The latest headlines
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The impossible dream
Imagine an alternate American history line over the past 16 years, with just an incidental supply of “Angus” beef. There’s a Certified Angus Beef ® (CAB®) brand but it began to coast in 2002 and scaled back to maintain flat demand. The 30 other Angus programs at that time struggled to compete with commodity beef; most folded.
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CAB Producer Communications team hires two
High-quality beef doesn’t happen by accident, but rather by careful planning and making informed decisions.
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In a continued effort to arm cattlemen with the production and economic news they need to make those careful calculations, the Certified Angus Beef ® (CAB®) brand recently hired two agriculture journalists.
Morgan Marley and Abbie Burnett joined the team as producer communications specialists in May. -
Colvin Scholarship Winners Named: $33,500 for beef community’s future
Six college students in beef and related studies have earned $33,500 in scholarships from the Certified Angus Beef ® (CAB®) brand.
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In the long run
’Tis the season to think about parasites robbing your beef cow herd. The weather is finally warmer, the bugs and other little things are crawling all over. But what about those you can’t see? Recent estimates put annual losses from internal parasites at $200 per cow-calf pair, so it’s no surprise many research studies say controlling them offers one of the best returns on investment in the business.
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Quality pays, but what does it cost
There’s no doubt, cattle that earn the Certified Angus Beef ® (CAB®) brand or Prime grade also earn premiums. In 2017 alone, packers in a biannual survey reported paying cattle owners $75 million in grid premiums specifically for CAB.
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DemKota begins producing the Certified Angus Beef ® brand
In the heart of South Dakota—a state ranked fourth in yearly Angus registrations, where all cattle outnumber people four to one—there’s been a bit of a desert for marketers of high-quality fed cattle. Many finished animals are still shipped to neighboring states for processing, but DemKota Ranch Beef, a packing plant in Aberdeen, S.D., is looking to keep a higher percentage of them close to home.
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Education, change: beneficial discomforts
Education, change: beneficial discomforts Cargill nutritionist pushes producers to reach for more by Laura Conaway Change is the new constant. A cowman’s response to the ebb and flow of the industry is entirely up to the individual – but a choice is imminent. That’s... read more -
The Path to 2 Billion
Could the Certified Angus Beef ® (CAB®) brand reach a billion pounds in sales? It was an audacious question back at the turn of the century when first considered. Some of the CAB team at the time were, candidly, more optimistic than me. We did the math and looked at so many of the trend lines that were in place from acceptance rates to certified head count.
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The Cost and Value of Quality
The Cost and Value of Quality NCBA Convention By Nicole Lane Erceg Beef quality has many contributing factors – freshness, tenderness, color and more shape the perspective. However, when Mark McCully, vice president of production for the Certified Angus Beef ®... read more -
It’s Prime time
There was a time when targeting the Choice grade seemed like a lofty goal. But as the song goes, the times, they are a-changin’.
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News from the road
On Target
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Decide Sooner
While many of you are in sire buying mode this time of year, more are deciding whether this year’s bull calves retain the ability to become sires. Castration at birth is ideal, but catching them on day one can be a challenge in extensive operations. Castration at branding or turnout offers a balance between handling ease and minimizing calf stress.
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Calving seasons of the mind
Winter came early for much of cow-calf country, and now calving season is at the gate. Even those who call it “spring calving” often start in January, but if you’re not out checking a heifer, this is a good time of year to catch up on reading. Calving dates and “housing” options for the herd were explored in a 2019 Nebraska Beef Report article by Terry Klopfenstein and others, who evaluated March, June, or August calving dates on the range, or two July calving systems in year-round confinement or in semi-confinement with grazed corn stalks from fall to April weaning.
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Cause and effect
We sometimes associate cause and effect without knowing the real link, or as an academic buzz phrase has it, “correlation does not equal causation.” A quick search provides a humorous example. Did you know ice cream sales and shark attacks are highly correlated? While true in a broad sense, the actual reason for similar seasonal trends is that hot weather brings greater ice cream consumption as well as more swimming along beaches where sharks lurk.
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Balance vs. the trade-off
One of the big challenges of livestock judging is explaining “balance” to a new evaluator. As we attend county fairs, state previews and junior nationals, we’ll hear the term used to describe cattle in nearly every class. After the judge remarks on the calf’s balance, they’ll follow up with a collection of terms that support their view of balance.
