Latest News From Beef Production

Minimizing Storage Losses of Round Bale Hay
Minimizing Storage Losses of Round Bale Hay

Baled forage probably constitutes the highest percentage of winter feed cost we have wrapped up in a cow. Here's how to best protect the asset from the elements.

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Will it Pay to Retain and Backgrounding Calves this Year?

Winter backgrounding programs in most areas will not include grazing this year, which makes calculating precise ration costs and projecting breakevens critical for success.

Cash Cattle Steady, CME Futures Lower
Cash Cattle Steady, CME Futures Lower

Active trading in the North and the South provided steady prices while CME futures and wholesale beef prices moved lower for the week.

Exercise Caution When Grazing Cattle on Drought Stressed Cornstalks
Exercise Caution When Grazing Cattle on Drought Stressed Cornstalks

Considering grazing cornstalks this winter to help ease feed needs? Here's some things to consider before turning cattle out in the field.

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Weaning Beef Calves: How to Minimize Stress to Promote Health and Growth

Weaning is one of the most stressful times in a calf's life. Here's how to best prepare your calves and their surroundings for weaning time.

The Gray Area of Antibiotics: What Should I Use and When?
The Gray Area of Antibiotics: What Should I Use and When?

While several brand-name and generic products are available at a variety of price points, what questions do you ask yourself when there’s a sick animal needing care?

Managing for Optimum Body Condition Scores
Managing for Optimum Body Condition Scores

If cows are to maintain a calving interval of one year they must bred back within 80 – 85 days after calving.  In cows of all ages the BCS at calving determines the rebreeding performance. 

FDA Approves Two Medications Used in Combination for Cattle Feeding
FDA Approves Two Medications Used in Combination for Cattle Feeding

Pennchlor® and Rumensin® approved for use together giving beef producers more options to improve the sustainability and efficiency of their business.

Asian Longhorned Tick Discovered in Northern Missouri
Asian Longhorned Tick Discovered in Northern Missouri

This discovery further heightens the need for Missouri cattle ranchers to make informed decisions regarding quarantining protocols when introducing new cattle into their herds.

Peel: Feedlot Production and Cattle Slaughter
Peel: Feedlot Production and Cattle Slaughter

The September 2022 Cattle on Feed report pegged inventory up 0.5 percent from August, indicating that August was the low point for this year.

Cattle Higher in Active Trade; COF Neutral
Cattle Higher in Active Trade; COF Neutral

Cash cattle sold higher in active trading ahead of the September Cattle on Feed report which saw slightly higher inventories but within the range of trade expectations.

Who is Liable for a Contracted Labor Injury?
Who is Liable for a Contracted Labor Injury?

As many ag operations hire contracted or seasonal labor throughout the year, is your operation carrying the liability risk in the event of an injury?

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Grazing Alfalfa in Fall or Winter

There is often fear associated with grazing alfalfa due to bloat potential or hurting the alfalfa stand. However, with proper management, fall and winter grazing may be an option to harvest quality feed.

Top 5 Risks on Your Operation: Are You Prepared?
Top 5 Risks on Your Operation: Are You Prepared?

How well prepared is your operation to manage risk? Here’s a list of the top 5 risks and ways to mitigate the challenges.

CAB Insider: Will Quality Premiums Continue Higher?
CAB Insider: Will Quality Premiums Continue Higher?

Late fall holiday demand heats up the cattle market, and that’s when high-quality carcasses get extra bragging rights. Demand alone doesn’t spur prices higher, there must be a degree of supply constraint.

Managing Fall Calving Cows is Different than Spring Calving Cows, Especially During Drought
Managing Fall Calving Cows is Different than Spring Calving Cows, Especially During Drought

Nutritional management of fall-calving cows is a little different than spring-calving herds throughout the production cycle. Here's some things to consider.

Have You Considered Hunting Leases as an Added Enterprise?
Have You Considered Hunting Leases as an Added Enterprise?

Seeking additional income options for your operation? Landowners might consider leasing out their land for wildlife activities, including hunting, fishing or birding.

