Opinion
Connecting agriculture with science helps STEM educators foster a new generation of consumers who are better informed about beef and beef production.
USDA’s regular October reports provided insight about future beef production. Any thoughts of herd restocking that may have existed earlier have been put on hold for now.
Beef’s critics see an industry that is corrupt and/or broken with NCBA and packers padding their pockets. The facts tell a different story. Beef is winning the marketplace…and it’s not even close.
USDA’s recent October 1, 2023, Cattle on Feed report offered a few surprising numbers. How does that report square up with previously released USDA data?
Profitability challenges in the dairy sector make the value of beef-on-dairy (BXD) calves more important and underscores the reality that dairy cows are now on double duty.
Prices for day-old beef-X-dairy (BXD) calves are often surprisingly high. But what used to be a highly discounted after-thought (straight dairy calves) is rapidly transforming into a meaningful source of production.
Prices across the entire beef complex have reached record levels. Demand remains the key variable, and now may be the time to measure demand through the value of the various cuts of the carcass.
Checkoff deniers would have you believe per capita consumption data indicate demand is in decline. That claim was debunked 25 years ago.
When considering the capital commitment required to maintain a cow over her lifetime, genetic testing is really a financial risk management tool and an investment in total herd profitability.
The demise of cattle feedlots is a talking point often used to stir emotion among those in the industry. How might such claims be argued in court where alternative facts are usually exposed under cross examination?
More days on feed means more opportunity for something going wrong – ultimately ending in increased death loss. Preventive illness management before arrival is more important than ever.
There’s mounting evidence of a protracted cattle cycle because whatever happens from here, Speer says, next year’s starting cow herd number will be down sharply.
Two years of herd liquidation confirm that cattle numbers are extremely tight with record prices the result. Now is the time to plan and manage for your future.
Despite the misrepresentation from some groups, your beef checkoff has paid huge dividends. And given that producers fund the program, there’s an obligation to portray the program factually. Here are some facts.
CBB member and co-chair of the Stakeholder Engagement Committee, Wisconsin cattleman Steve Spinger discusses why the Beef Checkoff invests a small percentage of its funding for Producer Communications.
Agriculture is changing rapidly; that inherently creates tension. However, producers who operate believing “success is within my control” are the ones most likely to succeed amidst the turbulence.
Our industry is constantly evolving, but today’s consumer is changing even faster. As producers, we must put ourselves in their shoes because we’re ALL consumers at the end of the day.
Market prices for beef and cattle impact margins and short-term decisions at every level of the supply chain, but decisions concerning long-term financial health are driven by factors that may lead to structural change.
Last week I learned I’m a 12-percenter, and if you’re a Drovers reader it is likely you are a 12-percenter, too. That’s not good, at least according to those who would regulate our dietary choices.
Cattle markets this summer have often provided a wide regional basis with cattle in the North trading well above futures. That’s not to be misinterpreted as indicator of a broken market.
Are southern cattle feeders too passive when marketing cattle? Here’s what the data suggest.
Beef consumption vs, beef demand, a topic that continues to generate confusion. But it should be clear, per-capita consumption, “independent of prices, provides no meaningful information about demand.”
The well-defined costs of ranching and farming are often the focus of managing the business, but little watched regulatory costs can often become a burden to business operators.
The Checkoff is expanding its efforts to reach different consumer audience segments, and through the power of Checkoff-funded nutrition and health research, we’ve unlocked new audience groups.
If we are being honest, showing livestock is for crazy people. Late nights, early mornings and little time for social lives. But I think most stock show families would agree they live for summer to do just that.
Consumption data are often used to mislead and undermine the beef industry’s accomplishments and disparage the Checkoff. But such data in the absence of price data provides zero information about beef’s competitiveness.
Satire regarding instructions packers provide their buyers was published by a popular online newsletter, triggering cowboy conspiracy theorists to bloviate before they investigated. Our ex-reporter has the current facts.
Through 30 weeks, the 2023 cattle and beef markets have exceeded even the most bullish of forecasts. How does this year’s cattle market compare to 2014? Price only tells part of the story.
With estimates of 82% capacity utilization of fed beef plants next year and 65% for cow slaughter plants, Nalivka says, “Rest assured - there will be decisions made.”
Disciplined hedgers protect themselves against noise and volatility – the very essence of why futures markets exist, and why smart feeders use that tool.