So you think you produce feeder calves that should command the top price for their weight every time they go into the sale ring? Some farmers do have that kind of cattle while others wonder why their calves sell $2 to $5 per hundred below comparable weight calves.
Your Reputation Matters
Reputation is a very powerful influence on buyers as they bid on cattle. Cattle, and their sellers, can of course have both good and bad reputations. It depends on what the buyer has seen from those cattle’s performance in the past – both on pasture, in the feedlot or on-the-rail.
Unfortunately, since the average herd size of beef cows in Missouri is between 35 and 40 head, you may not have taken the opportunity to see if you produce “good reputation” cattle. Even larger operators may have felt it was too much trouble or too expensive to retain ownership on their cattle all the way to the packer. Thus, the order buyer just assumes when your cattle sell that they’re average and doesn’t make that extra bid to put extra dollars on your paycheck.
Establish A Reputation
Missourians have the opportunity to establish some type of reputation for their cattle on a low-risk program called the Missouri Steer Feedout. Participants can enter as few as five head of steer calves that were born in 2010 and weigh at least 550 pounds on delivery day, November 2. The pickup point in southwest Missouri is Joplin Regional Stockyards. In northeast Missouri the Paris Veterinary Clinic will be the pickup site while Savannah will be the location for gathering cattle from the northwest quarter of the state.
Consignments are due by October 10 to reserve space in the lot. The steers will be fed at a participating feedlot in the Tri-County Steer Carcass Futurity in southwest Iowa.
What You’ll Learn
Individual animal data provided to participants on all cattle include: Feedlot gain, harvest weights, dressing percent, fat cover, ribeye area, yield grade, carcass weight, marbling score, quality grade, health issues, premiums or discounts for the carcass, final carcass price, retail value per day of age, within group rank for retail value, temperament score and more.
Some consignors of steers may even feel a little overwhelmed when they receive all of the data. However, the data is well-explained and participants can use or ignore whatever they wish. If their cattle perform well over several years’ time and similar groups of cattle are being marketed, most markets will use that information to promote them. This isn’t done without laying a little groundwork ahead of time with the market and potential buyers, if they’re known.
Order buyers use factual performance/carcass data such as given in the feedouts more than they did 5 or 10 years ago. They aren’t just looking for gaunt, thin cattle with compensatory gain potential. They like to fill their orders with cattle that gain, stay healthy and produce a Choice quality grade as well as not being overly fat.
You will never find out if you’re raising that kind unless you retain ownership all the way. Yes, there is no guarantee you’ll make money in the feedout. In the most recently completed feedout early this summer, the average return above the initial value of the calf, plus feedlot costs was $480.51. The range in returns was from $161.68 to negative $147.95. The loss was largely due to one of their five steer’s death late in the feeding period. In each feedout there is almost always someone who makes money while someone will lose.
The more cows in your herd, the larger number of steers you should enter to get a representative sampling of your herd’s genetic makeup. This provides you with more accurate information when you make breeding stock, health care and marketing decisions.
For entry forms for the upcoming feedout, you may contact your nearest University of Missouri Extension livestock specialist. The forms and complete outline of the program can be found online at www.ozarksfn.com.
The 2009-10 results are also online along with pictures of steers from the various herds.
Eldon Cole is a Livestock Specialist with the University of Missouri Extension.
