News Update

July 17, 2017

Better Beef Leads Value Gain

When cattle gain or lose $150 in per-head value in a week, it’s easy to lose sight of what lifts that value trend over the years. A University of Missouri (MU) study of 2003-2016 boxed-beef cutout values isolates the contribution of branded and Prime sales.

The work by MU economist Scott Brown builds on the 2007 CattleFax “Value of Quality Analysis” and updates Brown’s earlier finding that quality “added $4.5 billion to the beef economy in the nine years from 2005 through 2013.”

That total at the start of this year and going back to 2003 comes to $7.28 billion, including $750 million last year, with a 14-year average annual increase of $34 million. The impact is rising, with the average yearly gain since 2009 at $46 million, and up $100 million last year.

The simple upward trend “explains 80% of the variation in quality premiums,” Brown notes (see Fig. 1). Year-to-year variation comes from many factors, such as changes in global markets, income, weather and consumer preferences.

Continue reading this Angus Media news article online.

— Adapted from an article by Steve Suther, Certified Angus Beef LLC.

Beef Talk

Did you know you can save more than 25% of available forage by weaning calves early?

The current dryness affecting the land has caused all livestock producers to review options. For some in a drought situation, the only real solution is rain. Producers need to take charge whether the season is dry or wet.

The Dickinson Research Extension Center has and will continue to manage during dry times. The center is in a semiarid climate, and dryness is not a stranger.

Managing grazing time and stocking rate is critical. As a result, the center has measured available biomass on the range when cows have their calves removed in mid-August vs. early November.

The thought is that removing calves would lessen the impact on the production unit during times when rain is scarce. First, no drought plan works if there is no grazing plan to start with.

Learn more in this Angus Media news article online.

— Adapted from an article by Kris Ringwall, North Dakota State University Extension.

American Farm Bureau Lists Farm Bill Goals

With serious economic challenges facing agriculture, underscored by even deeper concerns in some commodity sectors, the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) board of directors outlined the organization’s key objectives for the 2018 farm bill.

After its meeting this week in Washington, D.C., the AFBF board sent its goals and recommendations to leadership on the Senate and House agriculture committees in anticipation of the upcoming farm bill debate.

“Because of low commodity prices, many of America’s farmers and ranchers are struggling,” said AFBF President Zippy Duvall. “The risk management and safety net provisions of farm bills are most important in times like these.

“The bill also will help protect our nation’s food security and our supply of domestic renewable energy and fiber. It will provide critical food assistance to those who need it, and it will continue to offer incentives to conserve our natural resources.”

For more information, read the AFBF news release online.

— Adapted from a release by the American Farm Bureau Federation.

Edisto Forage Bull Test 2018 Call for Entries

The entry forms, rules and regulations for the 2018 Edisto Forage Bull Test in Blackville, S.C., are now online. The entry deadline is Nov. 1, 2017, but please get them back in as soon as possible. Don’t forget sale day for the 2017 test is Oct. 14. The forms are available at our home page www.clemson.edu/extension/bulltest/edisto/.

For more information on the Edisto Forage Bull Test, contact Scott Sell at gsell@clemson.edu or 803-284-3343.

— Adapted from a release by Clemson Cooperative Extension.

Stocker Cattle, Wheat Conference set for Aug. 1

With low wheat prices, stocker cattle options for farmers and ranchers take on more importance in the Rolling Plains of Texas and southwestern Oklahoma, said Emi Kimura, a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service agronomist in Vernon.

Kimura said producers can hear from experts on best management practices during the upcoming Cattle Trails Wheat and Stocker Cattle Conference, set for Aug. 1 at the Comanche County Fairgrounds Annex Building, 920 S.W. Sheridan Road, Lawton, Okla.

AgriLife Extension and the Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service will host the conference from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Registration is $25 per person and includes educational materials, a noon meal and refreshments. Checks should be payable to Oklahoma State University (OSU) Extension.

Producers are encouraged to register in advance by contacting their local AgriLife Extension county agent, Oklahoma Cooperative Extension county educator, the Southwest Oklahoma Area Extension office at 580-255-0546 or email Marty New at marty.new@okstate.edu.

For more information, visit the Angus Journal Virtual Library calendar of upcoming events.

— Adapted from a release by Kay Ledbetter, Texas AgriLife Communications.

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

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