Farm Help

Long breeding and calving seasons can mean extra time and labor costs for producers, but by synchronizing cows’ estrous, a producer can spend less time observing natural heats and subsequent breeding as well as reduce the time needed to observe calving 283 days later.

More and more beef producers are switching to “black” cattle since that seems to be what the market wants.  Black Angus heifers are sold for a premium and we search for the best black Angus bulls we can find to ensure that the calves will turn out black.  However, this mass conversion to “black” may be costing us as much as $100/cow/year in what we give up by not crossbreeding. 

Males of about any species tend to be more aggressive than females. This comment by Eldon Cole, University of Missouri Extension livestock specialist, focused on factors involved in maintaining safe conditions when working around farm animals.

Sorting cattle helps eliminate outliers in a pen, but the extra effort may be rewarded by higher quality grades, too.
A study by Certified Angus Beef LLC (CAB) shows the more sorts the better the grades in most cases.

The first and most important step in taking control of your farm operation’s financial well-being is to keep good and accurate farm records.

What are the top things to look at when evaluating a business and looking to get a loan for expansion?
Bryan Hodges, a loan officer at First National Bank of Green Forest, in Green Forest, Ark., explained that there are many factors involved in determining if a person or a business should be qualified for a loan. “Depending on the type of request, business or individual, we still look very closely at the character of the individual or business. We take a look at their history in management of the farm or of their operations.” Other considerations include character, credit history, experience and whether or not they’ve had loans in the past and understand how the loan process works.
Some other factors Hodges said will be considered when evaluating a cattle operation include determining if the person has adequate means of repayment. “Something that’s very important is cash flow. What kind of margin do they have in their cash flow,” Hodges asked.

What is an appraisal?
The act or process of developing an opinion of value.

There is a lot of speculation as to what the market will be doing come May, August or November, 2008. Scott McKennon, Regional Vice President at Farm Credit Services in Russellville, Ark., gave his input on the options producers can find with booking and hedging sale prices for the months to come.

Housing market crunch. Recession. Economic downturn. These are some scary words often heard while watching the news these days. In times like these, people are often reminded to re-evaluate their own financial situation and examine their financial institution’s stability during an economic downturn. 

Weeds are a problem for many of us. Whether they’re in your garden, your row crop fields or your pastures, they’re unwanted plants that can sometimes be next to impossible to eradicate. The main reason for controlling weeds is the fact that they can reduce the quantity and quality of the desired forage species in your pasture. In the state of Missouri, there are several classifications for weeds. The weeds are classified depending on the difficulty to rid the land of the weed, or other various factors. One such classification is of noxious weeds.