BEEF

Heavy Steers and Lean Cows: Drivers of the 2026 Ground Beef Market

Tue, 12 May 2026 15:48:31 GMT

In a market defined by record-breaking prices, an unlikely partnership is driving the value of ground beef: 980-lb. carcasses and the lean cull cows needed to balance them out. While fed cattle weights have reached historic highs, they’ve created a massive surplus of fat trim that requires an equally historic amount of lean blending beef to meet consumer demand. This blending math — combined with tight supplies and a shift in culling patterns — is pushing cull cow prices to new heights.

David Anderson, Texas A&M professor and Extension specialist for livestock and food product marketing, in a recent Southern Ag Today article , summarizes that cull cow prices keep climbing.

“While calf and fed cattle prices have continued to set new record highs in the cash and futures market, cull cow prices have continued their slow ascent to new highs as lean beef prices keep pulling cow prices higher,” Anderson explains. “Southern Plains cull cow auction prices increased to almost $180 per cwt in late April, up about $15 per cwt since January. The seasonal price increase has been smaller than normal this year. Cutter-quality cows have increased about $30 per cwt., almost 25%, since the beginning of the year.”

(USDA-AMS, Livestock Marketing Information Center)

The Blending Effect: Why 980-lb. Carcasses Need Lean Cows

Blending math is the process of mixing high-fat trim from fed cattle with 90% lean beef from cull cows to meet consumer demand for specific ground beef ratios. Anderson stresses one overlooked boost to lean beef prices has been record-large fed cattle dressed weights. Average federally inspected fed steer dressed weights have remained more than 980 lb. per carcass since late 2025.

“Larger carcasses produce additional fat that requires more lean beef for blending to boost its value as ground beef rather than just tallow entering the fats and oils market,” he says.

Glynn Tonsor, Kansas State University professor of agricultural economics, says when the beef industry harvests animals bigger than ever, it is also getting more 50% lean and 50% fat trimmings per animal than ever before. He points out most consumers don’t directly consume 50/50, thus it is an input into ground beef production, and it only works if there is more lean to blend with it.

If there is not enough U.S.-produced lean to blend, the next option is to import lean.

Dairy Culling Shifts and the April Pullback

After exceeding slaughter of a year ago through the first 10 weeks of 2026, dairy cow culling pulled back to year-ago levels during April.

“Dairy cow culling typically peaks in January and February each year, then declines into midyear,” Anderson says. “The decline in dairy cow slaughter has pulled down total cow culling as weekly beef cow slaughter has held at steady but low levels. For the year, total dairy cow slaughter is reported up 6% compared to last year while total cow slaughter (beef and dairy) is down 5%.”

(USDA-AMS and USDA-NASS, Livestock Marketing Information Center)

Beef and dairy cow slaughter is reported weekly by region of the U.S. In recent weeks, Anderson says reported regional cow slaughter data has declined due to confidentiality rules that prevent publication if there are too few buyers to prevent revealing any one operation’s actions.

(USDA-AMS and USDA-NASS, Livestock Marketing Information Center)

“The lack of reporting due to confidentiality concerns has been a problem in fed cattle reporting for many years,” Anderson says. “On the positive side, the weekly national cow slaughter data includes all of the regions, including those that could not be reported regionally.”

2026 projected cow culling is based on year-to-date beef cow slaughter.

(Oklahoma State University)

Retention vs. Liquidation: The Impact of Record Calf Values

Anderson says record-high calf prices are likely keeping cows on the ranch or dairy that otherwise would have been culled to get one more calf out of them. As those calves are born and move to weaning, there may be an increase in culling as those cows come to market.

“Cull prices tend to peak midyear, so there is room for cow prices to continue to increase over the next couple of months,” Anderson says. “Beyond just the seasonal pattern arguing for higher prices, cow culling should continue to be lower than last year, further supporting prices. Beef cow slaughter is expected to remain well below a year ago. Better milk prices should restrain dairy cow culling even though the herd remains large.”

Analyst Predicts Cull Cow Prices Will Remain Elevated

Adding to the discussion on cull cow marketing strategies, Don Close, Terrain chief beef analyst, explains, “Growing up in sale barns we always used to say the best day of the year to sell a used cow is the first day of baseball season. There is some grounding in that date. As soon as grass greens, after a producer has kept her and fed hay all winter, he isn’t going to sell her if he has grass, especially if he thinks she is bred. Once she has calved and grass is available, the producer isn’t inclined to do much unless it is a drought or injury issue. At this point they will wait until fall weaning and cow-sorting time.”

He also points out another driving factor for cull cow prices is the strength of ground beef prices supported with the beginning of the grilling season — prepared-meat manufacturers’ demand is at its peak. Hot dog and lunch meat sales go up as children are out of school and with ballpark hot dog consumption.

(USDA-AMS, Livestock Marketing Information Center)

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New Dietary Guidelines Move Food Pyramid Closer to the Farm

Wed, 07 Jan 2026 20:43:24 GMT

The White House delivered a simple but clear message to Americans today: Eat real food.

“We are finally putting real food back at the center of the American diet. Real food that nourishes the body, restores health, fuels energy and builds strength,” says Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins. “This pivot also leans into the abundant, affordable and healthy food supply already available from America’s incredible farmers and ranchers. By making milk, raising cattle and growing wholesome fruits, vegetables and grains, they hold the key to solving our national health crisis.”

In the “most significant reset of federal nutrition policy in decades,” the White House released the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025–2030 . The updated pyramid inverts the 1992 USDA version by prioritizing:

Protein (1.2 to 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day, an increase from 0.8 grams)
Dairy and healthy fats as the foundation
Vegetables (3 servings per day)
Fruits (2 servings per day)

Unlike the old pyramid’s grain-heavy base and processed carbs, new recommendations limit whole grains to 2 to 4 servings per day and added sugars and highly processed oils should be avoided entirely.

Eat More Protein

Rollins says the previous dietary guidelines demonized protein in favor of carbohydrates.

“These guidelines reflect gold standard science by prioritizing high-quality, nutrient-dense protein foods in every meal,” Rollins says. “This includes a variety of animal sources, including eggs, poultry, seafood, and red meat, in addition to plant-sourced protein foods such as beans, peas, lentils, legumes, nuts, seeds and soy.”

To put the new protein recommendations into perspective, Sigrid Johannes, executive director of government affairs for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, says for folks who should be consuming 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight that’s a 100% increase in recommended daily protein intake.

Dairy’s Seat at the Table

Dairy emerged in a strong position under the new dietary guidelines, with federal nutrition guidance supporting dairy at all fat levels for the first time.

“One of the key messages they’re telling consumers is eat dairy and eat dairy at all fat levels — that’s whole milk, cheese and butter,” says Matt Herrick of the International Dairy Foods Association. He calls it “a significant watershed moment,” reflecting how many families currently eat and shop today.

Echoing Herrick’s perspective, National Milk Producers Federation President and CEO Gregg Doud adds by better recognizing both fat and protein, the guidelines give a fuller picture of dairy’s nutritional value.

“Not all fats are created equal, and because the guidelines acknowledge this, dairy’s benefits are better reflected in this iteration of the guidelines,” Doud says.

When it comes to protein, consumer demand is reshaping the category, with cottage cheese at its highest level since the 1980s because of the high-protein trend, Herrick notes.

“Consumers are looking at labels more than ever and trying to find cleaner, less processed foods. Dairy fits that bill. Most products have just a handful of ingredients, and they’re all high in protein. People are turning to protein for growth, energy and overall health, and we’re going to continue to see consumers look to dairy to fulfill their protein and healthy fats needs,” Herrick says.

The processing sector has grown alongside the rising demand for dairy, reflecting both increased production and changing consumer preferences. Roughly $8 billion has been invested in new processing facilities from 2022 to 2025, with another $11 billion expected through 2028.

“We’re going to continue to see investments in processing facilities — new plants, updated lines and more capacity — to meet growing consumer demand for dairy protein and healthy fats,” Herrick notes.

Eat More Meat and Poultry

When it comes to meat and poultry, Julie Anna Potts, Meat Institute President and CEO, says Secretary Rollins and Secretary Kennedy’s leadership have simplified the dietary guidelines making it clear meat is a protein powerhouse.

“Robust scientific evidence demonstrates that meat is a rich source of high-quality protein, essential vitamins and highly bioavailable minerals that support human health throughout the lifespan,” Potts says.

Kansas beef producer Marisa Kleysteuber describes the new “commonsense” dietary guidelines as “exciting and refreshing.”

“As beef producers we are blessed to work with a ruminant animal that can utilize Mother Nature’s production of cellulose from rain and sunshine and then convert it to one of the most nutrient rich proteins there is,” she says. “Whether the consumer is desiring an organic, grass fed or corn fed beef product, there are cattlemen and women all over the U.S. who put their heart into raising these cattle to produce a nutritious and delicious product that we have always believed in and now our leaders are standing behind the ranchers and farmers of America.”

Quintessentially American foods such as burgers, steaks, pork chops and Easter hams can remain a staple of American households, and the guidelines go so far as to recommend parents introduce nutrient-dense foods, including meat, early and continue focusing on “nutrient-dense foods such as protein foods” throughout childhood.

“America’s pork producers appreciate the 2025 dietary guidelines putting pork front and center on the plate. They took note of producer concerns and rightly gave pork and other high-protein, nutrient-dense and delicious meats their due when it comes to Americans’ health and dietary habits,” says Rob Brenneman , National Pork Producers Council president-elect and pork producer from Washington, Iowa.

Maddie Hokanson , a Minnesota pork producer and mother of two, says the new dietary guidelines’ strong emphasis on protein is a positive for the pork industry. She believes the new guidelines, paired with pork’s quality nutrition and versatility, bring together the perfect opportunity to increase pork consumption and demand in the U.S.

“As pig farmers, we are proud to produce a meat product that is packed with high-quality protein, while also being nutrient-dense with many essential vitamins and minerals,” Hokanson says. “As a parent to young children, I see both the physical and cognitive benefits of prioritizing protein in the diet at all ages, and I’m excited to see what the short- and long-term effects of this recommendation will be.”

Three Servings of Veggies and Two Servings of Fruit

Dairy and meat weren’t the only items at the top of the new dietary pyramid. Fresh fruits and vegetables were also given top billing.

“Diets rich in vegetables and fruits reduce disease risk more effectively than many drugs,” says Robert F Kennedy Jr., Secretary of Health.

The new dietary guidelines recommend three servings of vegetables and two servings of fruit per day. Like past editions of the dietary guidelines , the new guidelines recommend Americans eat “a variety of colorful, nutrient-dense vegetables and fruits” and advises whole produce items be eaten “in their original form.” Though not explicitly stated, the updated guidelines also call out “frozen, dried, or canned vegetables or fruits with no or very limited added sugars” as good options.

“Today’s dietary guidelines reinforce the critical role fruits and vegetables play in overall health,” says Mollie Van Lieu, International Fresh Produce Association vice president of nutrition and health, in the group’s response. “Scientific evidence consistently shows that fruits and vegetables should make up the majority of what people eat. The Administration’s focus on whole foods is an opportunity to increase fruit and vegetable intake, as they are the most nutrient-dense foods available.”

Rollins Teases Plan to Expand Real Food Retail Accessibility

There was more than the new dietary guidelines announced at the press event. Rollins mentioned upcoming changes at retail she says would increase the accessibility of whole, healthy foods to those in food deserts.

“Soon, USDA will finalize our stocking standards,” she says, explaining retailers that take SNAP benefits are bound by the stocking standards. “Very soon we will be finalizing that rule that will mandate all 250,000 retailers in America to double the type of staple foods they provide for America’s SNAP households. This means healthier options will be in reach for all American families, regardless of circumstance, at levels never seen before in our country.”

Grains and Oilseed Industry Focuses on Positives

In terms of grains, in its guidance USDA recommends Americans “focus on whole grains, while sharply reducing refined carbohydrates.” The National Association of Wheat Growers (NAWG) shared mixed reactions to the changes.

“We appreciate the continued recognition of whole grains as an essential part of Americans’ diets,” said a spokesperson with NAWG in a statement to Farm Journal. “However, we are concerned that some portions of the new guidelines around grains and wheat are unintentionally confusing. Wheat, wheat flour, and foods made from wheat have been nutrient-rich, life-sustaining staples for tens of thousands of years and deserve clear, continued support as a central part of our nation’s diet.”

The American Soybean Association (ASA) focuses on the positives saying it highlights the importance of increased protein consumption, including plant-based proteins, such as soy-based foods. They also emphasize prioritizing healthy fats, including oils rich in essential fatty acids like soybean oil.

ASA says an addendum continues to call into question the process of soybean oil extraction, which it says is scientifically proven to be safe for human health.

“Soybean oil and soy protein play a critical role in the health and nutrition of Americans,” says Scott Metzger, ASA president and Ohio farmer, in a press release. “We remain deeply concerned by the rhetoric and selectively cited studies regarding the health and safety of soybean oil in DGA supporting material.”

Metzger says soybean growers will continue to work with the administration and educate MAHA commission leadership on the health benefits of soy-based foods and soybean oil.

