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Emphasizing Nutrition in Medical Education is Welcome and Overdue, Meat Institute Says

Thu, 28 Aug 2025 14:30:20 GMT

The Meat Institute applauded the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Education’s announcement urging leading medical education organizations to provide more comprehensive nutrition education and training.

“Americans trust their doctors for advice, including advice on nutrition,” Meat Institute President and CEO Julie Anna Potts said in a release. “This initiative should make nutrition and medical advice synonymous for the well-being of the patient and the consumer.”

Potts believes this initiative can help counter confusing and misleading information about nutrition, including the vital role of meat and poultry in health dietary patterns.

“Meat and poultry products provide consumers with a convenient, direct and balanced dietary source of all essential amino acids,” the Meat Institute said earlier this year. “Per serving, meat, poultry and fish provide more protein than dairy, eggs, legumes, cereals, vegetables or nuts. Protein is critical for developing, maintaining and repairing strong muscles; is vital for growth and brain development in children; and is essential to prevent muscle loss during aging.”

In February, Meat Institute President Vice President of Regulatory and Scientific Affairs Susan Backus said a modified Healthy U.S.-Style Dietary Pattern risks the potential for unintended consequences for nutrient and energy intakes.

“Americans need to improve their eating patterns to promote health,” Backus pointed out. “Considering dietary choices based on taste and cultural preferences, health and economic status, and food availability will be key to improving the dietary habits of Americans. A recommendation to reduce, limit or avoid nutrient dense products like meat and poultry will have significant unintended nutritional consequences across all life stages.”

Potts said improving nutrition education for medical professionals is “welcome, commonsense and overdue.”

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

Thu, 10 Jul 2025 16:41:22 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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OSU Receives $250M Investment to Build World-Class Veterinary Teaching Hospital

Mon, 02 Jun 2025 19:20:21 GMT

Veterinarians are essential, from rural ranches to urban centers, fueling economic growth and ensuring the safety of our food supply and public health. Last week, Oklahoma State University received $250-million state funding appropriation to support the construction of a new, state-of-the-art veterinary teaching hospital.

The current veterinary hospital was identified as a key concern when the OSU College of Veterinary Medicine was placed on probationary accreditation in the fall of 2024. The American Veterinary Medical Association has since returned the college to full accreditation status emphasizing that continued compliance is tied to facility upgrades.

“We have a building and equipment that is not reflective of the quality of people we have here,” says Rosslyn Biggs, DVM, OSU assistant clinical professor and director of the Center for Rural Veterinary Medicine.

Biggs says the program’s primary goal is to create practice-ready veterinarians, with a particular focus on mixed and large animal veterinary medicine.

She compares students trained in the current hospital to high-quality livestock coming off a used cattle trailer. “It’s not what the trailer looks like, it’s what stepped out of the trailer that matters, right? It was the product that we were producing.”

She explains that while the building is outdated and past its useful life, the quality of educational output remains exceptional. Just like a trailer’s appearance doesn’t define its value; the hospital’s old infrastructure doesn’t diminish the quality of veterinarians OSU produces or the service it provides. She further elaborates that just as a trailer might need new floors and lights, the hospital needs updates to match the quality of its faculty, staff and students.

“This investment is program-changing,” Biggs says. “It’s program-changing, not only for our students and faculty and staff, but also for animal owners across the state, particularly our farmers and ranchers in rural areas that need the support to do what they do — feed and clothe the world.”

This investment, the largest state appropriation in university history, combined with $78 million allocated in 2023, marks a significant step in advancing the future of veterinary education, food security and public health in Oklahoma.

“We have a great foundation, but this investment is positioning us to be where we should be,” Biggs adds. “We have a priority to serve rural areas, to serve the animal owners there, and help support the veterinarians and work with them, hand in hand.”

The new hospital will feature modern equipment and technologies essential for both large and small animal care, including advanced imaging tools (CT, MRI, radiography and ultrasound), a linear accelerator for oncology treatments and an aqua cow float tank.

The new 255,000-sq.-ft. facility will replace the existing 145,376-sq.-ft. veterinary hospital, which was built to serve 60 students but now supports more than 150. With this expansion, OSU will address one of the most urgent infrastructure needs in its veterinary program while expanding its ability to train the next generation of veterinarians.

Biggs summarizes the investment will allow OSU to upgrade its infrastructure, technology and diagnostic capabilities.

“The goal is to create a facility that meets modern standards and can serve the state and region for decades,” she says.

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Unlocking Success with Cow Herd Health Metrics: A Scorecard Approach

Tue, 27 May 2025 17:44:23 GMT

Tracking performance and evaluating herd success is a year-round process. Similar to tracking athletes, consider developing a scorecard to monitor your herd. Understanding how your herd is performing throughout the year is important when considering management, nutrition and culling decisions.

The first scorecard suggested was post-calving ; the next one to consider is herd health metrics. Illness and death loss in a cow herd are situations cattle producers must routinely address.

To help producers know where their herd health metrics should be, experts at Kansas State University’s Beef Cattle Institute offered some guidelines during a recent “Cattle Chat” podcast .

“The first metric in cow-calf operations that I look at is the first treatment response percentage,” says Brian Lubbers, K-State veterinarian.

He recommended producers aim for an 85% to 90% treatment success rate when treating one of the most common illnesses: Bovine Respiratory Disease, also referred to as BRD. He says that metric can be deceiving.

“Producers who aggressively treat BRD cases are likely treating some animals that didn’t have BRD, and that leads to a high spontaneous recovery rate,” Lubbers says. “If you are seeing a 100% first treatment success rate, you may be treating some animals who didn’t need the treatment. Very high treatment response rates should at least trigger a conversation with your veterinarian about case definitions.”

K-State veterinarian Bob Larson says another metric that producers should be aware of is the percentage of death loss in the calves. During the first year of life, there are three key times when calves are more susceptible to death: at birth, between birth and three weeks of age, and from about one month to weaning, he says.

For each of these periods, producers can expect a 1% to 2% loss, Larson explains, however, that percentage will vary from year to year.

“In the first year of life, difficult births, scours and pneumonia are some of the reasons that calves get seriously ill and sometimes die,” Larson says.

K-State beef nutritionist Phillip Lancaster says what he monitors in the herd is the body condition of the cows.

“If the cows are receiving good nutrition and maintaining their body condition, that is an indicator of the overall health of the herd,” Lancaster says.

Along with those metrics, Logan Thompson, K-State beef cattle extension sustainable grazing specialist, recommends producers treat the herd against parasites as part of an overall wellness program.

“Treating the herd against parasites is an easy win from a production efficiency and cattle longevity standpoint, and it increases the rate of passage of grass through the rumen,” Thompson says. “It is a hard metric to measure, but in some herds, cattle that are treated for parasites have an increased efficiency between 20[%] to 30%.”

In summary, the key takeaways from the podcast are:

Health metrics are multifaceted and require careful tracking.
Different perspectives (veterinary, nutritional, sustainability) offer comprehensive insights.
Metrics should be specific, measurable and contextualized.
Collaboration with veterinarians is crucial for effective health management.

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Researchers Close in on Alpha-Gal Syndrome Meat Allergy Mystery Linked to Ticks

Thu, 01 May 2025 15:49:26 GMT

Is wild-habitat disruption to blame for the increasing U.S. prevalence of Alpha-gal syndrome (AGS), a tick-borne allergy to animal meat? A University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill modeling study is helping close in on this mysterious meat allergy that is on the rise.

An assistant professor in the infectious diseases division at the UNC School of Medicine and assistant professor of epidemiology in the Gillings School of Global Public Health, Ross Boyce, is collecting information from a network of sources to strategically determine where and how to battle ticks and other insects that can change a person’s life for the worse with one bite, UNC reports.

