News Update
March 21, 2012
BIF Slated for April, Early Registration Deadline Is March 25
The 44th Beef Improvement Federation (BIF) Research Symposium & Annual Meeting will be at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Houston April 18-20. This year's meeting is hosted by Texas A&M University (TAMU) AgriLife Extension Animal Science and the American Brahman Breeders Association (ABBA).
On the evening of Wednesday, April 18, the symposium will hold an opening night reception, which will include presentations regarding the influence of Bos indicus genetics in the global beef industry.
The symposium will host a variety of events Thursday, April 19, and Friday, April 20, including presentations on current beef issues, committee sessions to discuss current research, an educational event hosted by the American Breeds Coalition, and announcements of the Seedstock and Commercial Producer Award nominees.
Registration for the event is $185, but will increase to $285 after March 25. Rooms can be reserved at a rate of $119 per night. For hotel information and to book a room call 1-800-627-6461.
Those who choose to remain in Houston over the weekend have the choice of three optional bus tours to South Central and Gulf Coast ranches for an additional cost of $50.
For more information visit www.bifconference.com, an event coverage site hosted by Angus Productions Inc. in the API Virtual Library at www.api-virtuallibrary.com.
Certified Angus Beef: Responding to Demand
Charting a course in the beef industry means acting on market signals and being ready for the reactions to those actions.
"The message of consumer demand is more complicated than it has ever been," John Stika said at the Kansas State University Cattlemen's Day earlier this month. Regardless of position in the beef industry, "we must interpret and respond by balancing those needs and expectations of consumers with our need to make a profit."
The president of Certified Angus Beef LLC (CAB) said that response is critical at every step from the cow-calf to retail level. "Being the closest to the consumer, retailers are the first to detect these changing preferences," he said.
Trend lines in 2011 clearly show a retail shift toward higher-quality beef, with many of the largest companies making room for Choice product in their meatcases.
"Wal-Mart didn't create a quality demand move," Stika said. "They responded to it." Consumers today consider a price-value relationship rather than price alone.
"We as an industry have experienced record sales of premium Choice beef during the worst economy in recent years," he noted. "The only way to explain this is that folks were careful where their dollars were spent, and they didn't gamble in the meatcase."
So consumers are willing to pay more for a product that they know is worth more, and they may be willing to pay still more.
"But there is an end out there somewhere," Stika said. "For consumers to accept higher prices, we as producers must continue to increase quality."
That way, retailers who have responded by offering more high-quality beef will be able to maintain that strategy and satisfy consumers who want their money's worth.
The response must come from an entire industry that focuses on taste, the top reason consumers buy beef, said Stika, who admitted it seems a distant goal for many producers.
"Eating satisfaction is a lower priority and a challenge to focus on," he said. "That's because there are so many other factors weighing into their decisions. But producers must hedge those factors against long-term beef demand."
Stika acknowledged the real need for increasing efficiency amid high input costs, but progress there would ring hollow if the source of demand walks away. "We must always consider the wants and expectations of the consumer, who brings the only sustainable flow of dollars into our businesses."
National FFA Members Connect with Local Farmers to Win More Than $275K in Chapter Prizes from Monsanto
Thousands of FFA members from 856 FFA chapters in 12 states have finished a huge effort to connect with local farmers, and many of those members dedicated to agricultural education are celebrating this week. One FFA chapter in Alabama, though, may be smiling wider than the rest.
That's because the Lawrence County High School FFA Chapter in Moulton, Ala., will be sending six FFA members and one chapter advisor to Indianapolis for an all-expenses-paid trip to October's 85th National FFA Convention & Expo after winning the grand prize of the 2012 FFA Chapter Challenge. Combined with an extra $2,500 designated for other FFA uses like registration fees for the Washington Leadership Conference (WLC) or chapter supplies (official FFA member jackets, banquet supplies and more) and the north Alabama FFA chapter is looking at an estimated $9,000-worth of prizes for bringing their chapter closer to local farmers.
The FFA Chapter Challenge, a second year National FFA Organization program sponsored by Monsanto that expanded to 12 states in 2012, challenged FFA members to meet farmers in their local communities. After building relationships and learning about the different career aspects of production agriculture, FFA members encouraged the farmers to vote for their chapter online or over the phone.
In total, the Lawrence County High School FFA Chapter connected with 1,110 farmers in their area.
