Carcass Quality

Liver Abscesses in Beef-on-Dairy Cattle are Costing Packers Big Money

Mon, 22 Apr 2024 14:54:48 GMT

The beef-on-dairy phenomenon has seen explosive growth, especially as dairy producers look to diversify their operations and capitalize on high beef prices. However, no rose grows without a few thorns. And the thorn in the side of this new sector of the dairy industry has been the prolific amount of liver abscesses found in these crossbred cattle.

For dairy producers, this common health issue amongst beef-on-dairy animals does not necessarily have a big impact on their bottom line. But according to Dr. Blake Foraker, an assistant professor and meat scientist at Washington State University, this growing problem is costing packers two main things – time and money.

Time

“Liver abscesses are a big nuisance for packers because it really slows them down,” Foraker says. “In our beef-on-dairy population, we’re seeing liver abscess prevalence in 50% or more of animals. And this is holding up the production line.”

Carcasses with liver abscesses must have the organ removed manually by workers. Additionally, it must be inspected to see if the abscess has adhered to any other surrounding tissues. In turn, the extra time needed for the removal of tissue and further inspections adds up, slowing down the production line and potentially reducing the number of animals that can be processed through the facility each day.

“Time is of high importance to these packing plants,” Foraker says. “And liver abscesses, especially the severe cases, can cause a lot of rail-outs and cost packers a lot of additional time. So, this issue is something that they would really like to have resolved.”

Money

With the number of native beef animals in limited supply due to ongoing pressure with persistent drought, dairy farmers have been able to help keep meat cases full with the help of these beef-on-dairy cross animals. And while the meat from these cross animals is similar, and in some cases, more valuable than conventional beef, liver abscesses have been tainting one of the most valuable cuts of meat – the skirt steak.

“What will happen is a liver abscess will become so severe that the outside skirt muscle will adhere to the liver. In 2023, that skirt steak muscle was listed as the second most valuable cut of meat on a per-pound basis, coming in behind the tenderloin. So if packers have to cut this portion of meat out, then they are throwing away a high-dollar product,” Foraker says.

According to the beef-on-dairy specialist, dairy producers may only notice a small dock in price on the final hanging weight for their beef-on-dairy animal that had a liver abscess. However, the packers are seeing a much larger loss if additional meat needs to be trimmed.

“The outside skirt muscle, even though it only comprises about five pounds of a carcass, is worth around $12 a pound. If we have to remove that muscle because it’s adhered to the liver because of a liver abscess, then that’s about $60 per animal, which is rather significant,” Foraker says. “Now if you’re paid on a carcass weight basis, that’s only $14 to you for losing five pounds because this trimming has to occur before the pay scale at the packing point. But if you’re a packer, you’ve just lost $45 because there is now no longer an outside skirt steak from that carcass.”

According to Michigan State Extension Beef Specialist, Jerad Jaborek, livers condemned at slaughter represent an annual loss to the U.S. beef industry of more than $60 million. And that does not take into account the approximately 5-15% ding to average daily gain, and the 9.7% reduction in feed efficiency they also actuate.

“Packers are working to identify producers that are doing a good job at minimizing the prevalence of liver abscesses in their beef-on-dairy animals,” Foraker says. “Once those producers are identified, the packers are more likely to want to do business with them over a producer who is known to supply animals with this issue. So this liver abscess problem is something dairy producers certainly need to keep their eye on.”

For more on Beef-on-Dairy, read:

Sexten: Lessons From the Dairy Industry

Tue, 27 Feb 2024 13:57:52 GMT

You will be hard pressed to find a current beef publication that doesn’t reference beef on dairy calves somewhere in the copy as the number of dairy cows bred to elite beef producing bulls continues to grow. The ability to produce a steady and sufficient supply of elite dairy replacement heifers has been enabled by two technologies widely adopted in the dairy industry: genomic testing and sexed semen. The widescale use of these technologies offers a window into the future of the beef production system.

A recent article₁ in Frontiers from George Wiggans and Jose Carrillo at the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding reviewed the impact of genomic testing in dairy cattle genetic improvement. This review and the associated changes in the dairy production model highlight the ability to change selection focus when we expand beyond simply using bulls as the source of genetic improvement.

Since 2011, the number of dairy cows evaluated using genetic testing has doubled every five years to exceed one million annually. Don’t miss that the use of genetic testing is doubling in COWS. Growth in the use among sires is flat, as less than 1% of sires used in dairy matings are not genetically tested. Since genetic testing for dairy sires is table stakes, this has enabled the reduction in the sire generation interval to the point where genetic improvement is occurring at the biological limit.

Knowing the individual genetic merit of the cow herd enables the strategic mating of tested cows to either produce dairy replacements or be mated to beef sires. With the advancement of sexed semen further specialization is enabled, as the by-product of targeted matings is virtually eliminated.