Using a dataset of 462 AGS patients with confirmed AGS from UNC Health and models based on environmental factors, such as landcover and topography, the team assessed whether the risk of AGS is linked to habitat fragmentation often seen in open spaces and areas of low-density development in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.

What is AGS?
Bites from the lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum) or the blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis, also called deer ticks) can trigger AGS. Alpha-gal is a sugar molecule found in most mammals. After eating mammalian meat, people who become allergic to alpha-gal may experience an hours-long delay in symptoms, which include hives, swelling of lips, face, tongue or throat, stomach pain and nausea, UNC reports. It can also cause restricted breathing and death.

AGS has a particularly high incidence in the mid-Atlantic region. The number of suspected cases rose from 24 in 2009 to more than 34,000 in 2019. The only way to positively know a patient has the allergy is to test for antibodies that their bodies developed to fight the infection. Most people with AGS need to refrain from eating meat such as beef, pork, lamb, venison and rabbit.

“Reports of AGS have grown rapidly since its first report in 2009 and are likely to continue to increase as awareness of AGS and incidence of tick-borne disease more broadly increases,” the authors explain. “These increases are likely to be exacerbated by shifts in land use, resulting in more human-tick interactions throughout the southeastern U.S.”

Although clinical and laboratory diagnostics for AGS are becoming more readily available, the epidemiology of AGS, and tick-borne disease in general, apart from Lyme disease, is not well described.

AGS Risk Factors
The models identified low population density and open-space development as risk factors for AGS. Two models predicted a strong east-to-west risk gradient across the mid-Atlantic region, which largely reflects the environmental transition from mountains to coastal plains, while a third model predicted a much more uneven distribution.

“Understanding environmental risk factors associated with AGS diagnosis is a critical first step for determining at-risk populations, and here we show evidence supporting the hypothesis that AGS is associated with landcovers often correlated with the presence of Am. americanum,” the authors say.

Although the distribution of alpha-gal cases throughout the U.S. do not align exactly with the known distribution of lone star ticks, researchers say this suggests potential environmental confounders and/or ascertainment bias. However, estimating incidence and geographic case distribution is complicated by limited reporting as AGS is not generally reportable at the federal level and low healthcare provider awareness of the condition.

“AGS incidence, like all TBD (tick-borne disease), is largely driven by human behaviors that increase human-tick interactions, e.g., land use change, as opposed to tick population dynamics,” the authors wrote. “Anthropogenic land use change, such as forest fragmentation and urbanization in particular, have been linked to increased TBD risk.”

This study suggests the need for personal protection measures for individuals residing in, or entering, these at-risk areas.

These findings were published on April 23 in PLOS Climate .

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Your Veterinarian: A Critical Partner for Success

Thu, 24 Apr 2025 21:24:16 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 13:19:02 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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Renowned Scientist to Discuss Role of Livestock Production in Today’s Society

Thu, 12 Sep 2024 15:42:25 GMT

Scientist Peer Ederer, whose international company conducts research and communicates scientific evidence about the role of animals in the global food system, will be the featured speaker for the Henry C. Gardiner Global Food Systems lecture Oct. 7 at Kansas State University.

Ederer has been involved in scientific research in cooperation with leading universities around the world for more than two decades. In 2020, he formed the company GOALSciences – which stands for the Global Observatory of Accurate Livestock Sciences – to encourage accurate scientific data regarding livestock production around the world.

He is also a member of the Scientific Council of the World Farmers Organisation.

In 2022, Ederer was a driving force in developing the Dublin Declaration, a report drafted “to give voice to the many scientists around the world who research diligently, honestly and successfully in the various disciplines in order to achieve a balanced view of the future of animal agriculture.”

As of May, 1,204 scientists have signed their support for that document.

“The Dublin Declaration tried to achieve three things,” Ederer said. “First of all, as scientists, we wanted to ensure that when we talk about livestock, we are talking from all of its many perspectives; three of those perspectives are nutrition; environment and ecology; and then society and ethics.”

Each of the perspectives, he said, has many parts.

“In nutrition, you have negative impacts on health that food can have, but you also have the nourishing effects. In environment, we talk about biodiversity, water, land utilization and climate. And regarding society, we have economic, social and ethical issues.”

The other two achievements of the Dublin Declaration, Ederer said, is it asked policymakers to draw policy on the basis of scientific evidence – “not on the basis of scientists, not on what is said, Instead it is the scientific evidence that matters” – and secondly giving voice to scientists who are doing relevant work in studying livestock.

“The Dublin Declaration mobilized scientists around the world and gave them a voice,” Ederer said. “It tells them that they’re not the only one’s thinking about livestock. It gives the field (of animal research) the courage to know that there is a solid future for livestock in our societies.”

Ederer notes that establishing scientific basis for decisions regarding livestock production brings clearer understanding to arguments for reducing the consumption of meat.

“That line of thinking is being driven by arguments of health, environment and ethics,” he said.

He called arguments for eliminating red meat in a diet due to health concerns “bogus.”

“There’s just simply no scientific evidence. At the same time, we know of many health benefits, including nutrient density, protein density, bioavailability of amino acids and critical nutrients like iron, zinc, vitamin B12 and more.”

Ederer said current science also disproves a commonly held belief that livestock production – particularly cattle production – increases the presence of carbon in the environment, ultimately contributing to climate change and global warming.

“The cow does emit methane, and that methane will deteriorate after some period of time in the atmosphere,” he said. “During that time period, while the carbon molecule is in the form of methane, rather than carbon dioxide, it is more climate active. So, for that short period of time, there is an additional warming impulse.”

But cattle and other ruminant animals are also directly and indirectly involved in storing carbon in soil by feeding on grasses and other carbon sources.

“These two factors need to be squared against each other,” Ederer said. “It turns out that in many cases, the carbon sequestration effect created by ruminants is higher or at least compensates for the short period of time that methane is in the air.”

Simply, he notes, “livestock do not create a significant net addition to carbon in the environment.”

Kansas State University established the Henry C. Gardiner Global Food Systems lecture series to provide science-based education about world food issues. The series allows students, faculty, staff and Kansas citizens to interact with U.S. and international food industry leaders on topics of current interest.

The lecture series is funded by the Gardiner family of Ashland, Kan. Henry C. Gardiner, who passed away just days before the first lecture in 2015, was known as a visionary leader who dedicated his career to improving the beef industry through science and technology.

Organizers are planning a day-long conference on Oct. 7 to commemorate the 10th year of the lecture series. The conference agenda and information on how to register is available online at https://www.k-state.edu/research/global-food/events/lecture-series .

Investments Made to Strengthen Food Supply Chain, Increase Competition, and Lower Food Costs

Thu, 12 Sep 2024 15:42:18 GMT

“The Biden-Harris Administration and USDA are advancing a sustainable vision of agriculture that prioritizes the needs of hardworking producers and small businesses and keeps rural communities strong,” announced Secretary Vilsack in a USDA release. “Thanks to historic resources from President Biden’s American Rescue Plan, USDA is working to give farmers and ranchers a fairer chance to compete in the marketplace, which will increase local food options and lower costs for American families.”

The investments are part of USDA’s efforts to create a more competitive agricultural system, advance President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda, and support the Administration’s Action Plan for a Fairer, More Competitive, and More Resilient Meat and Poultry Supply Chain, which dedicates resources to expand independent processing capacity. Together these actions help to lower food costs by spurring competition and strengthening supply chains.

Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program

USDA is partnering with the New Hampshire Community Loan Fund to provide more than $83 million in grants to 24 independent processors in 15 states under the Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program (MPPEP). The funding, made available through President Biden’s American Rescue Plan, will help build new processing plants, create hundreds of jobs, give local producers and entrepreneurs better business opportunities, and give consumers more options at the grocery store. For example:

Simla Frozen Food Locker Co. LLC is receiving a $450,000 grant to build a new facility across the street from their existing facility in rural Colorado to expand their processing capacity. The company processes, beef, hogs, chicken, turkeys, lamb, goats, and wild game. This project will allow the family-run business to receive USDA inspection and sell locally-produced proteins into wholesale markets such as restaurants and grocery stores. The company expects to serve 160 additional producers and create four full-time jobs through this project.

McRez Packing International LLC is receiving a $390,000 grant to refurbish a previously mothballed industrial facility in New York to expand processing capacity. The company is a new small processor of cattle, hogs, chicken, turkey, sheep, and goats. Their target customers are local, underserved farmers and dairy and beef producers. The project is expected to serve up to 2,500 new producers and create 110 full-time jobs.

North State Processing LLC is receiving a $10 million grant to build a new facility in Hamlet, N.C., to process cattle, ostrich, emu, water buffalo and alpaca. A new processing company created by local and experienced North Carolina producers, the company anticipates serving 37 producers and creating 54 full-time jobs through this project.

NF Packing Inc. is receiving a $1.4 million grant to build and equip a new processing facility for its start-up business in Walworth County, Wis. The company anticipates serving 75 producers and creating 20 full-time jobs as a result of this project.

USDA’s Rural Development has provided 59 awards totaling over $291.4 million through MPPEP to expand processing capacity and strengthen the food supply chain. MPPEP is funded by President Biden’s American Rescue Plan.

Local Meat Capacity Grant Program

USDA is awarding $26.9 million to 33 projects in 23 states through the Local Meat Capacity (Local MCap) grant program to expand processing within the meat and poultry industry. This announcement builds on the first round of $9.5 million awarded to 42 projects announced in March 2024.

This second set of awards through Local MCap is for both Equipment Only and Processing Expansion project types. Simplified equipment only projects fund projects from $10,000 to $250,000 to purchase processing equipment such as meat grinders, stuffers, and smokers. Processing expansion projects are eligible to receive between $100,000 and $5 million to increase processing or rendering capacity through activities such as facility upgrades, equipment purchases, and training.

White Oak Pastures in Bluffton, Ga., is a family-owned meat company that will use a Local Meat Capacity grant to support the cost of converting its poultry processing facility into a dual use facility that can also process lambs, goats, and hogs. It is anticipated this will expand their livestock processing capacity by 30%.

Nordik Meats is a small, independently owned meat processing facility in Southwest Wisconsin. The business will use a Local Meat Capacity grant to purchase a grinder, a meatball maker, and packaging equipment to expand processing capacity and serve an additional 50 local producers. The equipment will provide local producers with the ability to create new value-added products for local consumers, maximize the value of their animals, utilize byproducts, and increase animal harvest. Nordik Meats will increase the number of livestock processed annually by 100% over two years, implement new processing technologies, train 12 existing staff, hire four new employees, and benefit 350 local small family farms.

Seven Hills Food Co. in Lynchburg, Va., is a full-service meat packaging company and a wholesaler of premium meat products sourced from small local family farms. The company will use a Local Meat Capacity grant to make plant enhancements to address bottlenecks currently hindering plant capacity while adding rendering capacity, new value-added products, and a farmer liaison for coordinating expanded production. This will support producers and meat companies in achieving the necessary scale, product quality, and efficiencies to access institutional and wholesale accounts.

In April 2023, USDA announced up to $75 million available for Local MCap to fund innovative projects designed to build resilience in the meat and poultry supply chain by providing producers with more local processing options and strengthening their market potential. This grant program is targeted to support meat and poultry processors with smaller-scale projects, with a goal to increase processing availability and variety for local and regional livestock producers. The program is administered by the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) and is authorized by the American Rescue Plan.

To date, the Biden-Harris Administration has invested a total of over $700 million in 48 states and Puerto Rico for projects that help to expand the nation’s independent meat and poultry processing capacity.

Hair Shedding Can Affect Cattle's Heat Tolerance As Well As Profitability

Thu, 12 Sep 2024 15:42:14 GMT

Responsible beef breeding requires matching cattle genetics to the production environment. This is necessary for at least three reasons: profitability, animal well-being, and improved environmental impact. Cattle that are well-suited to their environment are more profitable. Not only are well-adapted cattle more productive, but they also require fewer inputs and interventions. It is estimated that cattle suffering from fescue toxicosis, and heat stress alone cost the beef industry over a billion dollars a year, according to research by MU Extension.

One way to manage animals for heat tolerance is looking at hair shedding.

Early summer hair shedding is a proven trait of economic relevance for producers in areas of increased heat and humidity and those grazing endophyte-infected (hot) fescue. Animals who shed their winter hair coat sooner are less likely to be exposed to heat stress in the summer. These animals are also more likely to wean heavier calves and remain productive in a herd, for longer. More information on hair shedding and heat tolerance can be found in MU Extension publication G2014, Hair Shedding Scores: A Tool to Select Heat Tolerant Cattle guide sheet.

More recently, a relationship between hair shedding scores and length of daylight has been found. Hair shedding may serve as an indication of an animal’s ability to sense and respond to their environment. Such a relationship would make hair shedding useful for producers outside the southern U.S.

Cattle shed from head to tail, top to bottom, with some variation. Numbers represent areas where hair would be expected to shed for a given score.

(MU Extension)

When is the best time to score my animals?

The time to evaluate cattle for hair shedding will vary by geographical location and environmental conditions. Animals should be scored when the most variation exists within the herd. There should be a few animals who receive a score of 1, a few who score a 5, and a majority receiving a hair shedding score of 3. Cattle begin shedding their winter coat in late spring through the summer. For many locations, mid-May has been identified as an ideal hair shedding evaluation period. The hotter and more humid the climate the earlier in the spring scores should be collected.

How often do I score my animals?

It is recommended that hair shedding scores be obtained on the whole herd once a year. While additional data is never detrimental, based on estimates of the heritability (h2 = 0.35 to 0.42) and repeatability (r = 0.44) of hair shedding, at least three years of data collection on an animal is ideal for genetic evaluation purposes.

How does age affect hair shedding?

Yearlings and first calf heifers tend to have higher hair shedding scores compared to older, established cows. This does not necessarily mean that younger animals should be culled right away. Younger cows are, by default, the most nutritionally stressed as they are growing/raising a calf while also growing themselves. Keeping that in mind, hair shedding scores can be used to rank and select females within an age group, but likely shouldn’t be used across the whole herd.

Should I score my bulls?

Providing half of the genetic potential to the next generation, obtaining a hair shedding score on bulls is of equal importance. For seedstock breeders, this serves as an act of customer service for potential buyers as well as knowledge for your breeding program. For commercial producers, it is an opportunity to make informed purchasing and breeding decisions. Please note that males tend to start shedding approximately two weeks before females.

What if I do not graze endophyte-infected fescue?

The genetic correlation of hair shedding while cattle are or are not grazing hot fescue is 0.93. Furthermore, when treated as two different traits, the estimated breeding value (EBV) for hair shedding either on or off fescue is 0.99. Therefore, hair shedding on or off endophyte-infected fescue can be treated as the same trait.

What if I do not live in the Southeastern U.S.?

Due to its association with heat tolerance and fescue toxicosis, hair shedding has been identified as a regional trait of interest. The genetic relationship between hair shedding score and daylight may allow these scores to indicate an animal’s ability to adapt to changes in their environment. This would make hair shedding a globally applicable selection criterion.