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Weaning diet options
Weaning diet options by Justin Sexten, Ph.D. Spring calving herds, depending on rainfall and temperatures, may be weeks or months away from weaning. For many operations, that will bring the challenge of feeding weaned calves for a short transition period. That’s when... read more -
Better than average
Better than average by Justin Sexten, Ph.D. Few producers strive for average—from cow productivity to cost reduction, we all want to be better than that. Yet half of every herd is below its own average, so the bar we compare against is important for context. As the... read more -
Too much, too early
Too much, too early by Justin Sexten, Ph.D. Fall- and spring-calving herd managers don’t often find themselves facing the same decision as those who buy calves for backgrounding, but this is one of those times. Should you implant the calves and if so, what product... read more -
On Target: The growing requirements
Beef cattle genetic power keeps moving up. Just look at the trend for pre- and post-weaning growth potential across breeds. Look at the continued improvement in quality grade across the industry. Some say that growth increase has come at the detriment of the cow herd, increasing feed and forage requirements beyond what the ranch can maintain. But steer carcass weights peaked at 930 lb. in fall 2015, not maintaining their historic 5-lb. annual increase as predicted. While carcass weights vary seasonally, they have declined annually since 2015 and trend lower in 2018.
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On Target: Why ‘veggie meat’ won’t replace beef
Lately the news is overrun with features on how we humans plan to shift away from meat as we’ve always known it to plant protein alternatives. Personally, I refuse to call it meat; vegetables and legumes in a meat-like form perhaps, but meat it is not.
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On Target: Early path to quality beef
You know the role health and nutrition play in feedlot performance, carcass quality grade and profitability. Yet many readers challenge the idea that these benefits can be realized at the ranch, unless they retain ownership beyond the farm or ranch gate.
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Black Ink
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Plans for busy times
My kitchen island is full of stacks: summer camp and summer ball forms to fill out. 4-H projects to register and swimming lessons to book. A month ago, we planned a short family camping trip.
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Staying on Track
Why do we call substantial disasters “perfect” storms? It feels like an oxymoron. The title perfect storm seems a more fitting descriptor for the rain that comes just in time to break a drought, or the swirling clouds that bring rain but never materialize into a devastating cyclone. The drama still unfolds, but disaster doesn’t follow.
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Really that good
Young kids often have a misplaced sense of confidence. “Wook, how high I jump.” As a toddler, one of my girls used to love to show off that skill. She’d squat down, chubby thighs almost touching the ground and she’d give it her all. Her jump would maybe clear all of two inches. She was always thrilled.
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Uncomfortable change
WHAM! Tap-tap-tap. Some changes are noisy…like the current remodel and addition to our 115-year-old house.
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Black Ink: Moo-ving the big rocks
The new year now feels old once you get into a busy season like calving. There are many spans of time in cattle country that can make us feel there’s too much to do, or too little time in each day. By now, some resolutions have fallen to the wayside, the rush of reality helping us sort out what matters most in the commitment to get better. Yet, there are still some that rise above the rest, beat the average and make it look easy
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Sign Reading
For the cattle industry, market signals can offer the same perspective. Data, seasonal changes, articles providing the same advice on vaccination programs or colostrum importance are all too familiar.
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Uncomfortable change
Don’t let the unknown paralyze you. Think about the end goal and why you’re inspired to do something different in the first place.
Maybe you’re looking to recoup some investment or perhaps just trying to make specific points in the calendar flow a little more smoothly. Maybe you hear about these loads that are reaching 50% Prime and thinking, “I want my cattle to do that.”
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Unconventional risk management
Unconventional risk management by Nicole Lane Erceg Sounds of thunder interrupted the radio blaring on our front porch. With binoculars we watched lightning strikes in the distance, waiting for a dispatcher’s voice to say the call number 9210. When those numerals rang... read more -
Perspective and Context
Perspective and Context by Miranda Reiman “You know, a dredge ditch…” I was explaining the Minnesota farm I grew up on and I was met with blank stares from some of my South Dakota State University classmates. “…where you drain water off the field,” I continued. They... read more -
Changing with the environment
Changing with the environment by Nicole Lane Erceg I have a teal dinosaur that sits on my desk. It’s an unusual office ornament, but he serves a valuable purpose. When plans change, when the unexpected pops up, when I’m tempted to say “we’ve always done it this way,”... read more
Featured Stories
Putting the Best to the Test
With one twist, a burner flicks on. With one cut of marbled meat, flavor agrees to allow no compromise. And with one Certified Angus Beef ®(CAB®) brand Test Kitchen, original beef dishes show their potential to become new family favorites.
The kitchen in the brand’s main building hosted many food industry professionals before the CAB Culinary Center opened its doors.
A Mark to Remember
“Turn right at the big red barn and then follow the dirt road north for 2 miles.”
People who travel off the blacktop hear those kinds of directions often. Barns on family farms and ranches across the country are a forceful image of small town vitality. Landmarks, they represent tradition that anchors these businesses to their communities but more, they are a part of the American identity, icons of the rural spirit.
The Man Behind The Brand
The year was 1976 when USDA had just lowered its standards for the Choice quality grade. The industry that lobbied for the change was quickly moving toward a lean, commodity product. Angus cattle sold at a discount and registration numbers were in steep decline.
One Angus breeder in Ohio had an idea to turn things around: create a high-quality, specification-based brand.
Meet your media team
Miranda Reiman
Director of Producer Communications
Steve Suther
Senior Editor, Producer Communications
Nicole Erceg
Assistant Director of Communications