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Plan Now to Purchase Your Hay Supplies

The U.S. hay supply is at a 50-year low. Couple this with rising costs and it becomes prudent to plan fall, winter and next spring’s hay needs sooner rather than later.

Peel: Wheat Grazing Prospects Dim
Peel: Wheat Grazing Prospects Dim

As much as 11 percent of Oklahoma's winter wheat has been planted despite soil moisture profiles that are bleak at best. Wheat grazing prospects look dim and risky this fall.

Sustainability is not Going Away. What are You Going to do With It?
Sustainability is not Going Away. What are You Going to do With It?

Check out the "Easy Button" offered by the USRSB for starters. It's a quick self-assessment tool, with options for cow/calf and feedyard operations. You're probably already using some of the recommended practices.

Hulett: Cash Makes a Positive Turn
Hulett: Cash Makes a Positive Turn

The combination of tightening supplies and packers seeking higher-grading inventory helped push cash prices a little higher last week.

Tightening Supply Pushes Fed Prices Higher
Tightening Supply Pushes Fed Prices Higher

Cattle prices moved moderately higher in both the North and the South last week as the declining supply of market-ready cattle gradually shifting leverage toward feedyards.

Which Cows Are Worth Keeping? Select Cows That Best Fit Your Operation
Which Cows Are Worth Keeping? Select Cows That Best Fit Your Operation

In a year like this, taking time to evaluate your herd and its present genetics may be valuable to set your operation up for success in the coming years.

Speer: Dairy Cows Now On Double Duty
Speer: Dairy Cows Now On Double Duty

America's dairy industry has been robust the last several decades. Now, larger average dairies are producing more beef-dairy crossbred calves that are much higher quality for producing beef.

Patch Burning a Potential Cost Saver for Supplemental Feed
Patch Burning a Potential Cost Saver for Supplemental Feed

Ongoing research at Oklahoma State University shows that the process of patch burning has the potential to save cattle producers $20 per cow per year in supplemental feed costs.

Ask for a Feed Analysis Report on Hay Before Buying or Feeding
Ask for a Feed Analysis Report on Hay Before Buying or Feeding

Winter is coming and though simply finding hay for your cattle may be a relief, it's important to remember that not all hay is created equal.

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Equipment Maintenance

Cleaning and maintaining animal health equipment are important considerations when implementing BQA (Beef Quality Assurance) on your cattle operation.

Quality Cattle Management Recognized Through Value-Added Program
Quality Cattle Management Recognized Through Value-Added Program

Marketing calves through a value-added program shows real results for a Missouri family farm.

Hulett: Cash Holds Steady
Hulett: Cash Holds Steady

While all packers were in the market for cattle last week, none were aggressive enough to push the cash market any higher than steady.

Fed Cattle Trade Steady to Lower Ahead of Futures' Bullish Friday
Fed Cattle Trade Steady to Lower Ahead of Futures' Bullish Friday

Cash fed cattle traded flat with most activity on Thursday ahead of Friday's CME futures rally. Expectations of tighter cattle supplies this fall supports bullish ideas for prices.

Profit Tracker: Breakevens Nearing $153 Per Cwt
Profit Tracker: Breakevens Nearing $153 Per Cwt

Average feed costs for finishing cattle and hogs are 25% to 28% higher than the same week last year, according to Sterling Marketing's weekly calculations.

CAB Insider: Corn Basis Factors
CAB Insider: Corn Basis Factors

Even though prices have been exceptional for calves and feeder cattle, feedlot breakeven projections are rapidly moving higher, discouraging ranchers to consider retaining ownership.

Strategies For Drought Management on Pastures
Strategies For Drought Management on Pastures

If pastures are managed properly during times of low moisture, the effects of drought will be less severe and pastures will rebound faster when precipitation is sufficient.

Hereford Genetics Sustain Through the Dry Season
Hereford Genetics Sustain Through the Dry Season

Hereford-cross cattle show better resiliency and feed efficiency in the face of challenging environments, according to the American Hereford Association.

Hulett: Fed Prices Take A Step Back
Hulett: Fed Prices Take A Step Back

Buying for a holiday-shortened week, packers were not aggressive and prices suffered. This week should produce more robust trading.

