Disaster Clause
UNL extension educator stresses including a clause for natural disasters in your grazing lease.
The two most important components of a grazing lease agreement are stocking rate and lease rate, according to Jay Jenkins, University of Nebraska–Lincoln (UNL) extension educator in Cherry County.
According to Jenkins, balancing the forage demanded by the animals with the amount of forage grown is the most important part of proper grazing management. Too much grazing pressure leads to decreased long-term forage production.
Plainly stating the stocking rate in the lease agreement helps avoid disagreements and provides landowners a way to reach their goals for rangeland health. Read more.
David Gazda
Association Perspective
A lesson learned.
Each month one of 13 regional managers employed by the American Angus Association is asked to write a short column for the Angus Beef Bulletin EXTRA. Articles are normally informative pieces that generally focus on the many programs and services offered by the Association, as well as other topics and events occurring within the beef cattle industry.
With that said, if you’re settling into your favorite recliner expecting to read another article about the advantages of artificial insemination, management tips to produce more Certified Angus Beef® (CAB) carcasses, or the applications of the latest DNA technology in your breeding program, now would be a good time to hit the mouse and advance to the next page.
However, if the thought of possibly saving one’s life — namely yours or that of someone close to you — is of interest, then I would encourage you to read on. Read more.
Bull Buyers Select for Profitability Traits
Identifying bulls with well-balanced traits that meet the profit priorities of a particular operation is critical.
Beef cow-calf producers should prioritize the traits that are most important to profitability on their particular operation. Expected progeny differences (EPDs) are the most widely used indicator of genetic merit for most breeds. Most commonly used EPDs fall into the category of growth, maternal ability or carcass quality.
Growth EPDs, such as weaning weight and yearling weight, are important economic traits. Cattle that do not grow and perform well are not usually profitable. Producers should select bulls with good growth performance; however, care needs to be taken to select animals that are not too large in their frame size. Yearling weight is positively correlated with frame score; consequently, frame score and mature weight of the cow herd can become too large by selecting for growth EPDs alone, driving up feed requirements. Read more.
What’s Inside …
In this April edition of the Angus Beef Bulletin EXTRA, you'll find valuable articles devoted to the management, marketing, and health and nutrition of your beef enterprise. Select from the tabs at the top of the page to access this month's entire offering by category. A few select features include:
- MiG vs. Mob Grazing
- Beef Talk: A one-way ticket to town
- Watch for, Control Poison Hemlock
- Identifying Johne’s Disease with Accuracy
- Warts, Ringworm Surface in Late Winter
- Uniform Cattle Increase Profit Potential
- In the Markets: Beef trade issues and challenges
- End Meats Help Drive Premiums
Global Beef Q1 Analysis
In EU, horsemeat scandal has little impact on short-term beef demand, though may mean tighter traceability. U.S. beef complex called disappointing.
The Rabobank Global Cattle Price Index has recovered slightly from fourth quarter (Q4) 2012 but remains 8% down year-over-year. According to a report by Rabobank, the European horsemeat scandal has had hardly any impact on consumer demand and resulting beef prices. The outlook for the global beef industry is mixed, but overall global beef production is likely to remain constrained and demand is set to weaken in the face of growing inflation across the globe. Read more.
News Briefs …
The American Angus Association and its subsidiaries generate a wealth of information to keep members and affiliates informed of what's happening within the industry, as well as with the programs and services they offer. Click here for easy access to the newsrooms of the American Angus Association and Certified Angus Beef LLC and the Angus Journal Daily archive available in the Angus Journal Virtual Library.
Bad Attitudes Cost
Cow temperament affects management, reproduction and profitability.
Flighty, aggressive cattle are more difficult to handle and have other disadvantages. Studies during the past decade have shown “wild” cattle don’t grow or gain as well in the feedlot, and there is a higher incidence of “dark cutters” among wilder cattle. Recent research has shown that temperament also affects reproduction, as cows with bad dispositions have lower conception and calving rates.
Mellow temperament is important when cattle must be handled at close quarters. Even when cattle are raised in range country, where they must fend for themselves, temperament is an issue because of indirect effects on many facets of cattle production. Read more. (See also this month’s installment of “Beef Talk” on our Management page.)
Going to Waste
Ohio State–Wooster campus gets 30% of electricity from refuse-generated biogas.
Rotten produce, animal fat, bad soda, manure — the Wooster campus of Ohio State University’s Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC) is slowly going to waste. That’s a good thing.
OARDC is using those and many other agricultural and food-processing wastes to meet close to one-third of the 12-megawatt-hour (MWh) annual electricity needs of its main campus. That’s 3.6 MWh of green energy, enough to power 313 average U.S. homes, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Many U.S. colleges and universities are turning to renewable energy sources to meet all or some of their power needs as part of a growing trend that also involves the implementation of additional sustainability initiatives such as construction of “green” buildings and comprehensive campus recycling. Read more.
The Benefits of Slumber
Why you need a good night’s sleep.
We have so many demands on our time — jobs, family, errands — not to mention finding some time to relax. To fit everything in, we often sacrifice sleep, but sleep affects both mental and physical health. It’s vital to your well-being.
Of course, sleep helps you feel rested each day. While you’re sleeping, your brain and body don’t just shut down. Internal organs and processes are hard at work throughout the night.
“Sleep services all aspects of our body in one way or another: molecular, energy balance, as well as intellectual function, alertness and mood,” says Merrill Mitler, a sleep expert and neuroscientist at National Institutes of Health (NIH). Read more.
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