"The mission of FFA goes beyond farming, but its heart will always be in creating new generations of leaders who understand agriculture and small communities," said Linda Arnold, Monsanto customer outreach lead. "Monsanto is proud to partner with the National FFA Foundation to help local chapters create that bond with the people who grow our food and build our communities."
Monsanto sponsors the FFA Chapter Challenge as a special project of the National FFA Foundation.
"Relationships are central to growing a career in any field, let alone agriculture. We love how this program emphasizes that while also supporting FFA chapters who work the hardest," said Rob Cooper, executive director of the National FFA Foundation. "We're very grateful of Monsanto's support of this program and truly believe it will be a great tool to grow tomorrow's agriculture leaders."
200 other FFA chapters in the 12 states — Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas — were also notified last week that they won chapter proceeds in the two-month competition. The top chapter in each state received a $2,500 FFA certificate, while chapters ranked second to tenth in each state received FFA certificates worth between $1,000 and $2,000. 80 chapters who didn't score in their state's top 10 also won $1,000. Complete results, state-by-state, are available on the FFA Chapter Challenge website.
Voting for the 2012 FFA Chapter Challenge began Jan. 16 and finished Feb. 29, with more than 10,000 votes coming in during the final week of competition.
As the grand prize winner, the Lawrence County High School FFA Chapter will join more than 50,000 FFA members, advisors and guests at October's 85th National FFA Convention in Indianapolis for concert-like general sessions featuring dynamic keynote speakers and lauded dignitaries, a massive career-focused trade show, hundreds of national competitions and award presentations, career success tours and more.
Early Herbicide Applications Could Fail Farmers, Specialist Says
Although the calendar shows it's March, many Midwest farmers are preparing their fields for spring planting like it's the middle of April. That's not necessarily a good thing, says Purdue Extension weed specialist Bill Johnson.
Producers taking advantage of unseasonably warm temperatures to apply an initial round of herbicides could find those applications wearing off well before weeds reach peak growth, Johnson said.
"We normally start our planting operations in the middle of April, but with all the fieldwork being done right now we're running 2-4 weeks ahead of schedule," he said. "That means that we're potentially adding one month onto the growing season. And for producers using what we call reduced or setup herbicide rates, they may find their herbicide programs running out 2-4 weeks early, as well."
A setup herbicide treatment is not intended to eliminate weed problems. The reduced rate application deals weeds a blow until they are knocked out with a post-emergence herbicide later in the crop season. A setup rate usually is one-half to two-thirds the amount of a full-rate residual herbicide application.
Most farmers bought herbicide or contracted to have applications made for them months ago, so simply buying more weed-killing products or services might not be an option. Though they can adjust how much herbicide they use in their first application to avoid setup rate failure, Johnson said.
"If you're using setup rates with a planned post-emerge treatment, I would strongly consider using full rates instead," he said. "Or, when you make your post-emerge treatment, use some of your residual herbicide with your post-emerge treatment."
For corn and soybeans, Johnson recommended herbicides with multiple modes of action to control both grasses and broadleaf weeds.
"You want products that are pretty robust in what they control," Johnson said.
Additional information about herbicide use and strategies is available on the Purdue Weed Science home page at http://www.ag.purdue.edu/btny/weedscience.
Opportunities in Grass-Finishing Beef
There are many opportunities that exist for grass-finished beef, whether it is direct marketing off the farm or selling to a wholesale company that specializes in marketing grass-finished beef. "Grass finished" is defined by USDA Agricultural Management Assistance (AMA) as grass- or forage-fed. Their definition states that in order for an animal to be grass- or forage-finished, they must meet the following standards.
• Grass and forage shall be the feed source consumed for the lifetime of the ruminant animal, with the exception of milk consumed prior to weaning.
- The diet shall be derived solely from forage consisting of grass (annual and perennial), forbs (e.g., legumes, Brassica), browse or cereal grain crops in the vegetative (pre-grain) state.
- Animals cannot be fed grain or grain byproducts and must have continuous access to pasture during the growing season. Hay, haylage, baleage, silage, crop residue without grain and other roughage sources may also be included as acceptable feed sources.
- Routine mineral and vitamin supplementation may also be included in the feeding regimen.
- If incidental supplementation occurs due to inadvertent exposure to non-forage feedstuffs or to ensure the animal's well being at all times during adverse environmental or physical conditions, the producer must fully document (e.g., receipts, ingredients, and tear tags) the supplementation that occurs including the amount, the frequency and the supplements provided.
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