The National Oilseed Processors Association (NOPA) echoed those concern: “Vegetable oils, or “seed oils” as they’re sometimes referred to, are a significant provider of essential fatty acids and remain a safe and cost-effective source of dietary fats in the American diet, as they are globally,” said a NOPA press release. “However, some appendices rely on a narrow evidence base with limited citations, which is concerning given the administration’s rhetoric questioning the safety of certain vegetable oils despite an established scientific consensus.”

NOPA also argues oilseeds support the production of affordable meat, dairy and eggs as meal produced from oilseeds are a key component of livestock diets.

Shocking 7,000 Head Drop Hits Dairy Cows First Time Since 2024

Tue, 25 Nov 2025 14:50:33 GMT

The USDA released the October Milk Production report on Friday, as originally scheduled. This gets the market up to date with at least one report, now back on schedule. They also released the August Dairy Productions report Friday as well, but the market is still waiting for the announcement of when we will see the September report to play catch up for that information as well.

In a shocking discovery, the Milk Production report has the first decline of cow numbers since 2024, indicating a shift to cull more cows with falling milk prices. In October the beef cattle prices peaked as milk prices were sharply declining. It made for the perfect opportunity to send the lower producing cows to market to gain a quick revenue stream to make up for the lacking milk check as well as lower the feed bill.

It is speculated that this trend of a shrinking dairy herd will continue as feeder cattle futures have fallen over 80 cents per pound since mid-October. This gives less cash flow to the farms that have been getting by from profit from beef-on-dairy calf sales. The impact of the fallen milk prices will hit harder, making culling decisions for cows with less-than-ideal milk production more necessary.

The Milk Production Report itself was still perceived as bearish. Showing 3.7% higher milk production compared to October 2024. As well as the August Dairy Products report, showing more cheese, butter, dry whey, and Non-Fat Dry Milk produced when compared to 2024.

The Dairy Products report wasn’t all bearish though. There was a decline in production from the July report in nearly all dairy products, with the most significant decline in production in butter, down 2.9% from July production. Frozen products saw a more significant decline in production from 2024, down 5.5% to 10.1% in ice cream products, and a whopping 19.3% lower in Sherbert from last year.

In a world of bleak and dreary dairy market news, we look for silver linings and a drop in cow numbers may be just what the declining dairy market needs to have some hope for the future of diary prices next year. The old adage is “the cure for high prices is high prices, and the cure for low prices is low prices”. Low prices discourage inefficient or marginal producers. Culling those marginally producing cows may bring a shortage of production overtime and hopefully lead to higher prices. In the meantime, the industry has shown how resilient our American dairy farmers can be by increasing efficiencies and coming up with new innovations. So, while the markets look bleak today, there is still a lot to look forward to.

Sarah Jungman is a commodity broker with AgMarket.Net and AgDairy, the dairy division of John Stewart & Associates Inc. (JSA). JSA is a full-service commodity brokerage firm based out of St. Joseph, MO. Sarah’s office is located in Winterset, Iowa and she may be reached at 515-272-5799 or through the website www.agmarket.net .

The thoughts expressed and the basic data from which they are drawn are believed to be reliable but cannot be guaranteed. Any opinions expressed herein are subject to change without notice. Hypothetical or simulated performance results have certain inherent limitations. Simulated results do not represent actual trading. Simulated trading programs are subject to the benefit of hindsight. No representation is being made that any account will or is likely to achieve profits or losses similar to those shown. There is risk of loss in trading commodity futures and options on futures. It may not be suitable for everyone. This material has been prepared by an employee or agent of JSA and is in the nature of a solicitation. By accepting this communication, you acknowledge and agree that you are not, and will not rely solely on this communication for making trading decisions.

Why Aren't High Beef Prices Causing Sticker Shock With Consumers?

Wed, 23 Jul 2025 17:10:10 GMT

Gound beef prices across the U.S. continue to reach new highs. Retail prices for ground beef hit its highest level in history in June climbing above $6 per pound, while steaks were up 8% at $11.49 per pound.

(Bureau of Labor Statistics )

“The record high retail beef price reported by the most recent Consumer Price Index (CPI) has prompted a lot of calls about why prices are record high and whether there is any relief in sight,” says David Anderson, Texas A&M Extension economist for livestock and food product marketing. “While we often write about the great cattle prices for producers who are selling, there is a flip side, and that is consumers who are buying beef.”

Anderson explains reduced slaughter and beef production, especially in the second quarter of the year, cut supplies just as grilling season heated up for seasonal beef demand. The combination led to a spike in wholesale prices and retail beef prices.

Don Close, Terrain senior animal protein analyst, says: “What we have seen so far is consumers have been incredibly loyal to protein collectively, but they have been especially loyal to beef, and beef is actually continuing to gain market there, even at the current prices at the expense of the other protein.”

Wages Are Keeping Pace With Beef Prices

Close says when he correlates the monthly all fresh beef price to hourly wages he found they are in lock step.

“Yes, beef prices have escalated, but beef prices have not risen any faster than the improvement in overall hourly wage,” he explains. “So from the consumer’s perspective, their share of their paycheck committed to beef is essentially the same as it’s been on a comparative basis for years.”

(Don Close, Terrain )

Other contributing factors to beef demand include consumers’ craze for protein and the impact of GLP-1 diets on protein consumption.

Scott Varilek, Kooima Kooima Varilek, says: “I think beef demand has just proven time and time again — hey, consumers want it. It’s a great healthy protein, and I think it’s got a lot of good traction here over the last year of being a good quality source of food.”

High Quality Attracts Consumer Spending

Plus, with 82% to 84% of the beef produced grading Choice or better, the high quality of beef is pushing demand.

“I don’t see any weakness really in the consumers or their spending habits,” says Mike Minor, professional ag marketing. “We actually are eating more Prime meat today than Choice for the first time ever. So, people like their expensive meat still.”

How Long Will High Cattle and Beef Prices Last?

Last week USDA reported average fed cash cattle prices hit the second-highest level in history at $237.78, up 57¢ from the average the prior week.

The high cattle and beef prices continue to be driven by tight cattle numbers, the Mexican boarder closing due to New World screwworm and looming import challenges.

Yet, Close says the role of strong demand can’t be ignored and is likely to continue.

“I think it’s certainly through 2026 and really more realistic somewhere deep into 2027,” he adds.

Anderson explains normal seasonal production and demand would suggest prices falling from recent highs. Evidence from the wholesale beef market over the last couple of weeks indicates lower prices.

“Seasonal price patterns would suggest that there is a chance for a little bit of relief from record high beef prices,” Anderson says. “But, only if we compare to the peak price this summer. Wholesale beef prices are already declining.”

He adds there is a time lag from lower wholesale prices showing up at retail, but lower wholesale prices combined with normal seasonality of various cut prices should lead to the expectation of falling prices in the coming months.

“But, it’s not likely that prices will decline below year-ago levels,” Anderson emphasizes.

Inventory Reports Release on July 25

Close says more will be known about supply levels after the USDA Cattle on Feed and Cattle Inventory reports on Friday.

“While market analysts expect lower placements, marketings and cattle in feedyards than a year ago, the really interesting number will be the number of heifers on feed on July 1,” Anderson summarizes. “The heifers on feed will provide some insight into heifer retention. Also, look for placements in Texas due to the ban on Mexican feeder cattle. The lack of spayed heifers coming from Mexico is important in evaluating the number of heifers on feed.”

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The Smell You'll Never Forget: A Calf Infested with New World Screwworm

Thu, 10 Jul 2025 16:41:21 GMT

“The stench…it’s like roadkill stewed in infection,” explains Jose Santiago Gallardo Espinosa, a cattle producer from Chiriqui, Panama, describing an animal that has been infected with New World screwworm (NWS). “You’ll smell it before you see it.”

He goes on to describe the appearance. “That little dehorning scrape you didn’t worry about? Now, it’s a fist-sized hole pulsating with maggots. Not on top, under the skin. Hundreds of cream-colored worms with screw-like spines, eating your cow alive.”

It’s a Plague in Panama

Gallardo is a Panamanian livestock production specialist and animal science professional with a diverse and practical background in cattle production, agricultural policy and international ranch management. He currently serves as the technical assistance team manager at Cooleche, R.L., where he leads strategic initiatives in cattle production and technical outreach.

“⁠This ain’t ‘just flies.’ We’ve buried calves eaten alive in 48 hours,” Gallardo stresses. “Post-calving cows are sitting ducks, I found one last week with maggots deep in her vulva, she was trembling as she tried to nurse her calf.”

An animal health professional treating an animal in Panama that has been infected by New World Screwworm.

(Jose Santiago Gallardo Espinosa)

To catch NWS and stop the spread, Espinosa encourages daily wound checks including navels on newborns, vulvas on fresh cows, sheaths on bulls, branding cuts and tagging nicks. Some red flags include a wound that swells overnight or oozes cloudy fluid and a milk tank mysteriously dropping.

“Treat every scratch like a ticking bomb,” he says adding if you find one with a wound acting a little strange, you should “peel back skin edges, and if you see rice-grain maggots with dark spines — sound the alarm.”

He says more than 6,500 cases have erupted across Panama, marching north through Central America like a plague.

“For years, our U.S.-Panama barrier kept NWS at bay,” Gallardo says. “We’d see maybe 25 cases a year — it was a nuisance, not a crisis. Then 2023 hit, and overnight our pastures became war zones.”

He says the reality in Panama is rainy season is maggot season.

“Here, in Chiriquí’s dairy country, it is the perfect storm,” he says. “Rainy season humidity of 90%, 85°F heat and flies everywhere. A single-infected cow bleeds $10/day in lost milk — its life or death for small dairies.”

NWS in Nicaragua

Ernesto José Sequeira Enríquez, an agronomist from Camoapa, Nicaragua, says NWS was eradicated from Nicaragua in the 1990s. He says he first encountered it during an internship in Brazil where he experienced the serious challenge the fly causes.

“When cases began appearing here again last year, I was able to use what I learned in Brazil to prepare veterinary supplies and train people on prevention and treatment,” he explains.

(Ernesto José Sequeira Enríquez)

He says it’s essential to enforce a daily inspection routine, checking every animal carefully for open wounds.

“When you find an infected animal, you’ll typically see a bleeding wound,” Sequeira says. “If the infestation has progressed, there will be a strong, foul smell due to tissue damage and the presence of larvae.”

He encourages U.S. producers to be prepared with sufficient supplies of veterinary medicines and insecticides for both treatment and prevention and to adjust management practices to reduce risk. For example:

When dehorning, branding or ear tagging, apply insecticide spray to the wound immediately.
Ensure proper care of newborn calves by disinfecting the navel with iodine solution as soon as possible, since that is the most common entry point for infestation.

“Although complete control of screwworm is not possible, taking preventive measures significantly reduces the economic and productivity impact of it,” he says. “Early detection and consistent preventive practices are critical to minimizing losses.”
Sequeira stresses a producer’s eyes and hands are their best tools to fight NSW.

“My warning to U.S. ranchers is this isn’t just a Panama problem,” he summarizes. “Newborn calves are maggot magnets. If you lose one calf to a navel infestation, you’ll never sleep again. Make inspections sacred — no excuses. Report fast and hide nothing.”

It’s Endemic in Brazil

Marcelo Costa is a veterinarian, professor and cattle business consultant in Brazil and Paraguay. In 1999, Costa was taught embryo transfer at Camp Cooley in Franklin, Texas. He then returned to his family’s third generation ranching operation where they started Camp Cooley Brazil.

“I have been dealing with screwworm all my life since it is endemic in Brazil,” Costa says. “Screwworm-infected animals happen all months of the year.”

A wound in the animal skin full of screwworm and new fly eggs in the skin borderline

(Marcelo Costa)

Like others, he has experienced finding infected animals with bleeding, foul-smelling wounds. He says animals show discomfort and may not follow the herd as normal.

“Newborn calves are usually the more attacked category because of the navel’s wet and bloody tissue,” he says. “If a screwworm infects the navel, it may open a door at the site for more severe infections that may cause diarrhea, pneumonia and other diseases.”

Costa stresses how much NWS costs producers beyond animal loss and decreased productivity.

“One of the biggest problems with NWS is the increased labor with vigilance and animal treatment,” he summarizes.

Guatemala Producers Are Learning to Cope with NWS

“Screwworm came to teach us the times are changing, and that any type of production is possible and open to any complication,” says Oscar León, a livestock production specialist and agricultural business administrator from Guatemala City, Guatemala. “Brazil learned how to cope with it, and Guatemala is in the process of it. The U.S. is not exempt from it, unfortunately. But with the adequate measures and prevention techniques, one can learn and teach others. We can make the impact less harmful on our production and wallets.”

(Oscar León)

León currently manages his family’s cattle operations and leads LAVAT S.A., a company that imports and distributes innovative animal health and nutrition products tailored to the needs of the Guatemalan livestock sector.

He explains it is important for producers to look for and treat any open wound or bruise as they are the first indicators.

“If an open wound smells like the scent of rotten meat, you will find the presence of screwworms feeding off live tissue,” he says. “Prevention and early timing are the best ways to treat screwworm. Make sure to take your time, observe your cattle, search for a bruise or wounds and treat them properly.”

He also stresses the importance of making sure everyone who works in the farm or ranch is aware of NWS and knows how to react if an infection is found.

