On January 27th I spoke with Scott Brown during the evening portion of the Southwest Missouri MU Extension Beef Cattle Conference organized by Patrick Davis, Andy McCorkill, and Eldon Cole. I discussed the facts about EPDs working to change a herd and how genomic testing can improve the precision and reliability of EPDs. Genomic testing is allowing us to select for traits that were previously not under selection, such as feed efficiency , bovine respiratory disease resistance, embryonic loss, and tenderness. You can download my slides from my extension website . But, in this post, I want to focus on Scott Brown's comments. For those of you who don't know Dr. Brown, he is a leading agriculture economist who has been influential in the formation of agricultural policy on the state and national level. On Tuesday night he gave a projection on the future of beef cattle economics. As we all know, beef prices are at record highs, but this is driven by historically low cattle num...

Burt Rutherford recently reported on a presentation by Mizzou's Scott Brown. Dr. Brown challenged beef producers to identify a strategy to remain profitable when beef prices come down in the next decade. Brown's solution is to target more cattle that grade Prime on the rail. He presented data from the Thompson Research Center, where 30% of the steer calves consistently receive a Prime grade. The genetics used at Thompson Research Center has allowed the herd to meet those levels. To here more about the genetics and changes that have occurred at the Thompson Reseach Center, watch this blog or attend the 2014 Thompson Research Center Field Day  where both Scott Brown and I (among others) will be speaking . Loading...

For those of you who follow my Twitter feed , you know I have been a little disgruntled about a paper that appeared in PNAS earlier this week. I think this paper may be the motivation behind a new documentary called " Cowspiracy " that Amanda Radke reported about on Monday. Jude Capper (a.k.a Bovidiva ) really takes this paper to tasks and points out some serious flaws in the analysis. In addition to ignoring beef's benefits as a source of nutrients such as iron and B vitamins, the habitat that ranches create for livestock, and the ability to turn arid rangeland into food, the authors also miss that cattlemen can be an ally to conservationists. But, Jude Capper and other have sufficiently defended the beef industry. In this post, I want to take this opportunity for us as a beef industry to collectively take a look in the mirror. What do we need to learn from this research? Despite errors in the analysis, should the beef industry decrease its use of feed grains? P...

To say the last two years in the cattle business have been interesting is an understatement. We have gone from record losses to record profits. Last fall, everywhere I went, people said “There is no way to make money feeding cattle at these prices.” The prevailing thought was “SELL THEM. Don’t pass go, take the money, don’t hesitate, SELL THEM NOW!” Conventional coffee shop, off-the-cuff wisdom is seldom based on fact. As I write this update, we have data on three pens of QB cattle. Below is a summary of some important numbers from those pens. PEN 1 PEN 2 PEN 3 Mixed Steers Mixed Average per head profit $215.89 $332.62 $272.69 Average per head profit on Prime cattle $436.00 $479.75 $489.28 Profit per head                          ...

Missouri producers interested in quality beef and genetic improvement can attend a nearby national meeting. But, they need to sign up before April 15th to get the early-bird rate. The Beef Improvement Federation (BIF) meets in Oklahoma City, June 12-15. It’s where researchers, producers and industry leaders meet to discuss discoveries in beef production. The theme is “Where Profit and Progress Intersect.” A major topic will be the crossbreeding vs. straight-breeding debate. New genetic tools are available that aid production of quality beef. Producers will hear various sides of all issues. MU beef reproduction specialist Dave Patterson will present results of research on breeding protocols. Those were developed and tested at the MU Thompson Farm, Spickard Missouri. It’s a chance to hear the latest in beef cattle breeding and genetics. The main program is June 13-14. Other events and ranch tours surround the meeting at the Renaissance Hotel and Convention Center in Oklahoma City....

I recently came upon this post about Cattlemen's Evolution on the Bridging the Cattle Gap blog.  I loved that he explained the link between reproductive technologies and genetic selection.  In addition to the points raised in his post, artificial insemination also increases the selection intensity.  As we use a smaller number of elite sires that are further from the average of the breed or population, genetic change becomes more rapid. On August 30th 2012, the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources at the University of Missouri will be launching a new program called Quality Beef-By the Numbers .  This program aims to assist commercial cattle operations to realize increased income as a result of utilizing reproductive and genomic technologies.  Previously, progressive cattle operations have not been rewarded for producing a higher quality product.  This program aims to change that situation.  I encourage you to check it out. Scott Brown...