What if I do not have a hair shed EPD to use?

Hair shedding is a moderately heritable trait (h2 = 0.35 to 0.42). This means that incorporating a hair shedding score into culling and replacement heifer selection decisions will result in genetic change over time.

This information was compiled from University of Missouri Extension. Original authors include Jamie Courter, State Beef Genetics Extension Specialist, Jared Decker, Associate Professor, Animal Sciences and Jordan Thomas, Assistant Professor, Animal Sciences.

For more information on hair shedding visit MU Extension.

Is It Time To Wean?

Wed, 07 Aug 2024 22:22:04 GMT

As of Aug. 1, 2024, the Mesonet Oklahoma Drought indicates over 69% of Oklahoma is abnormally dry. Of that percentage over 25% of our state is rated in moderate to severe drought. One potential management solution to dwindling forage resources in cow-calf operations is weaning calves.

The average age of beef calves weaned in the United States is a little over 7 months of age. While calves can be weaned as early as 60 days of age, this comes with quite a bit of added management. Simply weaning calves one to two months early is a cost effective management strategy that saves body condition score (BCS) and allows thinners cows (falling below BCS of 4) to more easily recapture flesh before having their next calf. When the nutritional demands of lactation are removed by weaning there is significant reduction (15 – 20%) in the dietary energy needed by cows. Saving BCS on cows now comes with the potential benefit of improved cow productivity in the years that follow. Weaning earlier than normal is most beneficial in years when pasture forage is inadequate to support herd nutritional requirements. From the standpoint of range management, it reduces the risk of overgrazing and accordingly adds to the long-term health of the grazing system.

If you plan to wean earlier than normal to alleviate stress on cows and pastures, keep the following management practices in mind:

• The first two weeks post weaning are a critical time for calves to overcome weaning stress, maintain health and become nutritionally independent by learning to consume feed.

• Lower the risk of health problems and promote calf growth by giving proper vaccinations prior to weaning. Castrate and dehorn calves when giving pre-weaning vaccinations. This permits calves to deal with the stress of these management practices while still nursing.

• Get calves accustomed to a feed bunk and water trough as quickly as possible (if not prior to weaning). Creep feeding calves for a few weeks prior to weaning will ease the transition and get calves accustomed to concentrate feed. Maintain access to good quality, clean water at all times.

• Fence line wean if possible. This eliminates stress by permitting calves to remain in the same pasture where they are familiar with feed, water, shade, etc.

• The feed ration is critical because feed intake is initially low after weaning. It needs to be highly palatable, nutrient dense, dust free and include a complete vitamin and mineral supplement.

• After calves are over the stress of weaning they should begin to consume approximately 3% of their body weight in high quality feed each day. Feed intake variation or depressed appetite can indicate health problems.

• Shade is important if weaning during summer heat.

Oregon Ranchers Are Continuing to Battle Grueling Wildfires as Financial Losses Mount

Wed, 07 Aug 2024 18:10:08 GMT

As of Friday, more than 1.1 million acres has burned in Oregon. Lightning continues to spark new fires and with the flames still not under control, it will go down as one of the most devastating wildfire fires in the state’s history.

Clint Sexson ranches in eastern Oregon. He says between cattle lost and grazing areas burned, it’s been a grueling summer. The exact livestock losses are unknown at this time.

“I don’t even want to speculate,” Sexson says. “I mean, the one that’s pretty public is that the 300 head in the Durkee Fire that were lost,” Sexson says. “I know one producer who has lost probably hundreds.”

That particular fire, the Durkee Fire, has been a monster. At 86% contained, it’s already scorched 295,000 acres.

Plenty of Fuel for Fires

Just this week, lightning sparked more fires. Sexson says the reason the fires have been so bad is the amount of grass available to fuel the fires.

“There’s more fuel on the ground,” Sexson says. “Some of these areas have burned before. There hasn’t necessarily been a clean up after a burn, so there’s just a lot of fuel.”

A Devastating Loss of Grass to Graze

The livestock losses are heartbreaking and severe, but the amount of grass burned is causing concern in the state. As the fires rage, the losses of valuable grazing ground are mounting, which impacts livestock producers across the state.

“This part of the world is different,” Sexson says. “A lot of people don’t feed cows, but maybe 30, 60 days a year. The rest of the year, we are grazing cattle. It’s a budgetary thing and a management thing that they will have to work through. Emotionally, it’s tough on those people, especially those generational ranches.”

Sexson was fortunate. On July 20, as the fires raged and closed in on his land, he was able to get cattle out thanks to fellow ranchers who showed up with trucks and trailers.

“I work for Select Sires and every one of those trucks that showed up, they were all customers,” he says, as his voice cracks and tears fill his eyes. “We got the cattle out and right back to a customer’s feedlot. They were ready for them, and we were pretty fortunate.”

An Emotional Sale of Support

That emotion was felt late last week as Superior Livestock Auction sold special benefit lots as part of their video sale in Winnemucca, Nev. This was an example of ranchers helping ranchers. That money went to the Oregon Fire Relief Fund, which will help those producers in need.

“These are primarily purebred breeders who have made donations in sale credit or semen credit,” Sexson says. “They’re not directly focused on their customers alone. They’re just focused on the general beef industry in Oregon and the devastation some of these people are dealing with. I know two or three people who had their entire ranches burned by the fires. They may not have lost a cow, but it burnt all their private grazing ground.”

The special sale was a touching gesture, as the ranching community comes together at a time of need and the fires continue to burn. Emotions are high, losses are mounting and cattle producers impacted are feeling the financial pain.

Cargill Invests $1 Million in Research on Methane Reduction in Cattle

Fri, 19 Jul 2024 13:58:19 GMT

In an effort to help fund research studying sustainable animal agriculture practices and reducing the environmental impact of the beef industry, Cargill has issued a $1 million grant to Colorado State University and the university’s AgNext research program.

“Working closely with industry partners like Cargill, researchers and producers, AgNext is helping develop innovative, scalable solutions that move the livestock industry toward a more sustainable future,” said Dr. Kim Stackhouse-Lawson, director of AgNext and Co-Pl. “An important part of that is developing robust baseline greenhouse gas emissions from cattle.”

In a release from the company, Cargill states the $1 million grant will address a critical agricultural challenge: enteric methane emissions from feedlot cattle, which are naturally produced during the digestive process.

While current USDA guidelines rely on assumptions about the effects of different feeding strategies on methane emissions, such as grain processing combined with other feed additives, AgNext will conduct several experiments to collect empirical data to support those assumptions.

Studies will take place at Colorado State University’s Climate Smart Research Facility during the next two years.

The research will help determine the impact of different ingredients and additives in cattle diets on enteric methane emissions in beef steers fed typical finishing rations. It will also explore the additive effect of these ingredients and additives to determine if additional methane reduction is possible.

“Cargill is committed to working with researchers, farmers and ranchers to advance creative sustainability ideas and accelerate best-in-class conservation practices within the industry,” said Eliza Clark, Cargill Protein & Salt Sustainability Leader. “The knowledge generated from this innovative research will pave the way for testing new technologies in cattle feeding and continue to improve the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in the beef supply chain.”

New Study Addresses Fescue Toxicosis Through Theraputic 5-HTP

Fri, 19 Jul 2024 10:38:00 GMT

Fescue toxicosis costs the cattle industry more than a billion dollars each year. Cattle producers will be interested in a new study beginning at the University of Kentucky aimed at the potential of hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) in mitigating fescue toxicosis in beef cattle.

UK Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment received a $300,000 grant for the research project aimed at the issue affecting beef production, especially in regions dominated by endophyte-infected tall fescue, according to a news release.