Educating U.S. Producers

Chris Womack, a veterinarian and rancher from San Angelo, Texas, says he remembers helping his dad treat calves with NWS infestations.

“I can still remember the smell,” Womack says. “I thought it was cool because I was a little kid, and we dug maggots out of the calves. I can still smell it like it was yesterday, and it was horrible to look at them.”

Womack shares a historic context of NWS, which he says means “man-eater,” on the “Registered Ranching” podcast with Tucker Brown.

Womack also describes the emotional toll on the producer when faced with NWS.

“If you’re a steward of an animal and it has half of its head rotting off, or its abdomen is a gaping wound because the maggots are eating it up, or it gets in their ear and they’re walking around in circles with brain damage because they got meningitis, well, it’s devastating.”

Womack summarizes NWS isn’t just an agricultural issue, it’s a human health concern. Historical accounts and recent data from Panama show NWS can affect humans, particularly vulnerable populations like homeless individuals or those in areas with limited medical access.

Womack says the experiences with NWS during his childhood is the reason he is a veterinarian today. He says there is a generational ignorance in the U.S. regarding NWS, and that is something he is committed to fixing.

“The only way we can overcome ignorance is education,” he stresses.

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Your Veterinarian: A Critical Partner for Success

Thu, 24 Apr 2025 21:24:17 GMT

When it comes to livestock production — whether beef, dairy or swine — a knowledgeable large-animal veterinarian is a critical resource for producers.

The veterinarian’s duties have grown through the years from emergency calls and service to now include consultation and planning to improve cattle and dairy herds as well as swine operations.

Craig Bieber of Bieber Red Angus in Leola, S.D., says working with a vet is essential to his herd’s success.

“I don’t know how people do it without a relationship with their vet,” Bieber says. “A good working relationship is so important. As producers, we can’t be on top of every animal disease or problem there is.”

Bieber says he is lucky to have a comprehensive clinic with five veterinarians near his ranch. He meets with his team of veterinarians three or four times per year to discuss health strategies.

“Our diversified livestock operation uses a team of veterinarians for the health and well-being of our cattle, swine and sheep plus our livestock guardian dogs and family pets,” says Sarah Jones of Red Hill Farms in Lafayette, Tenn.

The Jones family works with its primary veterinarian, Roger Thomas of Thomas & England Veterinary Services in Smiths Grove, Ky.

“Dr. Thomas is essential to our operation,” Jones says. “Without our team of veterinarians, we couldn’t provide the very best care for our livestock. Dr. Thomas is our first call for issues we are not comfortable treating without consultation. Our operation also uses additional veterinarians for pregnancy ultrasound, cattle embryo transfer, sheep artificial insemination, sheep embryo transfer and swine consulting.”

In an unscientific survey, Drovers asked its Facebook followers, “How important is your veterinarian to the success of your operation?”

One follower wrote, “Essential. Having our veterinarian of a little over 40 years, we have created herd health programs for pre-breeding and pre-calving, as well as vaccination programs for calves at birth and weaning. We review these programs every year.”

Another said, “Our vet from Vale Veterinary Clinic is key to the success of our program through integrated research and herd health management our vet is priceless!”

Unfortunately, a few respondents noted they don’t have a close large-animal veterinarian near them or that they must take individual animals to an equine veterinarian for consultation, affirming the need for more large animal vets.

(Farm Journal)

The evolving role of dairy veterinarians

Traditionally seen as the guardians of animal health, focused primarily on treating sick individual animals, today’s dairy veterinarians are expanding their roles.

Scott Bohnert of Bohnert Jerseys in East Moline, Ill., exemplifies the modern dairy farmer’s reliance on veterinary expertise. At his dairy, home to 700 Jersey cows and an equal number of replacements, Bohnert leans heavily on his long-time veterinarian, Ryan Schaefer of Blue Grass, Iowa. Their working partnership of more than 15 years highlights the evolving importance of veterinarians in dairy.

Schaefer collaborates closely with Bohnert, conducting routine herd health and pregnancy checks twice a month — but their relationship goes far beyond basic animal care.

With a deep understanding of the dairy industry’s challenges, Schaefer consults closely with Bohnert on various critical topics. This trusted advice plays a pivotal role in helping Bohnert and his team drive their dairy operation forward.

“Ryan and I work very well together,” Bohnert says, acknowledging how Schaefer’s insights into disease prevention, vaccine management and industry trends keep his farm thriving in a competitive market.

This collaboration reflects a broader trend in agriculture where veterinarians serve as essential consultants instead of just animal doctors. Their role extends to strategic decision-making, helping farms navigate through diverse challenges like disease outbreaks, regulatory changes and economic pressures.

Swine veterinarian’s critical role

The swine producer and veterinarian relationship is critical in managing health issues in the swine herd.

“I can’t overstate how important our farm’s relationship is with our veterinarian,” says Mike Paustian, a swine producer from Wolcott, Iowa. “We treat that relationship as one of the key parts of our team that we’ve assembled to help advise our farm.”

Paustian, who is contact with his veterinarian every week, challenges the misconception that veterinary involvement is costly.

“I don’t see how you’re going to get a bigger bang for your buck than getting a veterinarian who knows your herd, to provide input into issues you’re having,” he says.

Paustian says he also appreciates a veterinarian who approaches work with a sense of curiosity and a desire to understand things better, which aligns with his own approach to constantly seek improvement.

Ben Barcovtch, a pig farmer from Berwick, Pa., says a strong veterinarian relationship is essential to the success of his pork operation.

“They support proactive herd health, help improve productivity, strengthen biosecurity and provide expert guidance during health challenges,” Barcovtch says. “The vet practice I work with is a key partner in maintaining animal well-being and our overall profitability.”

The veterinarian-client-patient relationship (VCPR) is the basis for interaction among veterinarians, their clients and their patients, and it is critical to the health of animals.

“Our VCPR is a partnership that allows more proactive and long-term strategies instead of just responding to needs as they arise,” says Rob Brenneman, owner of Brenneman Pork in Washington, Iowa. “This allows both parties to focus on preventative care, optimized service offerings focused on system health and stability.”

Thank you

April 26 is World Veterinary Day . Observed annually on the last Saturday of April, the day aims to celebrate the contributions of veterinarians to the health of animals, people and the environment. “Animal health takes a team,” is this year’s theme and summarizes the collaboration between veterinarians and beef, dairy and swine producers.

“I believe that sincerely communicating appreciation is one of the most important things farmers and ranchers can do for their veterinarians,” says Jones of Red Hill Farms.

Veterinarians are considered trusted advisers with an integral role in the livestock industry. A recent survey released by Boehringer Ingelheim shows 94% of animal owners appreciate the work of veterinarians, compared to only 49% of veterinary professionals feeling who think the profession is appreciated.

The survey is part of Boehringer Ingelheim’s “Going Beyond” campaign, which seeks to spotlight aspects of veterinary work that too often remain unseen and underrecognized.

In support of World Veterinary Day, the “Going Beyond” campaign also released a video asking animal owners to guess what type of professional meets the description of a range of compelling job responsibilities and characteristics.

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A Resilient Comeback: U.S. Bovine Semen Industry Sees Growth in 2024

Tue, 18 Mar 2025 13:12:06 GMT

After two years of declining sales, the bovine semen industry is experiencing a remarkable resurgence. Reports from both the dairy and beef semen sectors indicate increased sales in 2024, showing a promising trend that might not only match but potentially surpass the record levels seen in 2021. Jay Weiker, President of the National Association of Animal Breeders (NAAB), emphasizes the optimistic outlook for the industry, suggesting that if the current growth trajectory persists, new record sales could be on the horizon.

“Unit sales have not yet returned to the record levels of 2021. However, if the current trajectory continues, new records can be expected in the near future,” Weiker says.

In 2024, total unit sales increased by 4%, culminating in nearly 69 million units. This 2.7 million unit increase nearly compensates for the previous year’s decline. Moreover, the value of exported semen rose by over 6%, or roughly $20 million, establishing a new record of $326 million.

Dairy and Beef Segment Breakdown
The dairy sector, both in domestic sales and exports, saw a significant 4% growth compared to 2023. This equates to an additional 1.9 million units, summing up to 48.8 million units. Meanwhile, beef unit sales also increased by 4%, with over 850,000 additional units sold, reaching a total of 20 million units. Delving deeper, beef-on-dairy semen sales grew by about 317,000 units both in the U.S. and internationally, while beef-on-beef sales saw an increase of 408,000 units, reversing the decreasing trend of the past two years.

Global Adjustments and Shifts
Globally, dairy producers are recalibrating their reproductive strategies to maximize economic returns. They are now employing a mix of conventional, gender-selected dairy and beef semen to enhance their financial performance. In the U.S., this trend is visible in the shifting preferences for semen types. In 2024, gender-selected dairy semen led the pack with 9.9 million units, marking a 1.5 million unit increase.

The Rise of Heterospermic Semen
An intriguing development in 2024 is the surge in heterospermic beef product sales. Over 2.8 million units were sold, more than twice the numbers from 2023. Domestic sales dominated with 2.4 million units, making heterospermic beef the second largest beef semen category after Angus.

Domestic Market Dynamics
In the domestic market, dairy units increased by 5%, adding nearly 705,000 units, with the total market size reaching 16.2 million dairy units. The domestic beef units saw an overall increase of 304,000 units. The most notable domestic shift was towards gender-selected semen, rising by 1.5 million units or 18% and now comprising 61% of the dairy units used in the U.S.

Robust Global Demand
On the international front, U.S. bovine semen exports continue their upward trajectory despite economic and geopolitical challenges in major markets like China and Russia. Encouraging signs of recovery in Brazil, growth in Western Europe and Central Asia, and expanding opportunities in the Middle East and Africa reflect the global strength of the industry. Beef semen exports rose significantly and according to Dr. Sophie Eaglen, NAAB’s International Program Director, this stems from the increased demand from Brazil and China, alongside a growing number of smaller markets.

“This trend may be attributed to the global adoption of the beef-on-dairy strategy, which is gaining traction across diverse regions” Eaglen says.

The U.S. bovine semen industry has made a strong comeback in 2024. With positive trends in both domestic and international sales and the growing acceptance of innovative breeding strategies, the foundation is laid for future growth and advancements in livestock reproduction. As these trends continue, the industry stands on the verge of a promising era characterized by growth, innovation, and global expansion.

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The Secret to Raising Dairy Beef Profitably

Thu, 03 Feb 2022 19:03:11 GMT

The secret to raising high quality dairy beef at a profit is really no secret at all: It just requires top management throughout the steer’s life cycle and consistent forward contracting to mitigate market risk.

Dairy beef now makes up about 20% of the fed cattle market. That’s up almost four-fold in less than a decade, says Tara Felix, an Extension beef specialist with Pennsylvania State University. There’s a couple of reason for that: 1) Veal consumption has plummeted in the last 50 years. Male dairy calves no longer used for veal had to go somewhere, and that somewhere was the feedlot. 2) A major drought four years ago meant far fewer “native” cattle were being raised, which meant Holstein steers made a larger and larger percentage of the fed cattle market.

Pennsylvania farmers are looking to capitalize on these trends. But the stigma against Holstein steers is they have poor feed:gain ratios, take too long to grow and don’t grade as well native cattle. Some or all of that can be true if they’re mismanaged, says Felix. But her two years of feeding trials with Holsteins, and a third on-going, suggests dairy steers can be a profitable enterprise, she says.

One of the first lessons Felix tries to teach newbie dairy beef feeders is that cattle raised for beef need grain, not forage. “I discourage my producers from thinking that forage is their cheapest diet,” she says. “You don’t want to finish these cattle at 24 or 25 months. We want them on grain early to encourage lean tissue growth rather than bone and frame growth.”

It’s also critical that the same care given to dairy heifer calves be given to steers fed for dairy beef. “We need the same care with steers as with heifers, meaning high-quality colostrum is given at birth,” she says. And she encourages early grain feeding—as early as day 3—to encourage rumen development. Once weaned, steer calves can be comingled in the feedlot.

In her first year’s trial, 44 Holstein steers from a single source were placed on feed April 1 averaging 546 lb at 9 months. These calves had received a Ralgro implant two months earlier, and were already consuming 10 lb of grain/head. They were transitioned to a diet of corn, silage, distillers dried grain with solubles (DDGS) and minerals. Over the 209-day feeding period, they consumed roughly 20 lb of corn and 4 lb of DDGS per head daily.

They were again implanted 28 days after arrival with Encore, a mild, long-duration implant labeled for up to 400 days. “However, we also chose to re-implant these calves again with a terminal implant 133 days later (Component TE-S),” says Felix. That was done to sustain average daily gains through 209 days.

It worked. “As a group, the calves gained 3.96 lb/day (without shrink) for the entire duration of the demonstration,” she says. These gains led to a feed-to-gain conversion ratio of 7:1. The cattle averaged 1,343 lb +/- 130 lb at finish and carcasses ranged from 677 to 861 lb. All cattle were USDA Yield Grade 1 to 3. Rib eye areas averaged 12.3 square inches for the entire group.

