus cattle raised at the McGregor AgriLife Research Center. One group of cattle was fed a pasture diet with supplemental hay. The steers were kept on pasture until 20 months of age.

A second group of Angus steers was fed the same way a feedlot operator would and kept on a corn-based diet until 16 months of age, then reaching USDA Choice status.

A third group of Angus steers were fed the corn-based diet the longest, until reaching USDA Prime. The fat in cattle that are high in marbling is low in saturated and trans fats, and higher in monounsaturated fats.

Beef cuts from the plate and flank taken from all three grades were made into a ground beef product, containing 24% fat.

Next, a group of 27 men completed a three-way crossover study. Each group rotated, consuming five 114-gram ground beef patties per week for six weeks from each of the three sets of cattle used in the study.

“There really were no negative effects of feeding ground beef from the pasture-fed cattle,” Smith said. “We did see many positive effects in men that consumed ground beef from corn-fed cattle. The ground beef from the USDA Prime cattle increased HDL cholesterol and LDL particle diameter. Both effects are protective against cardiovascular disease. The Prime ground beef also decreased insulin, so it may have some protective effect against type II diabetes.”

Smith said the study results surprised many. “As we talked to some user groups and told them that we had found pasture-fed beef is higher in saturated trans fat, they were shocked.”

Smith presented the findings to the NCBA last year and is now sharing among consumers and producers. He recently gave a presentation at the Texas Human Nutrition Conference in College Station. Smith said he did receive some initial negative feedback from ranchers in the grass-fed beef business, but he isn’t telling them that what they are doing is wrong.

“I know that cattle are adapted to growing on high-roughage, pasture diets, but my focus is the beef product,” he said. “A lot of producers are receptive. What I’m trying to show them is that the longer cattle are fed a corn or grain-based diet, the healthier the product will be.”

“I realize cost is involved — feeding corn is expensive. But, if you want a healthier product, you need more marbling. Time on feed is a big factor.”

— Release by Texas AgriLife Research.

Keep Safety in Mind When Working With Bulls

As breeding season rolls around, Kansas State University’s (K-State) Chris Reinhardt wants to remind cattle producers to take extra care when working with cattle, especially bulls.

“Hand-raised bulls do not have the same timidity of humans as those raised by their dam,” said Reinhardt, who is a feedlot specialist with K-State Research and Extension. “These bulls view humans as their equal and constantly have the potential to become aggressive toward their handler.”

He also encourages producers to take the time to inspect and repair working facilities, noting that the same facilities that handled last season’s calves through weaning may be sufficiently worn enough that larger, stronger and more aggressive bulls may push the system beyond its limits.

“An extra day of maintenance could prove a great investment if human or animal injury is prevented and the time and inconvenience of escaped bulls is avoided,” Reinhardt said.

He encourages producers to take their own age into account when working with mature cattle: “As the body ages, several things happen. Response time slows, vision diminishes, and healing time is extended. At 18 the body is still nimble enough to dash out of harm’s way; with advancing age, the need to plan for, avoid and prevent dangerous situations increases. A mishap at 18 or 20 resulting in a muscle pull, a sprain or even a broken bone will heal more rapidly and permanently than the same injury after 50.”

— Release by K-State Research and Extension.

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