Beef producers are now competing with a dairy whose by-product is feeder calves. The characteristics of this by-product address three key challenges of the native beef supply chain: eliminating seasonality of supply, easily sourced in load lots and uniform management despite individual sorting early in life. While there is much attention to beef from dairy cows, the percentage of the beef supply chain originating from dairies hasn’t changed nearly as much as the genetic potential of the cattle themselves.

Imagine a production system where sire genetic improvement is occurring at the biological limit coupled with a cow herd that that turns over every four years. Despite dairy cows being productive for about half as long as a beef cow, genetic testing in dairy herds exceeds that of beef herds. The dairy model has moved their genetic focus from selecting replacements from a system to creating the replacements needed for their system.

The Net Merit score is an index used in the dairy industry to implement genetic selection of replacements. How would you weight the following areas if designing the net merit index: milk yield, milk components, health, longevity, reproduction, efficiency, and physical characteristics?

The article from the Council on Dairy Cattle breeding1 outlined the weighting of the current net merit index: milk components (48.3%), longevity (20.8%), efficiency (13.2%), reproduction (9.6%), health (4%), physical characteristics of feet and udder (3.8%) and finally milk yield (0.3%). Anyone else surprised the lowest category of emphasis is milk yield? Perhaps dairies have reached the limit on milk yield. A similar case could be made for weaning weight and milk production in the beef herd where we are limited more by the environment than genetic potential for productivity.

The emphasis on milk components suggests making progress enhancing the composition of milk is more important than total yield. From a beef production perspective carcass merit would be similar to component improvement. There are few beef selection indexes where the composition of carcass gain is more important than the gain itself. Cattle feeders recently proved with cheap feed and days on feed beef carcasses weights can be increased to record levels, perhaps it’s time to change focus to ribeye area and marbling.

The ability to select for longevity, efficiency, and reproduction is not limited to dairy cows. Beef producers have genomic tools available today to make genetic progress in all these areas, yet few operations have adopted genomic testing for any traits. In an industry where feed costs make up the greatest percentage of operating costs and reproduction is the most important production trait; we should not continue to ignore the tools available to make progress in these areas. Beef producers can select replacements designed for our production systems before ever turning out a bull.

Some suggest the dairy model doesn’t apply to beef systems due to the diverse environment. Every cow herd has environmental constraints that limit stocking rate comparable to the limited number of parlor spots in a dairy. If you are trying to optimize the production of beef per acre is a replacement selection model where keeping the biggest and oldest heifer calves with little knowledge of their genetic merit or variation within those females the best way to optimize the land resource?

(Farm Journal)

USDA Launches Remote Beef Grading Pilot Project

Wed, 24 Jan 2024 15:22:01 GMT

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced a pilot project on Friday that will allow more cattlemen and meat processors to utilize USDA carcass quality grades.

The Remote Grading Pilot for Beef, developed by USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), matches simple technology with robust data management and program oversight to allow a USDA grader to assess beef carcass characteristics and assign the official quality grade from a remote location, reducing costs and location as barriers to participation in voluntary grading services.

Secretary Vilsack announced the new pilot during a panelist discussion with livestock producers and independent meat processing business owners in conjunction with the National Western Stock Show in Denver, Colo.

“On average, a beef carcass that grades as USDA Prime is valued at hundreds of dollars more than an ungraded carcass, but costs for this voluntary USDA service often prevents smaller scale processors and the farmers and ranchers they serve from using this valuable marketing tool,” Secretary Vilsack said. “This remote grading pilot opens the door for additional packers and processors to receive grading and certification services allowing them to access new, better, and more diverse marketing opportunities.”

Cattle groups immediately voiced their support of the project. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and the U.S. Cattlemen’s Association issued statements welcoming the project they believe will lead to better marketing opportunities for more cattlemen.

“The USDA quality grades of prime, choice, and select are instantly recognized by consumers and an important way for cattle producers to be rewarded for raising high-quality beef,” said NCBA Vice President of Government Affairs Ethan Lane. “NCBA is glad that USDA is launching this Remote Grading Pilot Program and expanding opportunities for meat grading to occur in smaller, local processing facilities. This will increase marketing opportunities for cattle producers and help them capture more value from their product.”

USCA Independent Beef Processing Chairman Patrick Robinette said, “Before today’s announcement, it was simply unaffordable for an independent producer or processor to participate in providing quality-graded beef to the marketplace. On my operation, the cost would have averaged $410 per head to receive grading services, which I would have never recouped.”

“The pilot program would reduce that cost to $4.56 per head.” Robinette continued. “Now, the producers I serve will be able to access value-added programs that were previously unavailable to them. With the free ribeye grid device that will be provided to participating processing facilities, independent producers and processors can qualify for programs like Certified Angus Beef.”