The cost per day to feed, implant and house the steers were $2.95/steer. “Because the cattle were bought by JBS when the market was on an upswing at $1.50/lb and sold on a downswing at 97¢/lb, the 44 steers on this demonstration did lose approximately $188/head,” says Felix. “However, had these calves been contracted in April (when they were purchased) at $1.11, they would have broken even…. These calves out-performed our expectations, but they could not out-perform the markets,” she says.

In the second year of trial, calves were split into two groups upon feedlot entry, with half the calves receiving two implants (Component E-s on Day O followed by Component TE-S on day 116) while the other half received none. Steers receiving implants gained a half pound more per day than those which did not. Because the steers were housed in the same pen, feed intakes for each of the two groups could not be measured.

The steers that received implants finished at an average of 1,371 lb +/- 144 lb while the steers that did not receive implants finished out weighing 1,282 lb +/- 79 lb. The steers receiving the implants graded lower, with one grading prime, 10 choice, 7 select and 2 standard. Those that didn’t receive implants had 1 grade prime, 14 choice, 4 select and none standard.

Felix notes that cattle treated with implants were given them on Day 0 of feedlot entry. “In an ideal setting, steers would be brought up to full grain intake to ensure quality grade was not affected,” she says. Still, assuming similar feed conversion, the implanted steers netted $60 more per head then their non-implanted pen mates.

Felix says she learned a couple of things from the trials. First, if producers aren’t using implants, they may be leaving dollars in the feedlot by not doing so. “The use of implants is critical for Holsteins to get their ribeyes to look more like beef ribeyes,” she says. “And you need the final implant because you need that final push for Holstein steers to finish.

“By coupling excellent nutrition with current technologies, producing beef with Holsteins can be a profitable enterprise,” Felix concludes.

NCBA Announces Leadership Changes

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:51:39 GMT

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) has announced two significant leadership changes.

The NCBA Executive Committee of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association confirmed Colin Woodall to serve as the association’s new Chief Executive Officer. Woodall, who was named after an exhaustive national search, managed NCBA’s efforts in Washington, D.C., for more than a decade. Since joining NCBA in 2004, Woodall has been instrumental in ensuring the interests of NCBA members and the beef community, are well represented in the nation’s capital.

“Colin has served NCBA members for 15 years, and in that time, he has done a great deal for beef producers everywhere. Much of his work and many of the victories registered by NCBA in Washington, D.C., is the result of his ability to build coalitions and bring people together across political divides,” said NCBA president Jennifer Houston.

Houston expressed confidence that the same talents that made Woodall a success in the nation’s capital will translate to Woodall’s responsibility to lead NCBA’s work as a contractor to the Beef Checkoff Program.

“In his new role as NCBA CEO, there is no doubt that Colin will be an outstanding advocate for the Beef Checkoff and the essential work being done to build consumer demand,” said Houston. “Colin’s passion for the beef community has made him one of the most effective advocates in American agriculture and I’m excited that he will now be applying that same passion to the work NCBA is conducting on behalf of the Beef Checkoff.”

Originally from Big Spring, Texas, Woodall graduated from Texas A&M University. Following graduation, he worked both as a grain elevator manager and sales manager for Cargill at several locations in western Kansas and the Oklahoma panhandle before moving to Washington, D.C., to work on Capitol Hill.

“I am very thankful for the opportunity to lead NCBA and to serve the beef community as the next CEO of the association. American beef producers are the best people I know and although our industry faces many challenges, I am confident we can overcome them,” said Woodall.

Ethan Lane was also named to serve in the role of Vice President, Government Affairs. In his new role, Lane will guide NCBA’s policy efforts in Washington, D.C., where he has extensive experience advocating on behalf of cattle producers. Lane has been serving as Executive Director of the Public Lands Council and NCBA Federal Lands. In that role, Lane has been a driving force in many of NCBA’s most important policy wins. His leadership skills and extensive political experience make him an effective choice to lead NCBA’s Washington, D.C., office and the association’s ongoing policy efforts.

“I am looking forward to the opportunity to lead NCBA’s office in Washington, D.C., and I’m fully committed to representing the policy priorities of NCBA members across the nation” said Lane. “By standing together, cattle producers have shown they can push back the burdensome impacts of government over-regulation and protect the interests of NCBA members for future generations.”

Lane, is a fifth-generation Arizonan, with 18 years of experience in natural resource and land use issues. Prior to his tenure with PLC and NCBA, he owned and operated a consulting firm specializing in natural resource issues.

When the Title Match is Big Ag vs. Hobby Farms, PETA Wins, Page 2

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:49:48 GMT

On the other hand, there are those of us (cough, me) who relish the ability to eat strawberries, green beans, ice cream and bacon year-round, courtesy of the local Wal-Mart. I appreciate the availability of easy access to all foods, year-round due to our robust and complex U.S. food system, which includes trade with other agriculture-rich countries. Except rhubarb, I can never find that stuff out of season.

Incidentally, many of us are commodity producers AND hobby farmers/ranchers. How so? I’ll use my husband and myself as examples to highlight how labeling each other does no good.

We operate a seedstock Gelbvieh and Balancer ranch and our herd, according to the 2017 Ag Census, is larger than the national average. However, we are small according to other size measurements such as number of employees and acres owned, plus we both have full-time, non-ranch employment. So, technically we could be classified as hobby ranchers since it’s not our main income. However, when we have bulls that don’t make the seedstock cut (technically, they are getting “the cut”), they are marketed through the commodity beef supply via auction market, backgrounder and feedyard; which technically makes us part of “big beef.” How many labels can be thrown on one farmer or rancher before things get tedious and confusing?

The gist of the issue is that when we label things — people, food, industries, etc. — we lose focus of the main goal, which should be to produce healthy food in an ethical, profitable and sustainable way. That’s the big picture, and all farmers and ranchers — small and large — are fully capable of achieving that goal. Honestly, we’d probably all reach the goal more quickly if we’d work together instead of hurling insults at each other. The world needs all kind of farmers and ranchers, of all sizes, shapes and backgrounds, to fulfill our food needs.

Does anyone else feel like labels are further segregating us while PETA just watches, licking their vegetables? As we tear each other down, we weaken the ag sector and make ourselves tremendously vulnerable to outside perils. I can confidently say that what qualifies as a large farm or small farm should be of no consequence and we ought to be eyeballing a very real threat - one that presents itself in the shape of a hockey puck and is made of pea protein.

Brandi Buzzard Frobose is a rancher, ranch wife, mama, agriculture advocate, calf roper and the director of communications for the Red Angus Association of America.

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Cow Cuddles: Mooing for Moola

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:49:32 GMT

Moo-ve over, goat yoga. Cows are the trendy new comfort animal. Researchers have long established animals can help lower stress levels, according to recent research by PubMed . And now businesses like Mountain Horse Farm in Naples, New York, are banking on cow cuddling as a new profit center, according to the farm’s website .

The Horse and Cow Experience allows visitors to cuddle and spend quality time with the farm’s cows and miniature horses. Sessions start at $75 for two participants to udderly adore these bovine beauties.

“Spend quality time with our cows and miniature horses: brushing, petting, playing, sharing space or snuggling up to the cows while they are lying down,” the website states.

The cows are a cross-breed of Scottish Highlanders, and they sport long, shaggy coats and a “friendly character.”

But not all cows are taking this new job lying down. The website offers this humorous caveat: “It’s a fun and very relaxing experience. We can’t guarantee that the cows will be lying down. It’s not a trained skill but their natural behavior, and that may or may not happen.”

Does this story give you a sense of deja-moo? When AgWeb originally reported on this story in 2018, cow cuddling sessions were selling for as much as $300 for a 90-minute session. No bull!

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Dairy Cattle Beef up Beef Industry

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:47:55 GMT

While dairy producers are seeing profitability from milk checks there is also a tremendous opportunity to market cattle into the beef supply thanks to record high beef prices.

According to Lance Zimmerman, an analyst with CattleFax, dairy cattle account for 1 in 5 pounds of beef production in the U.S., so they are vital part of the beef supply chain. Zimmerman gave a presentation on the topic of marketing cull cows and dairy calves at Dairy Today’s Elite Producer Business Conference in Las Vegas.

The cattle industry has seen a drop in total numbers from a peak in 1982 at 50 million cows to this year’s low of approximately 38 million cows. Some of those losses can be attributed to drought experienced. In 2012, drought affected 80% of the beef cow herd and 85% of corn production. Dry periods from 2008 to 2014 caused 3 million cows to leave beef operations.

While drought is still affecting dairy producing regions like California it is not as widespread. Currently only 12% of beef cow herd and 5% of corn production is being affected by drought.

As we’ve transitioned from the dry period of 2012 to a wetter 2014 we’re seeing beef cow slaughter drop off Zimmerman says.

Many beef producers are holding back more cows to capitalize on record high calf prices. In the past 4 years 550 lb. feeder calf prices have increased 83%.

Other animal protein sectors have also seen record high prices thanks to demand and a drop off in production.

Per_Capita_Net_Meat_and_Poultry_Supplies

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Pork producers had to deal with PEDV and broilers had fertility issues. However, both of those industries can rebound much quicker because it takes weeks to hatch more chickens and months to farrow more piglets. Beef and dairy producers need 3 years to develop a heifer into a cow.

“We’re going to have larger protein supplies next year by just a couple of pounds, but it is all going to be due to the other proteins, not beef,” Zimmerman adds.

Zimmerman believes it is likely that fed cattle and cull cow prices will still be in the same area next year for the highs, with maybe a $5/cwt increase. It will still be nothing like the $20 to $30/cwt increase from this year.

“Where we’re going to get the depreciation is the lows. I think $1/lb. is going to be pretty normal for the low in the cull cow market,” Zimmer says. “The high on those cull cows is going to be right in that $1.20-$1.30/lb. range.”

Looking forward the beef industry will be in a supply driven environment.

“Anytime we’re in a supply driven environment, it doesn’t matter if it is beef, chicken or Mercedes Benz, the leverage situation changes where the guys down the food chain hand leverage to the guys up the food chain,” Zimmerman says.

Retailers can’t stand open shelf space so they will bid more on a product to keep their stores full. In the case of the beef industry that price gets handed down to the packer.

Zimmerman relates packers will have to bid more for cattle to help cover the fixed cost of keeping plants open and hopefully make a profit.

“The guys holding the supply, whether it’s day-old Holstein calves, cull cows or a cow-calf producer in central Kansas, you guys hold the chips for a little while longer,” Zimmerman says.

These tight supplies should last for another year to 2 years before it will transition towards the retailer and packer.

US_Beef_Production_Breakdown

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Dairy cows account for 6% of beef production, while fed dairy calves account for 14%. Even though the beef cow herd has declined in the past few years, the dairy herd has remained relatively stable.

The drought forced the majority of beef cows out of the traditional feedlot region south of Interstate 70 in the High Plains of Texas, Kansas, Colorado and Oklahoma. To help fill those pens and keep packers near capacity feedyards had to buy an increasing number of dairy calves, driving up prices. Additionally, more grower yards and heifer development facilities have been taken on at feedlots in the region.

The biggest driver in all of this will be consumer demand.

International markets will help drive the boat more and more as countries like China continue to eat increasing amounts of protein. Domestic demand will be the primary market, particularly for grinding meat.

“I think you could easily say 55-60% of U.S. consumption this year is ground beef,” Zimmerman says. “For years the beef industry cried ‘we need our own chicken nugget or chicken breast.’ My message to everyone in the beef industry that will listen is you have it. It’s called a hamburger.”

Percent_of_Cow_Carcass_By_Product

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Trim accounts for approximately 65% of a cow carcass, and it accounts for a lot of value. At one point in 2014 trim was worth 75% of the total value of a cow carcass.

“Dairy-influenced beef will continue to be a bigger part of the beef story. Dairy cull cows are increasingly important to beef production,” Zimmerman adds. ”Feedlot overcapacity has made dairy-influenced calves attractive and veal isn’t the only market.”

In The Cattle Markets: Impacts of the Dairy Industry on Beef Markets

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:47:09 GMT

By: Brenda Boetel, University of Wisconsin-River Falls

The Holstein beef market is an integral part of the beef supply chain. Derrell Peel pointed out in his Cow/Calf newsletter dated June 20, 2016 how although the dairy cow represents on average only 22 percent of all cows, they have represented an average of 47 percent of total cow slaughter over the last 20 years and 57 percent of total cow slaughter in 2015. In 2015, dairy cow slaughter accounted for approximately 1.9 billion pounds of beef.

Obviously, the percentage of beef supply coming from dairy cattle is dependent both on the number of beef animals harvested, which have been low in recent years, and the number of dairy animals harvested, which are more consistent over time. The dairy industry typically has a more consistent production of animals than beef; however, the dairy cow herd has increased slightly in recent years and 2015 had the largest number of dairy cows, 9.3 million head, since 2009.

Dairy cow slaughter was up 3.5 percent in 2015 relative to 2014. Additionally, the dressed carcass weight was up 2.7 percent. Given the lower beef production in 2015, but the increase in dairy beef production, the dairy industry had a larger impact on the beef market than in previous years.

Although cull cows have contributed between 7 and 8 percent of the beef supply in the last few years, the largest dairy contributor to the beef sector is the dairy steer supply. The larger the dairy cow herd, the larger the calf crop and the larger the number of dairy steers. In 2015, the dairy steer calf crop accounted for approximately 13 percent of the United States calf crop and approximately 14 percent of total beef production, or approximately 3.2 billion pounds of beef.