Department of Animal and Food Sciences assistant professor Ronald Trotta says fescue toxicosis reduces the weaning weight of nine million U.S. beef calves per year by an average of 50 pounds each.

Fescue toxicosis can cause reduced feed intake, increased vasoconstriction and susceptibility to heat stress, along with compromised gut integrity. This research is especially relevant to Kentucky, where 14 million hectares are covered with this type of fescue affected by ergot alkaloids.

“We will be focusing on the three primary fescue toxicosis symptoms,” Trotta explains. “The ergot alkaloids in fescue bind to specific receptors in blood vessels, causing vasoconstriction. This reduces blood flow to critical areas like the gut, decreasing nutrient absorption and activating the immune system.”

According to the release, the two-year study will evaluate the effectiveness of 5-HTP, a precursor to serotonin, in alleviating these symptoms. Increased serotonin bioavailability is expected to relax blood vessels, improve dry matter intake and reduce immune system activation, thereby counteracting the adverse effects of ergot alkaloids.

Using a multi-faceted approach, integrating nutritional, hormonal and transcriptomic analyses, researchers will examine gene expression in various body parts to understand how 5-HTP influences feed intake, vasoconstriction and gut health.

“We are conducting this study under very controlled conditions, using six animals per treatment group,” Trotta says. “This smaller scale allows for precise monitoring and comprehensive data collection.”

Trotta recently joined Martin-Gatton CAFÉ and shared his enthusiasm about this research’s potential impact.

“This project could offer a novel and effective strategy to mitigate the clinical symptoms of fescue toxicosis, significantly benefiting beef producers in Kentucky and beyond,” he says.

The research outcomes are expected to provide new insights into the molecular mechanisms of fescue toxicosis and the therapeutic potential of 5-HTP, contributing to improved animal health and agricultural productivity, according to the release.

Estrus Detection Aids and Timed Cattle Breeding

Thu, 18 Apr 2024 19:28:17 GMT

Using artificial insemination (AI) with a cattle herd doesn’t require as much time or labor as you might think. With the advent of timed breeding protocols and quality visual estrus detection aids, AI has become more effective and efficient.

“You’re listening to the cows just a little bit, but you still have that scheduling of it and utilizing your AI tech,” says Adrienne Lulay, independent beef sales representative for All West Beef/Select Sires.

Lulay joined the Kansas State University’s Beef Cattle Institute Cattle Chat podcast with their team of veterinarians to discuss AI and offer some tips on getting the most from cattle breeding programs.

Both Lulay and Bob Larson, DVM, professor at Kansas State University, agree that implementing estrus detection with visual breeding indicator aids can help improve the results of AI breeding.

Looking back

In the past few decades, AI breeding protocols have come a long way. Larson notes the move from daily estrus detection to timed AI as being a significant shift.

“Really, one of the big constraints to utilizing artificial insemination in beef cattle was the need to estrus detect twice a day every day and then follow that up with insemination twice a day,” says Larson.

Only a handful of cows or heifers were bred daily, and often the beef producer had to be their own AI specialist.

“That’s a lot of skills to train someone to do, and then they only do it once a year,” adds Larson.

The advent of timed AI protocols became a game-changer in allowing professionals, like AI technicians or veterinarians, to breed many females effectively and quickly. But, timed AI wasn’t a cure-all.

“It didn’t perfectly get all the heifers or cows to ovulate when you wanted them to,” says Larson. “Now, over the last few years, we’ve added back some estrus detection.”

Estrus detection support

If you are using timed AI, you can pair it with visual estrus detection aids, like breeding indicator patches, to enhance your breeding program. Then, you can breed the first cows or heifers exhibiting strong estrus intensity and hold off on breeding a second group until more are in estrus.

“We get the best of both worlds – the estrus detection and timed insemination,” says Larson.

Lulay estimates that adding an estrus detection aid to a timed AI breeding provides a 10% increase in conception rates.

“There’s definitely very obvious heat detection aids now that are available,” says Lulay. “Something like an ESTROTECT patch or even just chalking their back so you know they actually went into heat. You can check just a couple times a day, and you can peel off those cows that were in heat.”

There can also be some cost savings when an estrus detection aid is part of the breeding program by reducing the drugs required.

“You can skip your GnRH (gonadotropin-releasing hormone) shot at that timed AI because so few of them actually need it because you saw they came into heat,” says Lulay.

Extra insurance

Using estrus detection aids can be a way to alert you that something went wrong in the protocol.

An example Lulay shares is a breeding project where the cows weren’t exhibiting any estrus with breeding indicator patches after the producer implemented the breeding protocol.

“None of the cows were coming into heat, and there were no activated patches,” says Lulay. “It turns out they had flip-flopped their hormone injections. The patches tipped us off that something wasn’t right.”

Having someone who can accurately determine the signs of estrus intensity with the assistance of estrus detection aids should also be considered.

“A well-trained person who can read the cows with the assistance of estrus detection aids is usually pretty good at getting the right timing for insemination,” says Larson.

Listen to the whole conversation by visiting the Cattle Chat podcast episode at the following link: https://bit.ly/CattleChatAI .

For more information on breeding indicator patches, visit ESTROTECT.com .

The ESTROTECT Breeding Indicator is the industry standard for optimizing cattle breeding efficiency and economics. With millions and millions of units sold around the world, ESTROTECT is the only breeding management tool tested in a multitude of university studies by researchers.

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Why Consider Drylotting Cows this Fall?

Mon, 07 Aug 2023 15:49:56 GMT

This fall as pastures continue to recover from drought in previous years, some producers who traditionally pasture their cattle are considering feeding cow-calf pairs in confinement. Drylotting can be a feasible way to allow pasture recovery, while feeding grain, forage, and crop stover to pairs. A few of the many advantages of a dry lot system include closer observation of the herd, low weaning stress, and providing opportunity to bunk break calves prior to weaning.

While input costs of confined feeding of pairs is more expensive than in years past due to increased commodity prices, it provides the opportunity for producers to stockpile forage in the future. With hay prices still above $200/ton, limiting inclusion amounts in diets is economical. However, in order to keep a healthy rumen, forage inclusion should be at least 0.5% of the cow’s weight on a dry matter basis.

When developing rations, consider using cost per unit of protein and energy to determine the most cost-effective feed. If available, corn silage produces more energy per acre than any other crop. Silage mixes well with low quality forages, and it can help to limit the needed inclusion of low-quality hay, which can help to prevent ruminal impaction. Low level grain inclusion can also decrease cost per unit of energy.

Knowing the quality of your feedstuffs is an important part of feeding cattle in a drylot. It is recommended to test your feed as a total mixed ration, but more importantly testing forages prior to the feeding period. This allows nutritionists/producers the ability to develop rations that properly meet the nutrient requirements of the animal, and not exceed them, wasting resources.

To further reduce wasting of feed resources, drylots provide the option to limit feed, by reducing intake while still meeting nutritional requirements. Limit feeding should be fed at least 1.75% of body weight, otherwise cows will exhibit irritable disposition from lack of fill. This can be mitigated further by feeding long stem hay, which promotes rumination, keeping the cattle more content and reducing behaviors like fence chewing.

If properly managed, confined feeding herd health is comparable to pasture scenarios. Cattle should be lotted into pens allowing 500-800 square feet per pair. If pens are too large and dry conditions persist, the increased dust from the surface promotes a greater chance of pneumonia for calves. When planning to drylot cows, allow for 28-36 inches of bunk space per pair.

It is ideal to separate cows based on nutrient requirements. Younger cows and first calf heifers have greater energy and protein requirements, whereas mature cows in good condition require less energy relevant to their body weight. If feeding everything in one pen is the only option a producer has, maximizing bunk space per head is highly recommended to allow smaller, more timid cattle a spot at the bunk.

