News Update

February 14, 2017

How Cold Stress Affects Newborn Calves

Calves that are chilled soon after birth, without immediate assistance to warm and dry them and make sure they ingest colostrum in a timely manner, have poor survival rates. If a calf’s mouth gets cold before he suckles, he may not be able to get the teat in his mouth and suck and, therefore, he may not obtain crucial energy for keeping warm and the antibodies needed to protect against disease. Also, his ability to absorb the antibodies from colostrum diminishes as he becomes colder.

“The general consensus is that the cold calf does not have the energy for the cellular functions to work properly,” says veterinarian and University of Idaho Professor James England. “A cold calf has used up all his brown fat calories and what little bit of protein was left in the stomach (in the amniotic fluid) trying to keep warm. There isn’t enough energy for the cellular functions for transporting things back and forth in and out of the cells. The motility of the GI (gastrointestinal) tract is also impaired.”

To continue reading, view the Angus Beef Bulletin EXTRA article online.

— Adapted from an article by Heather Smith Thomas for Angus Media.

Meeting the Expectations of a Changing Consumer

The chances are pretty slim. It’s not likely that today’s food shopper will buy a finished steer; take it home to butcher in the backyard; and cut the carcass up into steaks, roasts and ground beef. Those chores fall to the beef packer.

“The packer is a necessary evil. You kind of need the packer,” joked Cameron Bruett while addressing cattle producers attending the 2017 Cattle Industry Convention in Nashville, Tenn.

The head of corporate affairs for JBS USA, the world’s largest animal protein processing company, Bruett spoke during the Cattlemen’s College® opening session, reminding attendees that the beef industry is composed of diverse but interdependent segments. For long-term success, each needs the others. There is a need, he said, for industry stakeholders to collaborate in addressing the expectations of beef consumers.

Read more in the Angus Media news article online.

— Adapted from an article by Troy Smith for Angus Media.

FarmHer Founder Shares Stories of Women in Agriculture

The American National CattleWomen (ANCW) convened annual meetings Jan. 30-31 in conjunction with the 2017 Cattle Industry Convention in Nashville, Tenn. In addition to focused discussions on beef industry promotion efforts, invited speaker Marji Guyler-Alaniz shared her work to “shine a light” on women in agriculture.

Guyler-Alaniz, who hails from Iowa, is the founder of FarmHer, an organization she established four years ago to change the image of agriculture by featuring farm women through photographs and stories.

Guyler-Alaniz started FarmHer after leaving a decade-long corporate career seeking to do something she was passionate about. She was uncertain what that might be until she saw RAM Truck’s “So God Made A Farmer” commercial that aired during the 2013 Super Bowl. A few weeks later, she read an editorial that noted no women in agriculture were featured in the promotion. That resonated with Guyler-Alaniz.

Continue reading in the Angus Media news article online.

— Adapted from a release by Kindra Gordon for Angus Media.

The Source

The familiar chant of the auctioneer encourages buyers to notice as another set of black-hided feeder calves enters the salering. “Angus calves, boys, take a look. They’re CAB candidates.”

This cliché is used at every auction, every sale day. What does a buyer want to know about your feeder calves when they enter the salering? Documented data about genetics and health have generated added value at marketing for the past several years.

Verified health information during the summer of 2016 added value to the seller’s pocket from a rate of $2.16 to $13.16 per hundredweight (cwt.) on a load’s worth of lots of weaned feeder calves. Calves enrolled in a VAC 34, VAC 45 or VAC Precon walked away with those extra dollars.

The classic black calf walking into the salering today can be made from one or more breeds. It has become more difficult to pick out the Angus-influenced calves that yield a Certified Angus Beef^® (CAB^®) carcass on sale day.

— Adapted from an article by Ginette Gottswiller, American Angus Association.

Small Acreage Pasture Management Meeting

A Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Small Acreage Pasture Management meeting will be hosted Feb. 27 at the River Bend Nature Center, 2200 3rd St., Wichita Falls.

The program, which includes a meal, will be from 6-7:30 p.m. and is free and open to the public, said David Graf, AgriLife Extension agriculture and natural resources agent for Wichita County.

Graf said this program will allow new and experienced landowners who have small acreage to ask questions about unfamiliar tasks and hear the latest information on things like sprayer calibration, proper pressure and nozzle tips, and how to properly use products that keep the environment safe.

For more information, view the news release online.

— Adapted from a release by Kay Ledbetter, Texas A&M University.

— Compiled by Paige Nelson, field editor, Angus Media.

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