In addition to the pilot, Secretary Vilsack highlighted USDA programs in the West that create economic prosperity for farms, ranches and rural communities by supporting on-farm conservation, bolstering new markets, creating jobs, and keeping farming and ranching viable for the next generation. Today’s announcement builds on USDA’s comprehensive approach to increase competition in agricultural markets, create a fairer playing field for small- and mid-size farmers and ranchers, and provide producers more options to market their products.

Consumers as well as buyers and sellers of beef rely on USDA quality grades, including Prime, Choice, and Select, as a clear and standardized way to indicate quality. Everyone involved in the beef supply chain, from cattle producers to beef consumers, benefit from the greater efficiency permitted by the application of official U.S. grade standards.

USDA offers these services to packers and processors on a user-fee basis. While over 90% of America’s fed beef supply is officially graded by USDA, most users are large beef packing operations. USDA’s meat grading and certification services are significantly underutilized by small, independent processors, in large part due to the expense of paying for a highly trained USDA grader to travel to their facility to perform service in-person for a relatively small number of cattle that may not require a full day of the graders’ work. Experience with remote grading so far has shown it dramatically reduces travel-related expenses, which makes the service more accessible to smaller processors.

In this pilot, trained plant employees capture specific images of the live animal and beef carcass. These images are submitted electronically to a USDA grader already stationed elsewhere in the U.S., likely located in another rural community, who reviews the images and accompanying plant records and product data, assigns the USDA Quality Grade and applicable carcass certification programs, and communicates the official grade back to the plant to be applied to the carcass. Plants can then use this information in their retail marketing and transmit carcass performance information back to producers.

The pilot will build on lessons-learned during AMS’ feasibility study of a “remote grading” process conducted during the second half of 2023. AMS will expand its testing by engaging a larger and more diverse number of beef packers to participate in the development of this procedure. Through the pilot, AMS will gather additional information on actual cost and the level of in-person surveillance needed to ensure program consistency and integrity to formalize this innovative service option as part of the USDA Quality Grading Service.

The Remote Grading Pilot for Beef is limited to domestic beef slaughter facilities operating under federal inspection and producing product that meets the eligibility criteria for the USDA grading program.

For more information about the Remote Grading Pilot for Beef, visit www.ams.usda.gov/remote-beef-grading or email AskLP@usda.gov .

USDA will host a webinar Thursday, Jan. 25 at 3:00 PM Eastern Time to provide additional information about the program. To register, visit the signup webpage . A recording will be made available.

2022 National Beef Quality Audit Shows Efficiency Improvements

Tue, 16 May 2023 16:45:31 GMT

Since 1991, the Beef Checkoff-funded National Beef Quality Audit (NBQA) has delivered a set of guideposts and measurements for cattle producers and other stakeholders to help determine quality conformance of the U.S. beef supply. Results from the 2022 NBQA indicate that the beef cattle industry is producing a high-quality product that consumers want more efficiently and the industry’s primary focus across the supply chain remains food safety.

“The NBQA is an important tool for the industry to identify where improvements are being made and where there are opportunities to capture more value,” said Josh White, senior executive director of producer education and sustainability at NCBA. “The good news is, overall, the beef industry is providing a quality product to consumers that they enjoy.”

Early NBQAs focused on the physical attributes of beef such as marbling, external fat, carcass weight and carcass blemishes. These cattle industry concerns have evolved to include food safety, sustainability, animal well-being and the growing disconnect between producers and consumers. As a result, over the past 30 years, NBQA researchers have made significant changes to the research, leading to an increasingly meaningful set of results.

Based on individual interviews with stakeholders from across the cattle industry as well as in-plant research, key findings for fed cattle from the 2022 NBQA include:

• Market segments no longer consider food safety as a purchasing criterion, but an expectation.

• When comparing 2016 and 2022 NBQAs, the largest improvement was overall increased efficiency across the beef supply chain.

• Market sectors indicated that their companies strive to increase their sustainability, and work with the entire beef supply chain to do so.

• The entire industry felt the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, nonetheless, beef proved to be a choice of consumers, and the industry persevered to provide products.

• Due to pandemic pressures, more cattle over 30 months of age were harvested.

• The beef industry’s image improved within fed cattle market sectors.

• Foreign materials continue to present a problem, but the industry is making strides to decrease incidence.

• There was an increase in usage of electronic identification (EID).

• There was an increase in the frequency of Prime and Choice quality grades, while Select decreased drastically.

• While the industry is improving the quality of beef being produced, that quality is being accompanied by an increase in carcass weight and fat thickness, as well as large increases in percentages of Yield Grade 4 and 5 carcasses.

The NBQA, conducted approximately every five years, provides an understanding of what quality means to the various industry sectors, and the value of those quality attributes. This research helps the industry make modifications necessary to increase the value of its products. The efforts of the findings from the 2022 NBQA serve to improve quality, minimize economic loss, and aid in advancements in producer education for the U.S. beef industry. For more information about the 2022 National Beef Quality Audit, visit www.bqa.org.