Here are a few other things to keep in mind if intending to drylot cows:

- Feeding whole corn works better than rolled corn when daily forage intake is at 0.5% of body weight

- Mineral can be either mixed into the feed or fed free choice.

- Feeding cattle in a dry lot increases the production life of older, broken mouth cows

- A smaller, confined area, allows for easier health checks of cattle

For more information on Nebraska Beef Extension or drylotting cows, reach me at my office (402)624-8007 or visit my programming website bigredbeeftalk.unl.edu .

Two Veterinarians Talk Calf Care

Thu, 06 Apr 2023 20:40:50 GMT

Young calves continue to dot fields across the country, as we immerse into calving season. To help offer young calves a healthy start, Valley Vet Supply Technical Service Veterinarians, Tony Hawkins, DVM, and Ray Shultz, DVM, shared some tips.

Umbilical infections are a real thing, and so are scours, says Dr. Hawkins. These are two of the more immediate risks a newborn calf may be up against. To best prevent navel infections, immediately tie off the umbilical cord with a suture line to prevent bacteria from traveling up and building into the bloodstream. Cut it two to three inches from the body, and then disinfect the stump with iodine or navel care solution. I will mention, though, that if you’re not able to do it immediately, clamping or tying off can actually do more harm than good. This is because if there’s already contamination, you could be sealing in the bacteria. I recommend suturing or clamping off the navel within a six to 12-hour window.

Signs of an umbilical cord infection can include:

Umbilical stump feels larger than the size of your pinky finger
Lethargy
Unwillingness to stand and/or nurse
Hypothermia
Scouring diarrhea stress response

Scours is one of the gravest challenges affecting young calves, says Dr. Hawkins. Symptoms include calf diarrhea and watery stool, weakness, reluctance to stand or nurse, and sunken eyes. If calves experience an early scours case, there are effective antibody products that can be given immediately following birth to help them overcome it. We also can vaccinate them simultaneously to help stimulate their own protection. If they’re dealing with Clostridium perfringens scours, then we can provide calves with antiserum at birth that provides three weeks of protection. Scours causes damage in the intestines and gut, and it can take up to 10 days for those calves to heal up from that and normalize stool consistency.

Spreading cattle out onto clean ground during calving will minimize their exposure to those pathogens (an approach known as the Sandhills Calving System). If you have the space, then that’s your best prevention for scours.

Have some prescription antibiotics on hand, in case you need to treat your calves for an umbilical infection or scours, but make sure antibiotic treatment is absolutely necessary. Talk with your veterinarian to learn more and be prepared, should you experience any trouble.

Check right away for calf vitality, says Dr. Hawkins.. You really want that calf to be able to stand up and start nursing within 10 minutes. If the calf is sluggish to stand, either due to a difficult birth or environmental conditions, then we need to be intervening, administering colostrum replacers and helping him to stand and nurse on his own. To help prevent dehydration, it’s a good idea to have electrolyte packets on hand, in case your calves start scouring or do not want to nurse.

During springtime, take steps to prevent summer pneumonia, says Dr. Shultz. I’ve always thought of summer pneumonia being related to the antibody levels from the colostrum dropping below protective levels, usually when the calf is 3 months or so old. By ingesting quality colostrum, calves absorb maternal antibodies that initiate a strong immune system early in life; however, this immunity deteriorates as the calf gets older, making vaccinations vital. Vaccines sensitize and train the calf’s immune system to recognize and fight these viruses and bacteria when encountered. Summer pneumonia often coincides with the farmer stockman being very busy with hay and other crops, so they are unable to watch calves as closely. This can make summer pneumonia seem like a sudden disaster, because the first thing they may see is a severely sick, or even a dead calf.

Signs of summer pneumonia can include:

Droopy ears
Sluggish demeanor
Extended neck
Rapid breathing
Nasal discharge

To help prevent summer pneumonia risk, vaccinate calves prior to sending to pasture with a modified live virus vaccine combined with Pasteurella pneumonia.

Implement strategies to shield against pinkeye, says Dr. Shultz. Warm weather spurs development and transmission of Moraxella bovis, the primary infectious agent of Infectious Bovine Keratoconjunctivitis (IBK), more commonly known as pinkeye. Signs of pinkeye can include mild eye irritation with tears, ulceration of the cornea, severe inflammation, vision loss, and decreased time grazing – to name just a few.

Face flies are known to transmit the bacteria from animal to animal, escalating especially during late spring and summer. An intensive fly control program is essential, among other best management practices like vaccinating against pinkeye, clipping tall grass heads to avoid eye irritation in the pastures, and minimizing dust in hay and feed bunks. As it relates to fly control methods, consider what is the most practical to implement in your operation. If your herd interaction is infrequent due to time, distance or pasture size, your approach may differ from a producer whose cattle are nearby and easily accessible.

Driven to Sustainability

Thu, 09 Dec 2021 20:12:12 GMT

Daniel Humm’s restaurant, like so many others during the pandemic, had to lay off all its employees and was facing the prospect of bankruptcy. As businesses began to reopen earlier this year, Humm decided to gamble with a trendy, yet risky concept. In May he announced Eleven Madison Park, his three-Michelin-star restaurant in New York, would go completely plant-based.

By going meatless, Humm knew his customer base would shrink to a smaller niche of diners. Dinner remained $335 per person without the meat and before the wine.

Humm and many of his patrons believe the U.S. food system requires less meat consumption to be sustainable long-term. That belief is shared by an increasing number of consumers.

Evidence of growing consumer consciousness of sustainability is found in the Hartman Group’s report, “Sustainability 2021: Environment and Society in Focus,” which revealed 72% of consumers are willing to pay more to support companies that share their values.

Such support is not just for everyday products such as food. Credit Suisse, the Swiss global investment bank with $1.5 trillion under investment management, finds 75% of millennials believe their investments can influence climate change, and 84% believe their investments can help lift people out of poverty.
“That’s why we saw companies invest more than $30 billion in sustainability initiatives last year,” says Kim Stackhouse-Lawson, director of AgNext at Colorado State University.

That observation was confirmed by Credit Suisse CEO Thomas Gottstein who told CNBC the coronavirus pandemic had “substantially accelerated the trend toward ESG and sustainability” and sought to highlight the investment opportunity within the overall space. ESG stands for environmental, social and governance, and investors are increasingly applying those non-financial factors as part of their analysis.

“The demand that we see, both from our private clients but also institutional clients, for ESG compatible products is ever increasing,” Gottstein explains. “It’s clearly seen as, also, an opportunity to improve returns.”

(Farm Journal)

The “S” Word

U.S. cattle producers have embraced changing consumer demands before. Over the past 30 years they’ve dramatically improved their products, using genetics to trim waste fat and management to improve cattle health and well-being. This year nearly 82% of carcasses will grade Choice or Prime, up from 54% just 15 years ago, a 35% increase. Carcasses grading Prime, just 2.6% of production in 2006, reached 10.2% in 2020.

With genetic and management improvement, the U.S. produces the same amount of beef today as it did in 1975 with one-third fewer cows. Producers can rightly ask: Isn’t that sustainable ranching?

The answer, says Frank Mitloehner, professor and air quality specialist in cooperative Extension in the department of animal science at the University of California, Davis, is to accept consumer desires.

“Twenty years ago I overheard two cattlemen talking after I had just given a presentation,” Mitloehner says. “One said, ‘I like (Mitloehner), but I wish he wouldn’t use the S-word all the time.’”