By far, the largest dairy breed is Holstein accounting for an average of 86 to 90 percent of all dairy breeds. Beef from Holstein steers has often suffered from perceptions of poor quality to industry outsiders. This perception has changed some with production changes to the calf-fed production model. By placing calves on feed directly after weaning, the finished carcass is lighter and similar in size to the industry norms. Additionally, the predictability associated with finishing Holsteins allows for a larger percentage of Holstein steers, as compared to traditional beef breeds, to be graded as Prime rather than Choice or Select. Depending on the year, between 30 and 35 percent of all Prime beef production in the United States has come from Holstein steers.

Impacts on the beef markets from dairy animals is significant. In the last few years, beef production from the dairy sector, including cull cows, dairy steers and heifers, has accounted for between 19 and 22 percent of total U.S. beef production. Due to this large impact, the dairy market and the dairy beef market has impacts on cattle and beef prices.

The Markets

Last week saw new lows for 2016 cattle futures. The industry has been absorbing reports of higher than expected marketings in the second quarter, and sustained high slaughter rates for the remainder of the year. The USDA increased its beef production forecast to be 5.3 percent higher than 2015, with another 3.4 percent increase in 2017. Beef export expectations were also increased and USDA expectations are for 9 percent increase over 2015 and another 4.5 percent increase in 2017. Unfortunately, hot weather has weakened domestic beef demand slightly.

On Monday, July 18, 2016 live cattle futures closed 57.5 to $1.525 higher with the lead August contract leading gains. The dressed beef market was not supportive though and wholesale trade saw Choice beef drop $1.73 and Select declined 48 cents on decent movement of 68 loads.

Corn prices have seen recent increases. Causes for the increases include last week’s Supply and Demand report showing lower than expected carryover, the higher than expected export inspections, as well as the hot weather and continued forecast for high temperatures.

Cull Cows: More Than Hamburger

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:42:12 GMT

Cull cows have been somewhat overlooked in the grand scheme of beef production. While seen mostly as walking hamburger, cull cows are contributors in other ways.

“An awful lot of people think that cows are a by-product of our industry and that most of the carcass is made into ground beef. Pont of fact, that’s not actually correct,” says Keith Belk, meat scientist for Colorado State University.

Belk spoke about the various uses of cow beef during the Cattlemen’s College at the Cattle Industry Convention in San Antonio, Texas.

Arby’s roast beef is an excellent example of the type of lean beef consumers can get from cows. The roast is considered a sub-primal and is completely diluted of all fat before being brined, cooked and sold.

“These products are hugely valuable to the industry, so it is important for everyone to realize how much of the carcass is used as whole muscle cuts,” Belk relates.

In an audit performed at 19 plants specializing in processing cows, more than 43% of the product marketed came in the form of whole muscle products.

Recently there has been a shortage on cow beef with producers holding back females in an effort to increase herd numbers. This has led to increased price pressure on cull cows.

This type of situation makes it appealing to feed cull cows on a higher plane of nutrition that will fall into the white cow classification at packers. “The idea is you feed that high concentrate ration and basically turn the fat color from yellow to white,” Belk adds.

There is also an opportunity to improve the growth of cows through the use of implants and other growth promotants that increase compensatory gain.

Belk says cows should be in good condition before being sold. A body condition score of from 3 to 5 would be ideal.

Cows also need time to replenish their muscle supply, so don’t market them right after calving.

Other notes from Belks presentation:

Cow carcass prices are seasonal and spike around the holidays, typically around days like 4th of July, Labor Day and Thanksgiving.
38.1% of market cows and bulls are purchased directly from the farm or ranch, while 61.9% come from sale barns.
Cuts from the round carry a lot of value in cows because of the leanness.
Think about branding on areas of the hide that won’t ruin the leather which is of high value. For instance branding up high on the hip would be better than on the ribs.
Bruising is the #1 quality challenge Caviness Beef Packers in Amarillo, Texas, faces.

U.S. to Resume First Beef Imports from Ireland Since Mad Cow

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:41:52 GMT

Ireland says the United States will permit imports of beef from the country — the first European Union state allowed to resume sales since the mad cow disease scare over 15 years ago.

Simon Coveney, Ireland’s minister for agriculture, food and the marine, issued a statement Monday announcing that access to the lucrative U.S. market came after American authorities inspected Ireland’s beef production systems. Authorities estimate annual exports could be worth at least 25 million euros ($30 million).

The U.S. lifted its ban on beef from the EU in March 2014, but inspections were necessary before exports were allowed to resume.

Mad cow disease or bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), is fatal to cows and can cause a fatal human brain disease in people who eat meat from infected cows.

10 Years After BSE, Little Change in Tracking

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:37:55 GMT

By ROSS COURTNEY, Yakima Herald-Republic

A walking tour of Bill Wavrin’s dairy takes few steps.

His house and office sit on a hill above the milking parlor, birthing pen and calf sheds. Beyond, his cows sprawl in groups of 15 or 20 as the topography recedes into the hazy distance. Almost every animal in the herd of 4,000 can be seen from the Sunny Dene Ranch driveway.

But 10 years ago Monday, it took just one cow to send shock waves through the cattle industry of the United States, home to some 100 million cattle, slam the door on billions of dollars in exports and scare a lot of beef eaters.

Watch the AgDay report, featuring Pro Farmer analysis:

That’s when Wavrin learned that a single Holstein from his dairy was the first in the United States to test positive for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or mad cow, the terrorizing cattle brain-wasting disease that had caused illness and death, economic catastrophes and the slaughter of millions of cattle overseas.

“Holy crap,” Wavrin recalled saying to himself. “We will not survive this.”

But he did. Most everybody did.

In hindsight, Wavrin’s cow appears in U.S. history as a brief scare, certainly not the disaster the disease caused in the late 1980s in the United Kingdom, where hundreds of people fell ill and many died after eating contaminated meat. Over the years, 4.5 million cattle were slaughtered to contain the spread.

In America, government officials and consumer advocates agree the nation’s food safety system functioned as expected thanks largely to precautions taken since the late 1990s to keep the disease-causing prion, a misshapen protein in the infected animal’s central nervous system, out of cattle feed and hence the beef supply.

But in the end, regulators relied on the odds that a large-scale disaster would be extremely unlikely. Safeguards have tightened some since then, but the cattle industry has successfully resisted a national identification system and testing of all cattle, some of the measures used by other nations today. Critics say not enough has changed.

“They’re baby steps and they’re not enough,” said Michael Hansen, senior staff scientist of the watchdog organization Consumers Union.

Today we play the same odds and the science about the disease is still evolving.

Veterinarians mostly suspect the disease occurs as a spontaneous birth defect or is contracted through feed that includes the contaminated brains and spinal cords of other cattle, a supplement banned in 1997. Since 2003, the United States has seen three other cases, all domestic cows that, unlike Wavrin’s Canadian born Holstein, investigators suspect had the atypical strain that may have come from a birth defect rather than contaminated feed, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.

The human version of mad cow is called variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, a grim illness that spongifies the brain and is invariably fatal.

England’s problems happened in the 1980s and 1990s. Outbreaks followed in Japan in 2001 and Canada in May 2003.

The following Dec. 23, U.S. officials received preliminary positive test results from the Ames, Iowa, National Veterinary Services Laboratories for samples of meat taken from a deboning facility in Centralia that was traced to Wavrin’s farm. Samples were then flown by military aircraft to England for confirmation testing.

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman called a news conference in Washington, D.C., to announce the nation’s first case of mad cow, mispronouncing the unfortunate community of 1,900 as MAYB-ton.

Nations halted their beef imports from the United States. Reporters from all over the globe swarmed the town about 40 miles southeast of Yakima. Federal investigators marched animals by the hundred to slaughter. Executives of trade associations for dairy and cattle owners canceled their last minute Christmas shopping plans to field non-stop calls.

Wavrin’s Holstein became “the cow that stole Christmas.”

Food safety authorities also recalled about 10,000 pounds of beef from the diseased cow and 19 others slaughtered along with it.

They traced the meat from grocery store shelves back to two processing plants in Portland, the deboning facility in Centralia and the slaughterhouse at Vern’s Moses Lake Meats, where the sick cow arrived for slaughter reportedly having difficulty walking.

A cow’s inability to stand or walk, though a symptom of BSE, isn’t proof of the disease. Wavrin, a veterinarian, had noticed the cow’s problems at his dairy but chalked it up to a difficult birth. She wasn’t recovering so he sent her to slaughter.

Federal sleuths confirmed an Alberta, Canada, dairy as the birthplace of the cow and dispatched employees throughout the Northwest to track cows imported in the same shipment.

In a country that slaughters more than 30 million head a year, they searched for 81 cows, focusing on the 25 they determined likely ate the same contaminated feed as the diseased Holstein.

It was “daunting, and even under the best of circumstances, a difficult task,” said Ron DeHaven, the former U.S. Department of Agriculture’s chief veterinarian who led the investigation.

For seven weeks they searched, quarantining farms in Moxee, Mattawa, Sunnyside, Boardman, Ore., and Burley, Idaho, “depopulating” a total of 704 cows. They found 14 of the 25 cohorts, the term for the cows that shared the same contaminated feed.

But that’s as a far as they got. Because of imperfect records, they never found the 11 other cohort animals and quit trying, closing the investigation on Feb. 9, 2004.

DeHaven, who became the face of the investigation with near daily updates from Washington, D.C., said they were convinced by the odds that the meat posed no threat to people because the deadly prions reside in central nervous system tissue, which is stripped away from muscle cuts in the deboning process. Only one in 10 million cattle are sickened by BSE, he said.

“While we were clearly very concerned . we also understood the risk was very small,” he said.

DeHaven stands by every decision in the process except the recall, which occurred after people in eight states and Guam had already purchased the meat in the form of hamburger. The recall sent a mixed message, he said. The government told the public the beef that made it to grocery counters was safe but nevertheless removed any it could find from the market.

“It’s not justified,” he said in hindsight.

Hansen called that notion “outrageous.”

“It was absolutely required,” he said.

Within a week of the finding, the U.S. Department of Agriculture banned all “downer” cows — those who struggle to walk — from processing for food.

Authorities also tightened restrictions on feed, forbidding the brains and spinal cords of dead cattle from any kind of animal feed, the step they had taken with cattle feed in 1997.

Some farmers still legally feed certain animal byproducts to their young live cattle to boost protein. Blood, processed into a granular meal, is common.

And last year, the federal government began requiring that all cattle over 18 months have a history recorded either on paper or an electronic device before crossing state lines. But that requirement falls far short of the national, cradle-to-grave database many regulators, consumer groups and legislators originally called for.

Today, it’s still easier to trace the history of a stolen car than a sick cow, DeHaven said.

“It would take days at best, more likely, weeks and it wouldn’t be 100 percent, far from 100 percent,” DeHaven said.

America’s system leaves the nation’s herds exposed to an outbreak, not necessarily from BSE, but contagious animal diseases, such as foot and mouth, that could wipe out the industry, DeHaven said. “Woefully inadequate,” he called the current system.

Cattle industry officials successfully pushed back against the national identification system, citing concerns about privacy, property rights, the burden of implementation and the effect on commerce.

Jack Field, executive vice president of the Washington Cattlemen’s Association, said the government wanted “everything under the sun.”

Jay Gordon, executive director of the Washington State Dairy Federation, said the effort failed because producers objected to the federal government trying to impose a one-size-fits-all system. Currently, cattle have a variety of identifying paperwork, such as vaccination reports, simple receipts, ear tags or brands.

Some ranchers felt, “We don’t want the federal government to have a website to know how many beef cattle we have on the range in the Okanogan,” Gordon said.

But Hansen, the Consumers Union scientist, complained that officials can’t even determine how old an animal is with certainty.

“We functionally don’t have a tracking system,” he said. Countries with quality identification systems include much of Europe, where cattle have documents akin to passports, and Japan, where shoppers can scan a bar code to find the origin of their food products.

Testing for the disease, too, has returned to pre-BSE levels, at about 40,000 animals per year. In 2005, the nation tested 10 times that many cattle.

Some nations test every single animal over a certain age at the time of slaughter. BSE prions only show up in older animals. In America, that would cost about $1 billion per year.

Washington is among states trying to improve the cattle tracking system.

This year, the Legislature spent $881,000 to upgrade the state Department of Agriculture’s computers to crunch data from the variety of existing animal certificates, receipts, licenses, ear tags and vaccination reports, hoping to amass enough information to back-trace the history of any cattle with a disease.

They hope to unveil the tracking system by June 2015, said Lynn Briscoe, policy adviser for the state Agriculture Department.

The state’s proposed changes also call for closing a loophole that exempts cattle sold in bunches of 15 or fewer from brand inspections.

Both the Dairy Federation and the Washington Cattlemen support the proposed changes as reasonable food safety improvements.

Wavrin did, indeed, survive the mad cow scare.

The whole adventure left him little worse for wear financially. He and the rest of the farmers involved were compensated for the value of the animals destroyed.

“Other than the gray lines on my head, I don’t think you could see evidence of this event,” he said.

Though unpleasant, he believes the investigation, quarantines and slaughter were necessary.

