News Update
February 19, 2013
One-step Upgrade in Calves
Some cows are better suited to their environment than to pleasing beef consumers. Their owners can still use high-value Angus genetics as a terminal cross in those herds, to help themselves and the entire beef supply chain.
That’s according to two years of results from the Southern Carcass Improvement Project (SCIP), as presented by an advisor to the demonstration. Tom Brink, President of J&F Oklahoma Holdings, Inc., helped compile a white paper on last fall’s results (www.cabpartners.com/news/research).
He presented those findings and an abstract of the work Feb. 2, at the Southern Section American Society of Animal Science annual meeting in Orlando, Fla.
Having purchased and fed many thousands of Brahman-cross calves from the region over the years, Brink said the net dollars left on the table in the South by ignoring a genetic upgrade amount to at least $200 million a year — $625 million across the entire United States — and that money is not out of reach.
“High-grading, high-value cattle can be created in one generation from a bos indicus-based cow herd possessing average or lower carcass genetics,” he said. “Producers can earn higher prices for their calves at weaning or as yearlings in the increasingly consumer-oriented U.S. cattle market.”
As in the first year of the project that began in 2009, representative bos indicus-cross cows, characterized by DNA profiles, were randomly mated to either similar Southern-type sires or high-carcass-value Angus bulls. Embryo transfer was utilized and the recipients were kept at Gardiner Ranch near Ashland, Kan. Progeny were compared through weaning, feeding, and harvest.
All of the calves were crossbred, but the bottom line showed a net advantage for the Angus-sired calves of $73 per head, considering both the bottom-line cost savings and top-line market premiums from greater weight and higher quality grade. The Angus-sired progeny graded 76% Choice overall, compared to 25% for their Southern-sired herd mates.
“Better genetics offer a simple and effective solution in making beef produced in Southern packing plants grade better,” Brink concluded. “Producers win in giving the industry more of what it needs and in the process, the U.S. beef supply chain becomes more aligned with consumer demand.”
Eastern Oklahoma Beef Cattle Summit set for March 26
Cattle producers wanting to increase their awareness about trends in the beef industry that promote profitability should register now to attend the March 26 Eastern Oklahoma Beef Cattle Summit in McAlester.
“Tight profit-loss margins for most producers make it imperative they understand and employ the latest science-based information to make the best decisions possible for their operations,” said Brian Freking, Oklahoma State University (OSU) Cooperative Extension southeast area livestock specialist. The summit will take place from 8 a.m. to approximately 4 p.m. at McAlester’s Southeast Expo Center, located at 4500 W. Hwy 270, just off the Indian Nation Turnpike.
Cost is $10 per participant. Registration must be received no later than March 19. Registration forms are available at all OSU Cooperative Extension county offices, usually listed under “County Government” in local telephone directories and at http://countyext2.okstate.edu/ on the Internet.
The summit — sponsored by the OSU Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources in cooperation with the Oklahoma Beef Council (OBC) — will feature a number of informative sessions, a trade show of products that cattle managers may find useful in their enterprises and an industry update by OBC officials.
David Cantrell, Pittsburg County Extension director and agricultural educator, said participants will receive take-home copies of every PowerPoint presentation and information sheet.
“We ask everyone to pre-register as soon as possible because it greatly aids our planning and helps ensure we have sufficient numbers of sponsored meals, refreshments and take-home reference materials on hand,” he said. “We’re also going to be awarding door prizes.”
Anyone seeking additional information about the March 26 Eastern Oklahoma Beef Cattle Summit should contact the Pittsburg County Extension Office at 918-423-4120.
Meeting Brings Cattle Industry Experts to Illinois
Illinois cattlemen and cattlewomen will have the opportunity to hear from industry experts at the 2013 Illinois Cattle Feeders meeting on Wednesday, March 6, at the Ogle County Farm Bureau in Oregon, Ill., from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
“This meeting is a must-attend for Illinois cattle producers. First-hand access to this kind of knowledge in the cattle industry is rare,” said Travis Meteer, University of Illinois (U of I) beef extension educator.
Ron Gill, professor and extension livestock specialist with Texas A&M University, will be on hand to discuss low-stress cattle handling. Meteer said Gill is one of the leading animal-handling consultants in the country. He will offer insight on cattle behavior, cattle handling and facility design based on years of experience and proven practices.
Mark McCully, assistant vice president for Certified Angus Beef LLC (CAB), will discuss beef-quality trends, consumer preferences and branded-beef programs. CAB is the largest, most successful branded-beef program in the United States. McCully will offer a look into consumer preferences, demand trends and the most profitable marketing streams.
