Livestock and Forages News Articles
Articles published in Arkansas Cattle Business
Animal Science: Today and Tomorrow - April 2007
Beef Checkoff Pays
On a national level, there is more proof that the Beef Checkoff is paying
dividends and that informed consumers respond by buying more beef. Results of a
16-week study in supermarkets showed that fresh meat nutrition labeling in the
meat case increased the number of people likely to buy beef by 15 percent. About
45% said that labeling increased their belief that beef was healthy. Stores in
which the tests were conducted reported increased sales of beef.
Top Ten List
Don Hubble, Resident Director of the Livestock and Forestry Branch Station,
is a typical Arkansas cattleman operating 40 cows on 95 acres and working full
time. He is in the unique position of conducting beef cattle research and takes
what’s applicable to his own operation. Mr. Hubble developed the following “Top
Ten List” of practices that have made his personal operation easier to manage
but more profitable.
1. Soil test every other year and follow recommendations.
2. Use intensive grazing to enhance forage utilization and animal
production.
3. Buy good hay instead of baling your own.
4. Reduce machinery costs by renting, leasing, or hiring services.
5. Stockpile fescue to reduce winter-feeding costs.
6. Plant winter annuals for fall grazing for weaned calves. Fertilize for
high production according to soil test recommendation.
7. Deworm, implant, castrate, and vaccinate.
8. Define breeding/calving season.
9. Identify calves to cows and back to the sire.
10. Use the resources at optimum levels – not maximum levels.
Factors Affecting the Selling Price of Feeder Calves
This is the third of five articles discussing the results of the 2005
Livestock Auction survey and will address management factors affecting the
selling price of calves. The management factors included individual or group
selling, castration, horn status, body condition, fill, and health. The selling
price is reported in dollars per cwt. The average selling price in 2005 was
$118.10 per cwt.
The correct way to view this data is that all other factors about the calf
are the same except for the factor being discussed. For example, there was a
$3.70 per cwt. difference between polled and horned calves. That means that
everything else about those two calves is the same (same frame score, weight,
body condition, color, breed, fill, etc.), except that one calf is polled and
the other one is horned.
Price Due to Selling in Groups: Calves sold in groups of two to five
head sold for $120.12, whereas calves sold as singles were priced at $117.26.
Calves sold in groups larger than five were priced at $122.61.
Castration: Steer and bull calves sold for $124.20 and $117.93 per
cwt., which means that steers sold for $6.27 per cwt., or $30 to $34 per head
more than bulls. Heifers sold for $112.81 or about $11 less than steers.
Horn or Polled: The case could be made that horned or polled calves
could be a genetic factor affecting calf price rather than a management factor.
Nevertheless, horned or polled were placed in the management category. Horned
calves sold for $114.87, and polled calves sold for $118.57. Polled cattle did
not receive a premium, but rather horned cattle were discounted. For a calf
weighing 500 pounds, the difference between horned or polled was $18.50.
Body Condition: Body condition consisted of very thin, thin, average,
fleshy, and fat categories. Average body condition calves sold for $118.14,
which was very close to the average price for the year. The only body condition
category that received a premium over the average price was very thin ($119.55).
Perhaps buyers can see compensatory gain in these calves. The thin, fleshy, and
fat categories were priced at $116.80, $112.28, and $101.98, respectively. Too
much creep feeding can result in a calf with too much body condition. Producers
providing long-term creep feed must realize that fleshy calves are discounted
and creep feed is expensive.
Fill: How much gut fill the calf expresses affected selling price.
Calves with average fill sold for $116.77. Calves classified as full ($110.05)
or tanked ($92.80) received large discounts. Buyers realize that calves with a
lot of gut fill will have high shrinkage, and they won’t pay for it. Shrunk or
gaunt calves received $120.22 and $119.22. Buyers appeared to be willing to pay
more for these calves because they were already “shrunk out."
Health: Of all the management factors recorded, health had the largest
impact on selling price—as it should. Healthy calves sold for $118.21. Calves
that had dead hair, were stale, lame, had bad eye(s), or were sick sold for
$105.55, $100.01, $84.74, $104.39, and $80.22, respectively. Therefore, the
discounts for unhealthy calves ranged from $13 to $38 per cwt. A healthy calf at
weaning time starts with a cow that calves in good body condition. Research has
shown cows that calve in good body condition produced more colostrum and more
concentrated colostrum than cows that calve in poor body condition. A
vaccination program designed for your herd, and a good nutrition program,
including minerals, all play important roles in selling a healthy calf.
Beef cattle producers can influence the selling prices of their calves
through managing calf body condition, castration, horns, fill, health, and
selling in uniformed groups. The next article will discuss the genetic factors
that affected selling price.
If you have any questions about implementing some of these management factors
to improve the price of your calves, contact your local
county
Extension agent.
By: Dr. Keith Lusby and Dr. Tom Troxel
Back to
Articles published in Arkansas Cattle Business |