“I don’t think the hullaballoo was overdone, because we had to know,” he said.

Wavrin did not grow up farming. His family owned a fishing lodge on a lake in northern Minnesota and he took a fancy to animal medicine as a boy. His family bought the Mabton dairy in 1997 and he owns it with his brother, Sid.

Bill Wavrin lauded the skills of the government officials who probed his farm. He has nice words for the media, which he said reported the science clearly and without sensationalism. And he praises the American public for reacting to facts, not emotion.

“The country could have panicked,” he said.

Since mad cow, he has upgraded his records system. He and his crews read ear tag information with a 2-foot wand attached to handheld scanner the size of a walkie-talkie. The device cost him about $5,000.

The new tool makes managing his herd more convenient and efficient, but he admits it would have fit nicely with the centralized tracking system federal officials gave up on but he supported.

“I’m a veterinarian, and I like the idea of being able to back trace,” he said.

To Wavrin, the over-arching lesson is one of communication between farmer and customer.

He suspects most producers have lost touch with consumers and done too little to counter what he calls an “irrational fear of commercial agriculture.”

He has participated in educational videos and had his face on billboards, inviting people to show more curiosity about where their food comes from.

“Come to a farm,” he said.

Fewer Inputs, More Profits

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:32:30 GMT

Converting to grass-fed beef was a gamble that has paid off well for Kirk Bruns. In the past nine years, the Bloomfield, Neb., beef and dairy producer has switched most of his row crop acres to grass for his 150 Angus beef cows and 60 Jersey milk cows. The forage-based system of grasses and legumes has resulted in better profitability for both his dairy and beef operations.

Bruns and his wife, Kristi, started converting their 560-acre farm to grass by first changing their conventional dairy operation to a grass-based milking system. Their dairy cows are moved to a new grazing paddock after each milking.

About 120 acres of pasture near their barns are irrigated and planted to grasses and legumes. The Brunses move their dairy cows through this system of paddocks. The beef cows then graze what the dairy cows don’t eat, plus the remaining acres farther away from the barn.

“The beef cows are the cleanup crew. It works really well for both herds; all the cows get optimum nutrition,” Bruns says.

The Brunses’ beef cow herd is evenly divided between commercial and registered Angus cows. The Brunses specialize in genetics that do well on grass and sell some purebred bulls and heifers. Their commercial cattle are sold to Tallgrass Beef Company in Kansas, where they receive a premium over conventional markets for the animals that qualify after an ultrasound is done for tenderness, back fat, intramuscular fat and ribeye area per hundredweight. Grass-finished animals are sold at approximately two years of age, weighing 1,200 lb. to 1,300 lb.

Three years ago, the Brunses began receiving a premium for selling certified organic milk. Although the switch from conventional to grass-based dairying means less milk production—roughly a third of the amount as year-round milking—profitability is better.

“Input costs are way less for a grass-based operation. We used to write so many checks for inputs, such as feed. I’m amazed at how little we have to spend now. It was a good decision to go to grass,” Bruns says.

Their lifestyle has also changed. The dairy cows calve in April and are milked through grass season, then dried up in December. The Bruns enjoy the winter hiatus from twice-daily milkings.

“It’s a nice break to have the winter off from dairying. We still have to take care of the cows, but Kristi has time to help a local tax accountant during the winter, and it gives us a chance to do other things,” Bruns says.

Kirk Bruns, Bloomfield, Neb., has converted his entire farm to a grass-based system for his beef and dairy herds. He also sells purebred Angus cattle with the genetics to finish on grass.

Studied, then switched. Before he made the changes in his conventional beef and dairy operations, Bruns spent a lot of time attending educational grazing programs and pasture walks. He also talked with other producers about their grazing systems.

“I decided to go to a grass-based system because it looked like the simplest and most profitable way to work,” Bruns says.

Through trial and error, he slowly began changing his corn fields to pastures. He also hired a grazing consultant to advise him.

“Our consultant had lived in New Zealand and learned about their grass-based dairies. He helped us lay out our paddock system, determine where to position our barn and establish pastures in row crop fields,” Bruns explains.

His paddock system has grazing cells, ranging from 5 to 40 acres in size, which can be divided with temporary fences. Most of the pastures are a cool-season grass-and-legume mix of red and white clover, orchardgrass, meadow brome, wheatgrass and Garrison creeping foxtail. The foxtail is very productive and works well in wet areas of irrigated pastures.

Bruns also has a warm-season grass pasture that consists of big bluestem, little bluestem, Indiangrass and switchgrass, interspersed with clover. The warm-season grasses are grazed only once each year by the beef cowherd, but the forage that is provided during the heat of summer is available when it is most needed.

Surprisingly, the hardest part of the changeover has been establishing the grass. In some fields, it has taken more than five years to get a dense stand of grass, Bruns says.

“It seems so simple, but it isn’t. I’ve learned a lot about seeding rates and now usually double the recommended rates. It also takes a long time to develop a well-rooted sod,” he says.

He plans ahead for potential forage shortages and plants annual grazing crops—such as corn, oats, turnips, millet, sudangrass or rye—as needed. A field where he winters his cows will usually be planted to one or more annual crops.

For winter forage needs, Bruns stockpiles his pastures, grazes beef cows on leased cornstalks and feeds some hay. He recently established a new alfalfa field that is available for haying and grazing. “Now that we are certified organic, it’s harder to find good organic hay, so I decided to grow my own,” he says.

Fill the forage gap. “Kirk has found the power of grazing. He tries to graze as much as possible with as many species as possible. That diversity of forages and grazing methods gives him many options,” says Terry Gompert, a University of Nebraska–Lincoln Extension educator who focuses on grazing.

Based in Center, Neb., Gompert has taught many of the grazing workshops and management sessions that Bruns and other producers attend to pick up ideas for their grazing systems. Gompert says one of the best ways to have enough forage is to plant annuals.

The first priority is for producers to identify at what point in the grazing season they are short of forage, and then find an annual that will fill the gap.

“Don’t plant what you’ve already got; plant another crop to use during times of short supply,” Gompert says.

Another priority is to plant the crop to the forage gap. For example, if forage is short early in the growing season, Gompert suggests that producers plant a cereal rye or Italian rye to fill the gap until their grass pastures are ready. For the “midsummer slump,” he suggests they try foxtail millet or sudex. If forage is short in the fall, plant turnips, cereal rye or oats.

A third goal is to match the maturity of the plant and type of forage to the type of animal that you are trying to feed. Depending on whether you’re feeding cow–calf pairs, dry cows, yearlings or finishing steers, producers should match the nutritional needs of the animals with the forages.

A fourth way to fill the forage gap is by planting “cocktail mixes.” For example, planting a combination of annuals after a wheat crop will provide additional forage and also may reduce the amount of fertilizer required by the crop.

“Research from North Dakota suggests cocktail mixes of annuals such as sugar beets, millet, lentils, sweet clover, milo [grain sorghum], turnips and rape produce microrhiza in the soil and reduce the need for fertilizer,” Gompert says.

Bruns is a strong proponent of grass-based beef and dairy systems and is convinced that he’s on the right track for even greater production and profitability.

“We have steadily increased production year by year,” Bruns explains. “As we’ve increased animal production, we have also improved land quality by keeping it in permanent cover and allowing it to rest between grazing periods.”

“We are grazing more animals per acre now, and the beef enterprise has improved both the good and poorer land. It’s been really successful for us,” he adds. BT

Front Gate

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:31:41 GMT

A Greener World

My wife and I spent a weekend with friends in Taos, N.M., last month, and among the sights to see was the local fad food store. I don’t go into those much, so it is always interesting to see what the people inside look like—dour and hungry, mostly—and what stuff costs. Which is bunches.

That may be why all the shoppers are skinny. They can’t afford to eat much when it costs that much.

And the bumper stickers in the parking lot indicate they are all saving the whales or the planet, or giving world peace a chance. Fine. It’s a free, if overpriced, country.

Perspective. But days after the weekend, I see another study reminding us that the technology these folks so abhor allows us to produce more food with less impact on the environment.

Isn’t this too obvious to mention, much less study? Why would anybody suppose, for instance, hybrid corn’s 200-bu. yields are somehow less harmful than the straight varieties’ 100-bu. yield? Gosh, to get X tons of corn to feed the X billion people in the world, you plow half as many acres, spray half as many acres, clear-cut half as many acres of rainforest, support half as many workers.

But, that’s old technology, isn’t it? Mankind has been improving corn yields since the South Americans began selecting from grama grass-looking native species. So that’s not scary to these folks. That’s “natural.” That’s “organic.”

Not so, for Roundup Ready corn or growth promotants for cattle. Those things are “unnatural” and I suppose “inorganic” and no matter how many tests science and government regulators may have on hand to prove efficacy and safety, they are somehow “dangerous.”

This latest study I learned about from a July blog by my colleague at Dairy Today, Jim Dickrell. Reporting on a study released by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) regarding environmental impact of “natural” and “organic” milk free of bovine somatotropin (BST), Jim responds: “To produce the same amount of milk, you need 33% fewer BST-treated cows than organic cows and 35% less land area. At the same time, the fewer BST-treated cows will excrete 45% less nitrogen, 39% less phosphorus and reduce overall global warming potential with fewer methane emissions by 19%.”

“Anything that gives us an increase in milk yield—long-day lighting, cow comfort, Rumensin, reducing mastitis—will reduce dairy’s carbon foot print,” Jude Capper, lead author of the NAS milk study, told Dickrell.

Choices. We’ve got the same challenge in the beef industry. Here we are with the government limiting the use of Rumensin in chickens because a bunch of activists fret it “might” be an antibiotic, while we’re worrying about a food crisis.

You’ll find the same sort of conclusions in a 2004 report Thom Elam and Rodney Preston produced for the Growth Enhancement Technology Team.

They found without the technological improvements of the past 50 years, we would need 180 million head of cattle to produce the U.S. beef supply—nearly twice the current population. An additional land area equal to the combined acreage of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado and Kansas would be required to provide the additional pasture and feed grains.

It’s pretty obvious, but it is my unstudied but firm perception many of the right-brainers who pay extra for natural and organic foods are the same right-brainers who fret about agriculture’s environmental impact.

Reflection. If these right-brainers thought about it, they would realize their food buying habits are increasing their carbon footprints.

Some lessen the hypocrisy score by also arguing there should be fewer mouths to feed. (Though few have volunteered themselves as a sacrificial mouth.) If you can find an ethical way of reducing population, that’s grand. If not, I don’t think the fairest method of population control would be limiting food production to starve the extras.

Before I get too crosswise with my friends who produce natural and organic beef, let me rush to say that’s fine. Nice niche. Good luck.

But don’t start with me about how much better your cattle operation is for the environment. You’re just wasting resources.

Steve Cornett is executive editor of Beef Business Journal. He can be reached at scornett@farmjournal.com .

Top Producer, Summer 2008

Green New Deal's "Farting Cows" Get the MEME Treatment on Social Media

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:21:44 GMT

“Farting cows” have been buzzing on social media after the Green New Deal was announced by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.). Many people are taking the opportunity to have a laugh by sharing MEMEs and cartoons about the controversial legislative, non-binding proposal.

The term “farting cows” started floating around after a FAQ sheet was released by Ocasio-Cortez’s office on Feb. 7 that mentioned the difficulty in getting “rid of farting cows” to reach zero emissions goals .

The statement on cows has since been backed away by Ocasio-Cortez, but it didn’t stop President Trump from taking a jab at the idea of not being able to “own cows anymore” during a recent rally.

There has also been criticism from farmers, ranchers and other social media users who have taken to platforms like Twitter and Facebook to have a laugh about “farting cows”:

A little Monday humor. #CowFarts. Actually they burp. pic.twitter.com/wv6nbEjMpk
— Sean Arians (@ag_guy04) February 11, 2019

Guys, i figured out how to save the planet pic.twitter.com/cn6a763eFU
— Jacob Reinecker (@jsreinecker) February 13, 2019

Cows For Trump! #CowFarts #GreenNewDisaster #GreeNewDeal @AOC @benshapiro @realDonaldTrump pic.twitter.com/2yMZAj1JUS
— Uncle Bosey (@galantz28x) February 8, 2019

Wait....she really doesn’t want to regulate cow farts? pic.twitter.com/lMO5xpvFcd
— PardonMyFrench (@1PardonMyFrench) February 8, 2019

Despite the rhetoric on “cow farts” the methane gas that cattle emit is actually from cow burps that happen during the rumination process. Here are a few graphics and videos that address the issue:

Heard that cows are gassy? Please know that it’s burps (well, technically eructation), not farts. Cow farts are #fakenews. When cattle eat more grains, like 🌽, their methane emissions are ⬇️. Methane is an odorless gas. Methane from beef cattle is 1.9% of US GHGs accding to EPA pic.twitter.com/VB4wRFHAZ3
— Sara Place (@drsplace) February 14, 2019

Has someone ever told you cow farts are causing climate change? Watch this to get the facts on methane #ClimateFoodFacts #FactsNotFear #yes2meat pic.twitter.com/rpOFf3rUig
— Meat Institute (@MeatInstitute) January 17, 2019

Cow burps actually emit more carbon than cow farts. 🐄🐮

(via @getstack) pic.twitter.com/0kyVO1RijM
— VICE Canada (@vicecanada) January 3, 2019

And if you needed a little pep talk for your cows listen to Oregon dairy farmer Derrick Josi’s speech that he offered to his Jerseys:

Trump Criticizes Green New Deal FAQ for Farting Cow Reference

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:21:44 GMT

A proposal in Congress that seeks to limit greenhouse gas drew the ire of President Donald Trump during a recent rally for his 2020 campaign.