Peel: Prepare for Marketing Calves this Fall
Peel: Prepare for Marketing Calves this Fall

Calf prices typically reach a seasonal low around October. This year, however, calf prices have moved counter-seasonally higher this summer as part of a general trend of tighter supplies and higher prices.

Feeding Cows While Coping with Drought and High Input Costs
Feeding Cows While Coping with Drought and High Input Costs

Grouping cows or growing cattle in larger groups to maximize feed delivery over groups to feed is an additional consideration under current economic conditions.

U.S. Cropland Cash Rents Hit All-Time High
U.S. Cropland Cash Rents Hit All-Time High

For 2022, the national average for cash rents on cropland is $148 per acre. That’s up $7 from last year and eclipsed the previous high of 2015’s $144 per acre.

Cattle Markets Lower Ahead of Labor Day
Cattle Markets Lower Ahead of Labor Day

Cattle in all categories traded mostly lower ahead of the Labor Day weekend. Packers head into next week with smaller inventories and cattle owners hope that encourages more aggressive bidding.

Sexten: Sorting for Options With Thin Cows
Sexten: Sorting for Options With Thin Cows

With much of the US cow herd in some form of drought the odds of thin cows heading into weaning season are high. This month let's look at practical approaches to wrangling the challenge of dry pastures and thin cows.

Timeless Herd Efficiency Strategies for Today’s Market
Timeless Herd Efficiency Strategies for Today’s Market

Developing a supplementation strategy with precision that includes technologies to improve feed efficiency regardless of stocking method is fundamental to maximizing resources.

Retained Ownership? - Part 3, Beef Quality Grades
Retained Ownership? - Part 3, Beef Quality Grades

Marbling has more influence on tenderness, juiciness and flavor of cooked beef than the other types of fat.  As a result, marbling and Beef Quality Grades are typically the biggest driver of beef carcass value. 

Walmart Invests In Proposed Nebraska Packing Plant
Walmart Invests In Proposed Nebraska Packing Plant

Sustainable Beef LLC received a giant boost in its efforts to bring a new, 1,500 head per day beef processing facility online with a commitment from Walmart.

Profit Tracker: Feedings Costs 25% Higher YOY
Profit Tracker: Feedings Costs 25% Higher YOY

The average cost of feeding a steer to finish weight was 25% higher for cattle marketed last week and is projected to be 31% higher for cattle placed on feed last week at roughly $600 per head.

Capturing More of Your Calves’ Value with Preconditioning
Capturing More of Your Calves’ Value with Preconditioning

Why should buyers at cattle auctions pay $10 to $15 per cwt premiums for the best cattle that have received the best management, if they can get the same thing at commodity prices?

Peel: Oklahoma Fall Forage Situation
Peel: Oklahoma Fall Forage Situation

Given the limited hay supply, proportionally more wheat pasture is likely to be used for cow herds than for stockers.  Even if there is wheat pasture, stocker demand may be somewhat lighter than usual this year.

Fed Cattle Weaker, Feeders & Calves Steady to Higher
Fed Cattle Weaker, Feeders & Calves Steady to Higher

Cash cattle trade was called moderate in all regions but estimated cattle slaughter will be higher this week. Auction prices for both calves and feeder cattle were stronger.

Manage Shrink when Marketing Weaned Calves this Fall
Manage Shrink when Marketing Weaned Calves this Fall

Shrink is a concern because it reduces sales weight, but abnormal levels of shrink is often used as a health indicator for cattle arriving in receiving facilities at stocker operations, grow yards, and feedlots.

Swath Grazing
Swath Grazing

As expenses increase and producers evaluate more-efficient management techniques to lower production costs, one alternative may be to incorporate swath, or windrow grazing.

BRD Battle Plan: Provide Powerful Protection on All Fronts
BRD Battle Plan: Provide Powerful Protection on All Fronts

The fight against bovine respiratory disease (BRD) is a never-ending battle on a beef operation. It’s frustrating, costly, and the causes can be extremely hard to understand.