News Update
May 28, 2013
Butler Forage Field Day Features
Cattle Management Strategies
Keeping expenses in check and watching the price of corn were two discussion points before beef cattle producers attending the recent O.D. Butler Field Day at Camp Cooley Ranch.
Jason Johnson, AgriLife Extension economist, said cattle prices should remain strong due to the fact so much corn has been planted in the United States. He said 97 million acres have been planted, which is a record, and if ample rainfall is received, another record should be set for harvested acres.
Regarding prices, it all hinges on weather, he said. With beef cattle, it’s a different story.
“It’s a much longer growing cycle (with cattle),” Johnson explained. “We’ve got the fewest cows since the 1950s, which means we will have fewer calves. Feedlots are hotels, and they make their money on occupancy.”
Low occupancy is making it tough going for feedlots trying to cover costs and make a profit.
Johnson also discussed drought-management strategies. One suggestion was to not stock at full capacity but, instead, to diversify a cattle operation.
“Be flexible,” he said. “The U.S. Drought Monitor still doesn’t show we are out of this. One of the things we can control are costs and match our forage with the right amount of cows.”
Johnson said it costs $600 a year to carry a cow from one year to the next. He said a body condition score of five is necessary to achieve a 90% calving rate.
“You’ve got to be selective about your expenses, but you can’t short cows on nutrition when it comes to calving.”
One way to cut expenses depends upon a rancher having hay storage. Johnson said a rancher could purchase hay during a year when there is oversupply and prices are at a reasonable rate.
“Indoor storage helps carry hay from one year to the next,” he said. “Overall, there are no silver bullets. Good managers prevent problems.”
Become a Permanent Part of Angus History in
Building An Angus Legacy!
The Angus Foundation would like to thank Angus breeders and friends who have wanted to leave a mark permanently at the American Angus Association headquarters in Saint Joseph, Mo., and submitted donations to Building An Angus Legacy!
For those who are interested in the project but haven’t yet taken part, it is not too late to leave your legacy behind while supporting your Angus Foundation and its youth, education and research programs. The deadline to submit donations for this project has been extended to July 15 to allow for donations during the 2013 National Junior Angus Show (NJAS) in Kansas City, Mo., July 5-11.
The American Angus Association front entrance walkway will be completely remodeled with black granite and red brick to match the historic building. Until July 15, 2013, for a tax-deductible unrestricted donation of $250, $500 or $2,500 to Building An Angus Legacy!, you will be recognized on a beautiful personalized engraved granite paver.
Only text will be allowed on the granite pavers, and each paver size has line and character limits to follow. However, in addition to the granite pavers, there will be the opportunity to be recognized on one of four granite planters, which will be displayed prominently at the remodeled entrance.
For more information on Building An Angus Legacy!, please view the full release here.
County Extension Agents Learn What Sustainable Agriculture Means to Kentucky
For the many Cooperative Extension agents who focus on applying their area of expertise to their locality, professional growth can sometimes come from stepping outside what’s familiar. So it was for a group of Extension agents on a recent trip to Kentucky, where they set out to learn what sustainable agriculture means to the Bluegrass State.
Participating in a unique training program known as the Sustainable Agriculture Fellows program, the group spent two days in the Lexington area touring family farms, horse-breeding operations, tobacco farms, Kentucky State University’s aquaculture research facility, a food co-op, a livestock processing and marketing facility, and the University of Kentucky’s research farm. Hailing from around the country, they saw how the overarching concepts of sustainability are being applied to one state’s unique agriculture.
“The goals of this learning experience are to deepen the understanding of sustainable agriculture and to catalyze changes in an Extension agent’s work,” said Lee Meyer, Kentucky SARE state coordinator at the University of Kentucky, which hosted the tour.
Maud Powell, a small farms specialist at Oregon State University, said that seeing how Kentucky agriculture is scaling up will help her when working with small farmers who only manage about 10-20 acres. “That just may be the sweet spot for the producers to be working with,” she said.
Sophistication, innovation, value-added and creativity were just some of the keywords the participants used to describe the agribusinesses they visited on the tour.
“It was fascinating to see that the consumers and the processors are pulling the farmers and telling them what they need. So often you see producers pushing things and then figuring out how to market them,” said Tom Maloney, a senior Extension associate in the Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management at Cornell University.
Therein lies the benefit of the Sustainable Agriculture Fellows program — the value participants place on it as an opportunity to discover different agricultural concepts and take back home what they have learned.
2013 Texas A&M Beef Cattle Short Course
The 59th Texas A&M Beef Cattle Short Course is scheduled Aug. 5-7 at Texas A&M University in College Station.
Weather outlook and a cattle market outlook are two of the featured topics to be discussed during the general session.
“A lot of producers are wanting to know how long this current market cycle will last and how to go about herd expansion strategies in the future,” said Jason Cleere, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service beef cattle specialist in College Station and conference coordinator. “The long-term outlook is one of the many topics that will be featured in the 22 different cattleman’s college sessions at the short course.”
The short course has become one of the largest and most comprehensive beef cattle educational programs in the U.S., Cleere noted.
The cattleman’s college portion provides participants with an opportunity to choose workshops based on their level of production experience and the needs of their ranch, Cleere said.
“These concurrent workshops will feature information on introductory cattle production, retiring to ranching, management practices in the areas of forage, nutrition and reproduction, recordkeeping, genetics, purebred cattle, landowner issues and much more,” he said.
In addition to classroom instruction, participants can attend one of the popular demonstrations on the morning of Aug. 7.
“There will be demonstrations on fence building, chuteside calf working, cattle behavior, penning and Brush Busters,” Cleere said. “These provide an opportunity for ranchers to see beef cattle production practices put to use.
“The goal of the short course each year is to provide the most cutting-edge information that is needed by beef cattle producers. We think we have information for everyone to take home and apply to their operations.”
For more information, please visit the Angus Journal’s Virtual Library calendar of upcoming events here.
Applications are Available for Angus Juniors to Participate in The Scoop 2013
The National Junior Angus Association (NJAA) and Angus Foundation are pleased to again provide NJAA members, who have completed the ninth grade, with an opportunity to gain experience in the areas of communication, business, writing and photography. This year marks the sixth year for The Scoop, an annual electronic publication produced by NJAA members, who work as a team to create stories and artwork with the help of top communication professionals.
In addition to gaining experience, The Scoop provides networking opportunities between other juniors and industry leaders. After participating on The Scoop staff, junior members will be better prepared to pursue majors and careers in photography, communications, marketing, advertising or public relations.
Junior members who participate in The Scoop often conduct interviews and write stories about events at the National Junior Angus Show (NJAS) or other topics in the beef industry. For those who prefer the artistic side of the publication, there are opportunities to assist with contributing photos or artwork, as well as assisting with the layout.
The Scoop staff will meet at 2 p.m. Sunday through Thursday during the 2013 NJAS in Kansas City, Mo., but the opportunity is also available to members who do not plan to attend the show.
Robin Ruff, director of junior activities for the American Angus Association, says if juniors have even the slightest interest in photography, communications, marketing, advertising or public relations, they should sign up for The Scoop experience and learn more about working in a real-world communications setting.
For more information on how to register for The Scoop, view the full release here.
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