Paul Peterson, professor of derivatives trading at the University of Illinois will present “What’s Next for the Cattle Market?” Peterson spent most of his life trading and managing trade with the Chicago Board of Trade and Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. With extreme volatility existing in the cattle market, Peterson will outline some strategies to manage risk and take advantage of moving markets.
Mike Cecava, director of feed technology ADM research, will discuss improving crop residues for feeding beef cattle. Travis Meteer, U of I beef extension educator, will talk about corn silage feeding considerations, and Rich Hines, Summit Livestock Facilities, will discuss the advantages of feeding cattle indoors.
The meeting is free to attend; however pre-registration is requested. To register, contact Travis Meteer, 217-823-1340, or email wmeteer2@illinois.edu. Full details are available by clicking here.
Farmers Weigh Options as 2008 Farm Bill
Extended For One Year
Joe Outlaw, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service economist, predicts cuts will be forthcoming to federal farm programs in the future. Until then, farmers will operate under the 2008 Farm Bill this year receiving a direct payment on eligible crops.
The 2008 Farm Bill was extended by Congress in January, said Outlaw, co-director of the Agricultural and Food Policy Center at Texas A&M University in College Station. He told producers at the recent Blackland Income Growth Conference the current farm programs could be altered or possibly go away and be replaced by insurance programs.
Though no specific farm bill discussion is alive among Congressional lawmakers, Outlaw said possible drafts exist in both the House and Senate.
Farmers have an opportunity to sign up for the direct and countercyclical payment, known as DCP, or the Average Crop Revenue Election, or ACRE, program beginning Feb. 19, Outlaw said. The sign-up for ACRE ends June 3, and DCP sign-up ends Aug. 2.
Future farm programs and the safety nets will likely “shift to more insurance tools,” Outlaw said. To be considered for direct payments, farmers must sign up by the deadline.
“After that, there’s less likely subsequent impact” on what farmers could receive with regards to price support payments, Outlaw said. The Farm Bill extension passed in January prevented milk prices from skyrocketing. There were several programs which were part of the 2008 Farm Bill that did not receive extensions, including bioenergy and beginning farmer and rancher programs. Outlaw said farmers will need to study both the ACRE program and DCP to see how they compare.
For more information and the full release, click here.
Antibiotic Residue Testing in Meat
Results in Few Positive Samples
Meat, poultry and egg products are tested through the U.S. National Residue Program for the presence of more than 100 compounds. Meat and poultry products have been tested since 1967 and testing of egg products started in 1995. There are established tolerance levels determined through extensive research specific for each compound that determine what, if any, residual level is safe.
That means many compounds have a zero tolerance as their established tolerance level, while others have been found to be safe at very low levels. The program has the interest of public health and safety in mind, as well as preventing adulterated or misbranded products from being sold. Chemicals included in testing are antibiotics, sulfonamides, other approved and non-approved drugs, pesticides and environmental chemicals.
Part of the testing program includes scheduled sampling where random samples are taken from each production class (beef cows, bob veal, dairy cows, steers, heifers, market hogs, sows, young chickens and young turkeys) for various compounds of chemicals, including drugs. The number of scheduled samples for each production class is determined by previous findings and identification of compounds that have a food safety concern. There is also targeted sampling of animals that occur at the determination of USDA inspectors based on signs of disease, producer history or results from scheduled sampling. The number of inspector-generated samples is 11.5 times greater than the random scheduled sampling, as every animal that is suspected by a USDA Inspector to have a residue is tested.
Sampling of meat products is done in the processing plant and swab tests are used to quickly determine initial positive or negative results. Samples are typically taken from the kidney or liver, as these are edible organ meats and areas where most compounds accumulate at the highest levels before leaving the animal.
Overall, extremely low levels of positive samples are found to have residue violations. Scheduled and targeted samples combined were found to have 0.8% in violation (1,632 positives from 211,733 samples tested) according to data published by USDA Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) in 2010. There were 23 positive violations out of 18,374 tested scheduled samples (0.13%) for all production classes in 2010. For inspector-generated samples, bob veal (1.2 %), dairy cows (0.7%), and beef cows (0.5%) had the highest rate of violations. Direct extrapolation of these numbers cannot be made to the total population of animals harvested, as all animals suspected to have a residue are tested.
For more information and the full release, click here.
Editor’s Note: The articles used within this site represent a mixture of copyrights. If you would like to reprint or repost an article, you must first request permission of Angus Productions Inc. (API) by contacting the editor at 816-383-5200; 3201 Frederick Ave., Saint Joseph, MO 64506. API claims copyright to this web site as presented. We welcome educational venues and cattlemen to link to this site as a service to their audience.