At Trump’s rally held on Feb. 11 in El Paso, Texas, he talked about the need for bipartisan cooperation between Republicans and Democrats. It was at this point he mentioned what he calls a “radical resistance, it’s the radical left” who are opposed to some of Trump’s platforms, such as building a border wall.

Trump went onto address the Green New Deal that was proposed on Feb. 7 by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.).

“I really don’t like their policy of taking away your car, of taking away your airplane flights, of ‘Let’s hop a train to California,’ of you’re not allowed to own cows anymore,” Trump says.

The changes proposed by the Green New Deal would cause “a lot of problems,” Trump adds.

The mention of not being able to “own cows anymore” by Trump is a reference to a FAQ sheet released by Rep. Ocasio-Cortez before the Green New Deal announcement.

The FAQ sheet says, “We set a goal to get to net-zero, rather than zero emissions, in 10 years because we aren’t sure that we’ll be able to fully get rid of farting cows and airplanes that fast, but we think we can ramp up renewable manufacturing and power production, retrofit every building in America, build the smart grid, overhaul transportation and agriculture, plant lots of trees and restore our ecosystem to get to net-zero.”

Following pushback from the media, fellow politicians and farmers, Ocasio-Cortez has distanced herself from the FAQ sheet, saying that doctored versions and drafts made it into the press. However, the version that NPR shared was not doctored and came from Ocasio-Cortez’s office.

“It’s literally—clearly—irony,” Ocasio-Cortez spokesman Corbin Trent, told a reporter during a phone interview .

Ocasio-Cortez has since removed the Green New Deal fact sheet from her website and encouraged people to look to the contents of the submitted resolution, H.Res. 109.

Despite the controversy over “farting cows” the Green New Deal proposal aims to work with farmers and ranchers . The collaborative effort has a goal “to remove pollution and greenhouse gas emissions from the agricultural sector as much as is technologically feasible.”

The Green New Deal could soon be up for vote , with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) offering to let it come forward in the Senate.

“I’ve noted with great interest the Green New Deal, and we’re going to be voting on that in the Senate,” McConnell says. “I’ll give everybody an opportunity to go on record and see how they feel about the Green New Deal.”

It is unlikely that the nonbinding resolution would pass in the Senate, with Republicans holding the majority, which has some Democrats viewing McConnell’s move for a vote as a political tactic . The Green New Deal has 67 cosponsors in the House and 11 cosponsors in the Senate , all of whom are Democrats.

Nevertheless, moving into the 2020 campaign there will likely continue to be talk of “farting cows” and taking away cattle as long as the Green New Deal is still on the table.

Texas Mascot Dies from Bovine Leukemia

Thu, 12 Nov 2020 05:46:23 GMT

College football saw another crazy weekend of games. Five games pitted top 20 teams against one another. Florida-Louisiana State was decided on a trick play via a pass to a kicker. Michigan had the joy of victory turn into the agony of defeat on the last play of the game versus instate rival Michigan State.

For the University of Texas, this weekend was a bye week and it came at a goodtime. The Longhorns just upset arch rival Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry game at the Texas State Fair the previous week. After the game it was announced Texas’ mascot BEVO XIV would be retiring and no longer visiting “The 40 Acres” in Austin. BEVO’s retirement didn’t last long with the Longhorn steer dying in the night on Friday. The cause of death was Bovine Leukemia Virus (BLV).

BLV is a fairly common problem in the beef industry with 39% of beef cattle herds containing a carrier of the virus, according to National Animal Health Monitoring System (NAHMS) data. It is more often seen in dairy cattle where 90% of herds are estimated to host carriers.

The disease is caused by a retrovirus and can be spread through the transfer of blood from an infected animal to a vulnerable animal. Times where transmission can occur are rectal palpation, dehorning, tattooing, injections and blood collection. An infected bred cow can also pass it to the calf in utero or via colostrum at nursing.

As cattle get older they become more susceptible to the disease. Clinical signs begin to appear around 5-6 years of age.

Lew Strickland, extension veterinarian with the University of Tennessee says approximately 5% of BLV-infected cattle develop lymphosarcoma , a tumor that typically shows swelling around the lymph nodes.

The tumors can be found in other areas of the body like the abomasum, eye socket or heart, leading to an array of complications.

“There are no treatments or vaccines available for BLV. Management and prevention is key in control of this disease,” Strickland says. He adds animals can be diagnosed for BLV with a simple blood test sent to a local diagnostic lab.

Besides being deadly to cows BLV is costly on production for infected animals. A Michigan State University study found that milk production dropped 220 lb. per cow for every 10% infected in the herd.

“If you assume a third of your cows are infected, that means a milk loss of 725 lb. of milk per cow. Multiply that times your mailbox milk price. Even at $16 per cwt, that’s a loss of about $120 per cow, or $12,000 for every 100 cows in your herd. Ouch,” writes Dairy Today editor Jim Dickrell .

First Thing Today: Gains Overnight as Traders Remain Focused on the Weather

Thu, 12 Nov 2020 04:42:07 GMT

Good morning!

Gains overnight as traders remain focused on the weather... Corn futures are up 2 to 3 cents in most contracts while soybeans are up 5 to 6 cents as rainfall was light and spotty across Iowa yesterday and more dry weather is expected as the calendar flips to August. Spring wheat futures are up 4 to 8 cents, while winter wheat is mostly around 4 cents higher. The U.S. dollar index is again extending its multi-month slide. Crude oil futures are also facing light pressure.

Export sales report on tap... USDA will release its weekly update on export sales activity at 7:30 a.m. CT. Traders expect the report to show corn sales ranging from 400,000 MT to 900,000 MT, soybean sales between 400,000 MT and 1.3 MMT, wheat sales of 350,000 MT to 550,000 MT, soymeal sales ranging from 50,000 MT to 225,000 MT and soyoil sales between 5,000 MT and 25,000 MT. These tallies include expected old- and new-crop business combined.

Day 2 of wheat tour finds average yield down 10.8 bu. per acre from average... On Day 2 of the Wheat Quality Council’s spring wheat tour through central and northwest North Dakota, scouts measured an average yield of 35.8 bu. per acre, which was down from 46.9 bu. per acre a year ago and 46.6 bu. per acre for the five-year average. The average durum yield stood at 34.4 bu. per acre versus 45.5 bu. per acre last year and 41.0 bu. per acre for the five-year average. Dave Green, the Wheat Quality Council’s executive vice president, reported that “the early-planted stuff looks the toughest,” adding that later-planted fields could still improve if temperatures don’t get too hot. Abandoned or baled wheat fields are not incorporated into the yield estimates. But Green says the tour is having each route make an estimate on the abandonment percentage, and that will be presented to everyone when the final numbers are released later today.

Trump advances WOTUS repeal... Today begins a 30-day comment period on withdrawing the Obama implemented waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) rule. The Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers are publishing the proposal in today’s Federal Register. It would rescind the existing WOTUS rule and reinstate the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act the way it existed before 2015. A new WOTUS rule is expected by late this year or early in 2018. Environmental groups and lawmakers have urged a longer comment period than 30 days. The repeal rule is seen as a back stop in case the Supreme Court determines the 6th Circuit didn’t have authority over the case and the hold is lifted.

AGCO buys Monsanto’s Precision unit that Deere was nixed from buying... AGCO Corp., the third-biggest U.S. agricultural machinery maker, agreed to buy Monsanto Co.'s Precision Planting LLC equipment business less than three months after Monsanto nixed a $190-million deal with Deere & Co. for the unit. Terms of AGCO’s deal to buy the unit from Monsanto’s subsidiary agricultural technology company Climate Corp. weren’t disclosed, AGCO said in a statement.

Japan may raise tariff on frozen beef as imports rise... Tariffs on frozen beef imports from countries without an economic partnership agreement (EPA) with Japan may be raised to 50% from the current 38.5% rate, Tatsuya Haruna, deputy director at the agriculture ministry’s livestock promotion division, said Wednesday. Beef suppliers that may be affected include the U.S., Canada, New Zealand and European Union nations. Australia, the top beef supplier to Japan, has an EPA agreement with it. Tariffs will be raised if frozen beef imports in the three months through June rise by 17% from the same period last year. It would be the first time in 14 years if triggered, and will be based on Japanese trade data due out Friday.

China bans beef from some Australian processors... China has temporarily banned beef products from six Australian processors due to concerns about labeling non-compliance involving meat from Australian processors that include two facilities from Brazil’s JBS SA. Australia’s trade minister said there may be “very significant amounts of trade” involved in the ban, including shipments already on their way to China, according to ABC. But Australia is working to quickly resolve the issue.

South Korea downgrades bird flu alert status... South Korea’s ag ministry says that the risk from highly pathogenic bird flu has fallen, with no new cases reported since June 19. Therefore, on Friday it will lower its alert status by one notch from the highest level. The nation will continue to monitor the situation and disinfect farms through September. Bird flu decimated more than a fifth of the nation’s poultry flock since it was first detected in November 2016.

Cash cattle move at lower levels... Cash cattle trade picked up in Kansas and Nebraska yesterday at $117, with Iowa and Texas seeing a few hundred head trade for prices ranging from $117 to $118. This is steady to down from last week’s action that ranged from $118 to $120. The August contract opens today’s session roughly $3 below the low end of this week’s cash trade. This could spur some corrective trade in the market today.

So far, just modest declines for cash hog index... Cash hog prices softened in the western Corn Belt but strengthened in the east, lifting the national weighted average cash bid yesterday. The cash hog index has slipped a bit in recent days, but it remains well above where futures are trading, signaling they may have overdone it to the downside. The pork cutout value dropped $1.96 yesterday, but it remains just above the $100.00 per cwt. threshold. Movement was again strong at 342.46 loads.

Overnight demand news... Jordan made no purchase in its tender to buy 100,000 MT of wheat. South Korea bought around 55,000 MT of soymeal, likely from South America. Iran made no purchase in its tenders to buy 200,000 MT of barley and 200,000 MT of corn.

Today’s reports:

7:30 a.m., Drought Monitor -- USDA/NWS
7:30 a.m., Weekly Export Sales -- FAS
2:00 p.m., Livestock & Meat Domestic Data -- ERS

First Thing Today: Japan to Hike Tariffs on Frozen Beef from the U.S.

Thu, 12 Nov 2020 04:42:07 GMT

Good morning!

Light pressure on corn and soybeans overnight... Corn and soybean futures are steady to fractionally lower as of 6:30 a.m. CT as traders engage in some light profit-taking ahead of the weekend. Wheat futures are mostly 1 to 3 cents higher across all three flavors and spring wheat crop woes remain on traders’ minds. The U.S. dollar index is down slightly, while crude oil futures are just above unchanged.

Japan will hike tariffs on frozen beef from the United States... Japan will hike tariffs on frozen beef from the U.S. and other countries who do not have economic partnership agreements (EPAs) with it from 38.5% to 50.0% between Aug. 1 and March 31, its ministry of finance announced today. The safeguard mechanism is triggered when Japan’s imports of specific beef products from all nations or those without EPAs climb more than 17% from the year prior. Its first quarter imports of frozen beef from all nations were up 17.1% from year-ago while its imports from non-EPA nations was up nearly 25%. Last year, the U.S. sold $418 billion worth of frozen beef cuts to Japan, or around 18% of its total. And U.S. shipments to the country had thus far been running well ahead of year-ago. Japan’s top supplier Australia won’t be affected as it has an EPA with the country. This is the first time the safeguard has been triggered since August 2003.

‘Skinny’ health care plan fails... Three Republican Senators -- Susan Collins (Maine), Lisa Murkowski (Ark.) and John McCain (Ariz.) -- voted along with all Democrats to send the “skinny” healthcare reform package to defeat early Friday on a 49-51 vote. GOP leadership held a separate vote open for almost an hour as Vice President Mike Pence stood at McCain’s desk, making his case — to no avail. “This is clearly a disappointing moment,” Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said after the vote. “I regret that our efforts were simply not enough this time... It’s time to move on.” He later called on Democrats to offer their ideas on fixing provisions of ObamaCare. Get more details .

Senate overwhelmingly passes Russia sanctions bill, sends to president... The U.S. Senate approved the sanctions package on a 98-2 vote, sending the bill that was overwhelmingly approved by the House to President Donald Trump. The sanctions only kick in for energy projects in which a Russian company owns 33% or a controlling stake. White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci on Thursday told CNN that Trump “may sign the sanctions exactly the way they are, or he may veto the sanctions and negotiate an even tougher deal against the Russians.” Congress has shown it can easily override a veto.