Those two cattle producers were industry leaders in Texas, Mitloehner says, and over the years they have organized sustainability conferences in Texas. Why the change? They told Mitloehner that even if they didn’t agree with everything about sustainability, “it’s not as important as it is for us to listen to out customers demands.”

Mitloehner says the five pillars of sustainability are: environment, animal welfare, food safety, people/labor and financial viability.

“Those five areas are covered in what we call stewardship,” he says. “What rancher wouldn’t say that they are the best steward they can be of the land, the animals and the products they produce?”

Sustainability is just the word used by our customers, and ranchers should embrace that.

“Being a good steward means to work sustainably,” Mitloehner says. “And that’s what ranchers should be proud of. You should not be afraid of (sustainability), you should own this term.”

Early Adopters

Three years ago, Tyson Fresh Meats announced a partnership with Progressive Beef, a cattle management and sustainability program for feedlot operators based in Manhattan, Kan. Progressive Beef maintains accountability and transparency through a verification system that involves USDA-approved auditors. The feedyards certified in the program focus their efforts in three areas: cattle care, food safety and environmental sustainability, and are verified twice per year.

Today, more than one million head of cattle are cared for annually through the program at certified feedyards, helping Tyson meet consumer demand for beef that “creates a higher confidence level for consumers.”

Sustainability initiatives are also important for programs such as Certified Angus Beef (CAB). Now in its 44th year, CAB recorded sales of 1.25 billion pounds in 2019 thanks to an unyielding focus on product quality and programs designed to assist its retail and food service customers — the front line for sales and consumer satisfaction.

(Farm Journal)

Last year CAB launched an award specifically for producers who have embraced the concept. The Bradley 3 Ranch (B3R) near Memphis, Tex., earned the 2021 award that recognized 60 years of investment and management that has produced amazing results in a harsh environment.

Minnie Lou Bradley, her daughter, Mary Lou, and her husband, James Henderson, developed a plan for B3R to help conserve the 18" of annual rainfall and promote the grass while managing a quality-forward seedstock business. Those efforts have helped the B3R cowherd double in size.

Now, sustainability at B3R is as much about the efficiency and quality of the cattle as it is about land and water. They’ve built indexes around the performances of their cattle, and they focus on cows that can raise a calf, breed back, do it on minimal resources and maintain their flesh.

Corporate Investment

Nearly every major U.S. food processing company is already heavily invested in sustainability. JBS, for instance, announced in March a commitment to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2040. The commitment spans the company’s global operations, including its diverse value chain of agricultural producer partners, suppliers and customers in their efforts to reduce emissions across the value chain.

In June, Tyson Foods announced its ambition to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across its global operations and supply chain by 2050.

Cargill has committed to reduce GHG emissions by 10% by 2025 and reduce GHG emissions in its supply chain by 30% per ton of product sold by 2030. Further, Cargill has committed to improving the livelihood of 10 million farmers by 2030 through training in sustainable agricultural practices.

In April, Cargill and Sysco, the world’s largest broadline food distributor, announced a major partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) that will help ranchers across Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas tackle the impacts of climate change as well as improve grasslands and wildlife habitat by creating one of the largest sustainable beef cattle grazing efforts in the nation.

With hundreds of millions of dollars invested, those companies are showing consumers their commitments to sustainability and efforts to mitigate climate change, but the stakes are far higher than the beef supply chain.

The $30 billion invested in sustainability by companies is an investment driven by consumers and investors who are focused on the climate.

“Bloomberg reports there is $35 trillion invested in publicly traded companies under that environmental, social and governance (ESG) umbrella,” Stackhouse-Lawson explains. “And that’s up 15% from the start of 2018, and it represents 36% of all professionally managed funds.”

Those are the financial stakes and the pressure that are coming at publicly traded companies to focus on sustainability.

“This new ESG pressure will continue to shift capital toward sustainable products,” Stackhouse-Lawson says. “Now we have stronger, more connected supply chains that are not just driven by profits, they’re also rewarded for their social, environmental and governance metrics.”

While cattle producers might already have a great sustainability story, it is also paramount that they recognize the need for effective communication.

“It is important to acknowledge when talking about sustainability that emotion and science are on equal footing,” Stackhouse-Lawson explains. “If you put them in a head-to-head race, emotion wins in the sustainability space nearly every time.”

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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Merck Taps Justin Welsh, DVM, to Lead Food Animal Technical Services

Fri, 20 Nov 2020 05:11:34 GMT

Justin Welsh, DVM, has been named Executive Director of Food Animal Technical Services for Merck Animal Health’s U.S. Food Animal Team. In his new role, Dr. Welsh oversees the technical services and pharmacovigilance groups for the company’s ruminants, swine and poultry businesses.

“I am honored to lead this very talented group of veterinarians and Ph.D. nutritionists who have dedicated their careers to discovering and applying the science required to continuously improve the health and well-being of animals,” said Dr. Welsh. “The Merck Animal Health Food Animal Technical team is committed to focusing our efforts on the needs and well-being of the animals in our customers’ care. By investigating and then applying the latest science and innovation, we can then help our customers, through the science of healthier animals, ensure the safe, humane and efficient production of food.”

Dr. Welsh has more than 25 years of experience in veterinary medicine. Prior to being named Executive Director, he served in the ruminant business unit as an Associate Director of Merck Animal Health Technical Services. His role as associate director was to manage, and work alongside, a team of veterinarians specializing in field research, anti-infectives, herd health, and the application of technology in all phases of beef production. Before joining the company in 2012, he was in rural private practice for 17 years, working in and owning a mixed animal veterinary practice in western Nebraska.

Dr. Welsh holds a Bachelor of Science in Animal Science from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and earned his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Kansas State University. He is an active member of numerous industry associations, including the American Association of Bovine Practitioners, Academy of Veterinary Consultants and the Nebraska Veterinary Medical Association.

Zoetis Helps Enhance Reproductive Efficiency Among Cattle With LUTALYSE HighCon Injection

Wed, 11 Nov 2020 02:10:27 GMT

Cattle producers and veterinarians now have a new management tool for added reproductive efficiency. Zoetis today announced the introduction of LUTALYSE HighCon Injection (dinoprost tromethamine injection), a high-concentration formula of the proven LUTALYSE Injection (dinoprost injection) approved for use in dairy and beef cattle.

The higher-concentration formula of LUTALYSE HighCon allows for a 2-mL dose. This provides more doses per bottle, thus fewer bottle changes, and a quicker, more-convenient administration.

“Zoetis heard customers’ requests for greater convenience and flexibility, so we committed to developing a new, relevant, on-label reproductive solution,” said Richard Wallace, DVM, MS, senior veterinarian, Dairy Technical Services, Zoetis. “Besides the higher concentration formula, LUTALYSE HighCon delivers the same benefits of LUTALYSE but with additional distinguishable improvements.”

Flexibility with subcutaneous administration option

LUTALYSE HighCon is the first and only prostaglandin on the market licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for subcutaneous administration in addition to intramuscular administration. This approval allows producers and veterinarians flexible administration options while allowing them to abide by strict Dairy Animal Care and Quality Assurance as well as Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) standards, in turn, minimizing potential injection site blemishes.

“Keep in mind, dairy producers also are beef producers, so they must continue to be mindful about carcass quality and prevent injection site blemishes or muscle damage,” Wallace said. Dairy cattle had more visible injection site blemishes than beef cows, according to a 2007 National Market Cow and Bull Beef Quality Audit.¹ When the economic losses of quality defects in beef from dairy market cattle are added together, the impact translates to an average loss to all dairy producers of $70 to $100 for every market dairy cow sold.²

Larger bottle sizes

To fit varying herd management needs, LUTALYSE HighCon is available in three bottle sizes — 20 mL, 100 mL and 250 mL. It’s important to note that LUTALYSE HighCon is approved for use in cattle only, not equine or swine like LUTALYSE.