Plans to restrict steel and aluminum imports delayed... President Donald Trump’s plans to slap steel and aluminum imports with tariffs and/or quotas will be delayed, according to House lawmakers briefed Thursday afternoon by Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross. Ross, speaking to members of the House Ways and Means Committee, “said that the current forums that we have — the World Trade Organization and the global steel forum — have not been adequate in addressing this over-dumping issue, and that he is hoping for some way to negotiate in a dialogue with these countries to resolve the problem,” according to Rep. Judy Chu (D-Calif.).

Another new farm bill listening session slated... An additional farm bill listening session, in conjunction with the Farm Progress show Aug. 30 in Decatur, Illinois, has been scheduled by House Ag Chairman Mike Conaway (R-Texas). The panel has three listening sessions planned next week, starting Monday in San Angelo, Texas, followed by others in Morgan, Minn., on Thursday, and Modesto, Calif., on Saturday. The first meeting was held June 24 in Gainesville, Florida.

High RIN costs lead to big losses for CVR Refining... White House advisor Carl Icahn’s CVR Refining lost $19 million in the second quarter of 2017, citing the loss on spending $106 million on credits needed to comply with the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), according to its income statement released Thursday. Reuters had reported that Icahn had been holding fewer credits than needed on the expectation that RIN prices would drop, but prices have risen. “As I’ve said many, many times before, RINs continue to be an egregious tax on independent refiners and small retailers,” CVR CEO Jack Lipinski said on the earnings call. “RINs prices have been extremely volatile this year, which only proves the fact that the RINs market is manipulated... EPA continues to ignore this.”

Meat groups push stay of CAFO reporting... The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) and the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association are urging a federal judge to give EPA time to develop guidance for how livestock operations must report emissions, arguing that not doing so will create a haphazard “reporting fiasco.” The motion filed Thursday in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit follows an April decision of the same court overturning EPA’s exemption for animal waste emissions reporting requirements. Environmental groups said the court should reject the stay since the agency had plenty of time to figure out how to enforce the rule on CAFOs.

More cash action around $117... Some additional cash cattle trade was reported mostly in the $117 range across the Plains and into the Midwest on Thursday. More cash action is likely today, as sales have yet to get underway in earnest. August futures start today’s session nearly $3 below the low end of this week’s price action.

Lean hog traders continue to monitor the product market... Traders remain uneasy that pork bellies will soon come off their record highs, dragging down the cutout value and cash hog prices and limiting buying interest in futures. But with futures already at a healthy discount to the cash hog market, it should be well positioned to withstand any such fall.

Overnight demand news... Jordan issued another tender to buy 100,000 MT of hard milling wheat.

Today’s reports:

No reports

First Thing Today: Rains Fall, But Weather Concerns Remain

Thu, 12 Nov 2020 04:42:03 GMT

Corn starts week under pressure, but soybeans and wheat hold onto gains... Corn futures faced pressure overnight and the market is currently trading high-range and down 4 cents. Soybean futures traded in a wide range overnight, and as of 6:30 a.m. CT most contracts are up 3 to 4 cents. Winter wheat futures are fractionally higher, while spring wheat are up 3 cents. The U.S. dollar index is marginally lower, while crude oil futures are up slightly.

Rains fall, but weather concerns remain close at hand... Rain fell across most of the Midwest and Northern Plains over the weekend, but accumulation was erratic. The heaviest precip amounts were in eastern areas of the Corn Belt. Cooler temps have moved into the region, diminishing moisture needs. Two systems are expected to bring additional rainfall to the Midwest this week. But looking farther out, there is concern that a ridge of high pressure could move into the Plains and Midwest as the calendar flips to July, bringing high temps and limiting rainfall, says World Weather Inc.

China may make July announcement to buy record volume of U.S. soybeans... The U.S. Soybean Export Council says the Chinese Ministry of Commerce may make a commitment to buy a record volume of U.S. soybeans when its officials are in Iowa next month. Members of the ministry, a delegation due to sign an accord in Des Moines on July 13, have discussed the possibility with the council’s top representative in China, said spokeswoman Lisa Humphreys of the council. A record commitment would exceed the 13.4MMT it agreed to buy in February 2012, also at a ceremony in Des Moines. The delegation will also tour U.S. farms and port facilities in places including Seattle, while a U.S. agricultural-trade delegation will visit China in September, according to the council.

EPA reportedly reevaluating proposed 2018 advanced biofuel mandate... Some in the oil industry have raised concerns regarding advanced biodiesel mandates and have lobbied the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to also lower cellulosic ethanol targets to better match production. This apparently led to a pullback announcement on Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) volume requirements late last week, sources signal. The Office of Management and Budget reportedly had completed vetting the RFS proposal and initially authorized EPA to release proposed mandates. However, some sources speculate the delay could allow an announcement to coincide with President Donald Trump’s planned visit June 21 to Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Chief ag trade negotiator for USTR announced… Greg Doud, a former Senate Agriculture Committee staffer with farm bill experience, is Trump’s pick to serve as chief agricultural negotiator for the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office. Doud is currently president of the Commodity Markets Council.

Budget work a focal point this week... Some agriculture/food policy cuts could be part of a GOP leadership budget proposal that could surfaced this week. If Republicans in the House concur, it could for the first time in years be able to pass spending bills without the help of Democrats. But even if the House GOP plan is approved, Senate Democrats would have leverage on the spending bills because Republicans lack the 60 votes required in that chamber to pass spending bills. Other focal points this week will include any additional details on Trump’s trade policy agenda, his trip to Iowa and the results of a Georgia House election. The battle to replace Republican Tom Price, Trump’s Health and Human Services secretary, has been the most expensive House race in history. Get more details .

Tax overhaul speech this week... House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) plans to make a major speech on tax overhaul to the National Association of Manufacturers in Washington on Tuesday, as Ryan and his team mark the one-year anniversary of the unveiling of the “Better Way” blueprint.

U.S. beef a hot commodity in China... U.S. beef is in high demand in China now that the 14-year ban on the product has been lifted. “The number of inquiries to our exporters number in the hundreds, if not low thousands, since the announcement of the agreement,” says Joel Haggard, senior vice president for the U.S. Meat Export Federation in Asia-Pacific. China’s total beef demand has been sharply rising, and U.S. beef is expected to be a hit both in terms of quality and price. U.S. beef is expected to hold a price advantage to similar cuts of premium Australian meat because of low grain prices in the United States. But there are still some limits on Chinese beef buys, meaning American beef shipments will roll in slowly to start.

China still working to build its hog herd... China’s central Hunan province took delivery of 1,012 American boars on Sunday, signaling producers there continue to build herds. This comes despite talk of overcapacity and slowing demand that are expected to hurt profits next year. The hog imports are meant to improve the quality of the local breeding swine, according to Wang Xinwu, deputy head of the province’s inspection and quarantine bureau.

Futures start the week below cash cattle market... Futures start the week at a discount to last week’s cash cattle trade and near oversold territory, but momentum is on bears’ side. Traders will watch showlist numbers and boxed beef action before forming cash opinions for this week.

Traders on watch for signs of a top in the cash hog market... Traders expect the cash hog market to put in a seasonal top soon, which resulted in lean hog futures slipping slightly below the cash hog index last week. Higher cash hog bids have cut into packer profit margins. Any signs of retreat for the cash market would likely garner quite a bit of attention.

Weekend demand news... Jordan issued a new tender to buy 100,000 MT of animal feed barley and 100,000 MT of hard milling wheat from optional origins. Iran exported 35,000 MT of wheat to Oman last week.

Today’s reports:

10:00 a.m., Weekly Export Inspections -- AMS
2:00 p.m., Milk Production -- NASS
3:00 p.m., Crop Progress -- NASS

First Thing Today: Republicans Prevail in Special Elections

Thu, 12 Nov 2020 04:42:03 GMT

Good morning!

Quiet overnight session for corn and soybeans, wheat faces profit-taking... Corn futures are fractionally to a penny higher after holding to a narrow trading range overnight. Soybeans also saw a quiet overnight session and the market is steady to 1 cent higher of 6:30 a.m. CT. Wheat futures are down 4 to 5 cents amid some profit-taking. The U.S. dollar index is slightly lower today, while crude oil futures are chopping around unchanged.

Argentine government orders striking port employees to get back to work... Argentina’s work ministry has ordered striking workers at the country’s main Rosario shipping hub to suspend their work stoppage for 15 days and return to the negotiating table. A union spokesman said that workers had not received any official notification so the strike will continue for now. Workers have been striking for a nearly a week, halting shipments from the port system that typically ships 80% of the country’s total grain output.

Handel defeats Ossoff in Georgia special election... Final results for the House seat vacated by Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price saw Karen Handel (R) defeating Jon Ossoff (D), with Handel receiving 51.9% of the votes to 48.1% for Ossoff. The most expensive House race in history was a toss-up coming into election day, although most polls showed a slight lead for Ossoff. Democrats said the race was a referendum on President Donald Trump and pulled out all the stops, but still fell short. Elsewhere, Republican Ralph Norman beat Democrat Archie Parnell in the race for Budget Director Mick Mulvaney’s South Carolina House seat — but by a much closer than expected 3.2%.

President visits Cedar Rapids, Iowa today... He will view and talk about precision agriculture and other farm tech during a visit to Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where he will announce a commitment to include rural broadband development in his promised infrastructure package. USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross will join the president to highlight the need to expand rural broadband to give farmers access to new tools and to reiterate his “commitment to agriculture and rural America,” said Ray Starling, special assistant to the president for agriculture, trade and food assistance. U.S. Ambassador to China Terry Branstad, the former longtime Iowa governor, and Iowa Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey, Perdue’s likely pick for a key USDA undersecretary post, will also be on hand.

Iowa newspaper focuses on declining Mexico imports of U.S. farm products... The Des Moines Register’s editorial board argues that Trump’s anti-Mexico rhetoric has hurt sales of Iowa farm and agricultural products south of the border. “Perhaps the drop will be short-lived, as currencies fluctuate and other economic factors change,” the board wrote. “But Mexican officials are busy shopping for food suppliers in other countries. Uncertainty about NAFTA and future U.S. trade policies has encouraged our third-largest customer for farm goods to cultivate new partnerships. And they’re making progress.” Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross could comment on this topic during his appearance with Trump today in Cedar Rapids.

Trade policy issues focus in and outside Washington… USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue hosted his counterparts from Canada and Mexico yesterday in Savannah, Ga., where the three officials noted the importance of keeping trade open. Next week, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative holds three days of hearings on the 23-year-old agreement to prepare for the start of renegotiations as early as August. Meanwhile, U.S. Trade Rep Robert Lighthizer appears today before a congressional panel on the Trump trade policy agenda.

Soybean planting on hold as Indian farmers wait for monsoon to arrive... India’s monsoon has been slow to arrive in key growing states like Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, delaying soybean planting, reports the Solvent Extractors Association of India. Typically, monsoon showers cover most parts of Madhya Pradesh by mid-June, but this year rains have yet to arrive.

Tyson takes steps to improve animal welfare... In yet another sign than consumers’ concerns about animal welfare are impacting the industry, Tyson Foods Inc. announced it will launch a new animal well-being initiative as well as a pilot project to test using gas rather than electricity to stun chickens before they are killed as a possibly more humane solution. The company also announced a new video monitoring system that will track how live chickens are being handled. Tyson is also deploying animal well-being specialists across all of its beef, pork and poultry operations.

Cattle futures trading well below cash market... Traders have extended futures’ discount to last week’s cash trade that averaged around $130, signaling traders’ lower bias toward this week’s action. But with futures trading double-digit below last week’s average cash price, traders have likely overdone it to the downside. Plus, some live cattle futures contracts dipped into oversold territory yesterday, according to the nine-day Relative Strength Index.

Pork prices on the rise... The pork cutout value surged $2.66 yesterday on solid movement of 326.30 loads. The cutout value is now within a $1.70 of the psychologically significant $100.00 per cwt. level. Recent gains signal some buying for July Fourth and BLT season is likely underway.

Overnight demand news... Egypt tendered to buy at least 30,000 MT of soyoil. Jordan canceled its tender to buy 100,000 MT of milling wheat after receiving just one offer. Japan received no offers for feed-quality wheat or barley in its simultaneous buy and sell auction. Bangladesh tendered to import 50,000 MT of wheat.

Today’s reports:

8:00 a.m., Cost-of- Production Forecasts -- ERS
9:30 a.m., Weekly Ethanol Production -- EIA
2:00 p.m., Broiler Hatchery -- NASS

U.S. Beef Industry Stands to Gain Global Market Share

Thu, 12 Nov 2020 04:37:56 GMT

The U.S. beef industry stands to benefit from a variety of situations that could curb beef shipments in Australia, India and Brazil. In a recent report in the Cow Calf Corner newsletter, Oklahoma State University Extension Livestock Marketing Specialist Derrell Peel pointed out that 71% of total beef exports come from (in order): India, Brazil, Australia, the U.S. and New Zealand.

India is working to ban bovine slaughter. Brazil has been hit by by multiple bribery scandals involving its meat sector. And Australia is still working to rebuild drought-depleted supplies.

“The U.S. is in a unique temporary position to increase global market share in major export markets given the disruptions and uncertainty among other major beef exporters. The long anticipated opening of China to U.S. beef will provide an opportunity for U.S. beef exports to grow significantly over time,” according to Peel.

Mine, all mine!

Sun, 08 Nov 2020 17:25:57 GMT

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