Approved for use with FACTREL Injection for FTAI

Like LUTALYSE, LUTALYSE HighCon is approved for use with FACTREL Injection (gonadorelin injection) to synchronize estrous cycles to allow for fixed-time artificial insemination (FTAI) in lactating dairy cows. FTAI with FACTREL and LUTALYSE or LUTALYSE HighCon can help improve reproductive efficiency. It also gives producers the flexibility to implement many of the popular synchronization programs recommended by the Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council.

FTAI protocols can help increase the number of pregnancies by more effectively timing insemination with ovulation — taking the guesswork out of reproduction. Focusing on reproductive management and protocol compliance can help improve pregnancy rates and reproductive efficiency. Improving the 21-day pregnancy rate from 22% to 27% could result in a value of $78 per cow per year, or $39,000 for a 500-cow dairy.^3,4

For several decades, the strategic use of prostaglandin has been a key component of breeding management, supporting estrous synchronization, FTAI and other strategies. Breeding management programs have long been recognized by cattle producers to help optimize the productivity, efficiency and profit potential of their operations.

Backed by years of proven success, Zoetis products are a leading choice of dairy producers across the country and can help improve the efficiency of a reproductive program. LUTALYSE HighCon provides another choice, along with LUTALYSE, for producers to manage synchronization programs.

Both products will be available to provide dairy producers and veterinarians options for whatever works best for their operation.

Learn more about LUTALYSE HighCon at DairyWellness.com or by contacting your veterinarian or Zoetis representative.

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION FOR LUTALYSE/LUTALYSE HIGHCON: Women of childbearing age and persons with respiratory problems should exercise extreme caution when handling LUTALYSE/LUTALYSE HighCon. LUTALYSE/LUTALYSE HighCon is readily absorbed through the skin and may cause abortion and/or bronchiospasms, therefore spillage on the skin should be washed off immediately with soap and water. Aseptic technique should be used to reduce the possibility of post-injection clostridial infections. Do not administer LUTALYSE/LUTALYSE HighCon in pregnant cattle unless cessation of pregnancy is desired. See full Prescribing Information for LUTALYSE . See full Prescribing Information for LUTALYSE HighCon .

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION FACTREL: FACTREL is for use in cattle only. See full Prescribing Information .

Source: Zoetis

¹ National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. Executive Summary of the 2007 National Market Cow and Bull Beef Quality Audit. Published December 2007. Available at: http://www.bqa.org/Media/BQA/Docs/2007auditbeef.pdf . Accessed October 30, 2015.

² National Dairy Herd Information Association. Dairy Animal Care & Quality Assurance. Available at: http://www.bqa.org/Media/BQA/Docs/dairybqamanual.pdf . Accessed October 30, 2015.

³ Kalantari AS, Giordano J, Cabrera VE. Wisconsin-Cornell Dairy Repro: A Reproductive Program’s Economic Analysis Tool. Available at: http://goo.gl/nmboIO . Accessed October 30, 2015.

⁴ Kalantari AS, Giordano J, Cabrera VE. Evaluating the Economic Value of Changing the Reproductive Management Program for a Specific Dairy Farm. eXtension. January 30, 2014.

ABC Settles Libel Case with BPI

Wed, 11 Nov 2020 02:07:25 GMT

ABC and South Dakota-based Beef Products Inc. (BPI) reached a settlement in a $1.9 billion libel lawsuit against the network regarding its reports on lean, finely textured beef (LFTB) -- deemed “pink slime” by critics and ABC. The terms of the settlement are confidential, but BPI had sued the network for $1.9 billion.

BPI argued ABC misled consumers into believing the product is unsafe, isn’t beef and isn’t nutrious, resulting in more than a 3 million-lb. drop in weekly sales.

ABC spokeswoman Julie Townsend said in a statement that the network maintains it reports accurately presented the facts, but said that “continued litigation of this case is not in the cimpany’s interests.”

Beef Quality: Where We’ve Been, and Where We’re Going

There’s a self-reinforcing dynamic occurring to which beef producers are responding. More marbling means more dollars, which subsequently generates more product in the marketplace. However, that extra supply hasn’t dampened the premiums for the product. Rather, it seems the more consumers get, the more they want.

More production of higher quality, more desirable products establishes better consumer demand. In turn, better consumer demand creates the need for even more high-quality beef.

Even in the midst of tighter supply, higher prices aren’t a given. If demand is waning, tighter supplies don’t necessarily translate to pricing power. The beef industry learned that lesson from 1980 to 1998 — the industry was essentially forced to increasingly discount its product to clear decreasing volume over time.

That’s not the case today. The beef industry now has pricing power, consumers are clamoring for the product, even at a time when they’re particularly sensitive about higher prices.

Marbling Is The Anchor

It starts with the cattle — and ensuring the price signals match what’s underneath the hide. Marbling is the difference maker when it comes to consumer satisfaction, subsequent spending and the total dollars available to the industry.

Today, it’s not commodity Choice or Select driving the business. The Choice/Select spread is increasingly irrelevant in the marketplace. It’s where we’ve been.

The true threshold of value differentiation is modest-or-better marbling. That’s the better cutoff in terms of determining margin contribution. That’s where we are and will continue to go.

The following charts tell more of the story.

Choice/Select Spread Is Increasingly Irrelevant

Weekly Comprehensive Cutout Price Spreads

(Source: USDA, AMS)

In late July, the Choice/Select spread was $20 per cwt, and it had been steadily widening in the preceding weeks, standing at its widest point since Christmas.

The Branded/Choice and Prime/Choice spreads were $10 and $22, respectively, and widening. That directional change plays a key role in weekly pricing — it’s not today that matters, but rather some anticipation of where the beef market will go.

But it’s not the magnitude of the Choice/Select spread that’s important; that spread is increasingly irrelevant in the marketplace. Neither commodity Choice nor Select is driving the business.

More significant is the question of why the measure even remains a benchmark of market indicators. For example, USDA regularly features the Choice/Select spread in their National Daily Cattle and Beef Summary.

Prime Has Basically Become A Category Unto Itself

Fed Steer and Heifer Grading Report January Through June

(USDA, AMS)

There are several points of interest in this chart derived from USDA’s Grading Dashboard:

1. Commodity Choice has remained relatively steady at an annual average of 41% since 2011. However, the mix around that flat line has dramatically changed over time.

2. Select volume has steadily slid from 28% to 13% of the slaughter mix.

3. CAB + Prime volume has replaced the difference, increasing from 20% to 35%.

In other words, the Choice/Select spread represents only one out of eight head, while premium grading cattle are nearly triple that volume and make up more than one-third of total slaughter.

Since 2005, Prime and Branded sales have accounted for 60% of the new dollars coming into the business. During that same time, the annual growth rate for the Prime category exceeded 14% and the Branded category was more than 10%.

Prime has seemingly become a category unto itself. It’s consistently grabbing a bigger portion of market share.

It’s been said but is worth repeating: Consumers are sending a clear message — quality really matters.

Grid Marketing: Ensure the Price Signals Match What’s Underneath the Hide

Annual Wholesale Beef Sales

(USDA, AMS)

The concept of supply elasticity generally reflects the responsiveness of the supply chain to changes in price (demand) for its product. That is, the potential to capture added revenue (via individual carcass pricing) has driven cattle feeders to increasingly market cattle via the grid versus selling live.

That has established some important changes in the business. Most notably, the bulk of added revenue is tied to premiums at the top end of the quality grade mix (upper two-thirds Choice and Prime) in response to demand.