Ranching.com is your weekly dose of trending news, seasonal tips, and community content put together by our team of ranchers.

NEWS

🐂 U.S. Cattle Counts

🐂 U.S. Cattle Counts - With the USDA canceling its July cattle inventory report due to budget cuts, alternative indicators suggest the U.S. cattle herd is in a contraction phase. Analysis of past inventory changes and cow slaughter rates estimates the July 1, 2024 cattle inventory at about 94.2 million head, 1.2% lower than the previous year. Feedlot data show a modest increase in cattle on feed but similar heifer proportions, signaling a reluctance to rebuild the breeding herd. Beef production is expected to decrease by 1.1% in 2024 and further drop in 2025, leading to lower per capita beef consumption and declining beef exports. Despite lower inventories and production, strong demand is likely to keep beef prices above last year's levels.

🍔 Beyond Meat Beyond Repair? - Beyond Meat is in discussions with bondholders to restructure its debt-heavy balance sheet, aiming to manage its over $1 billion long-term debt from a 2021 convertible bond offering. Despite efforts to reduce expenses and introduce a new burger product, the company's cash reserves have significantly declined, falling 36.6% to $173.5 million in the first quarter of 2024. This financial strain, coupled with waning interest in plant-based meat post-pandemic, has led analysts to criticize the company's performance.

🔬 Diagnostic Learning Op - Production Animal Consultation (PAC) has launched the Certified Sampler program to train feedlot personnel in obtaining ante-mortem and post-mortem samples from cattle for disease surveillance and diagnosis. The day-long training, conducted on-site, includes classroom sessions with bilingual video examples and hands-on practice with PAC veterinarians. The morning session covers ante-mortem sampling techniques, while the afternoon focuses on necropsy and pathology. The program aims to improve disease management and cattle health, ensuring timely health assessments and sustainable livestock practices. It will collaborate with veterinary diagnostic laboratories at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Iowa State University.

📈 Markets Heat Up - Extreme temperatures are stressing grass and impacting grazing management, while the livestock market shows significant changes. Intrinsic values (IV) of female livestock have risen significantly, outpacing actual values (AV), especially for young and older pairs, with a notable inverted bell-curve pattern. The bred market differs, with bred heifers topping the market and older animals depreciating. The trend highlights the need for updated marketing strategies, as traditional depreciation models prove outdated. The value of gain remains positive in feeder auctions despite heat, and commodity cattle often outsell value-added programs.

🌡 High Temp, High Risk - Triple-digit temperatures forecasted across the Great Plains in late July can stress outdoor livestock, increasing their water needs and risk of water deprivation and salt toxicity. Kansas State University veterinary toxicologist Steve Ensley warns that limited water access can quickly lead to dehydration and toxic sodium levels in the brain. He advises slowly reintroducing water to affected animals to avoid sudden brain swelling and seizures. Preventative measures include installing monitoring devices on water systems, especially for pens at the end of distribution lines. Despite potential long-term effects like partial blindness, recovered livestock can safely enter the food chain.

🏛 Comments Welcome - The U.S. Department of Agriculture has extended the comment period for the "Fair and Competitive Livestock and Poultry Markets" proposed rule by 15 days, now ending on Sept. 11, 2024. Tanner Beymer, NCBA's Senior Director of Government Affairs, criticized the extension as insufficient, arguing that 75 days is not enough to address the complexities of cattle markets and the rule's significant impact on producer profitability. The rule aims to clarify what constitutes "unfair" practices under the P&S Act, ensuring fair and competitive markets. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack stated that the rule would balance farmer-integrator relationships and promote successful, profitable operations.

🦇 More Bats, Fewer Bugs? - The Noble Research Institute (Noble) and Merlin Tuttle’s Bat Conservation (MTBC) have partnered to explore bats as an alternative pest management strategy in agriculture. This collaboration aims to provide farmers with information and educational materials to incorporate bats into their operations. The partnership will involve evaluating bat guano for pest DNA, assessing bat house effectiveness, and exploring bat conservation practices. This initiative supports Noble’s soil health research and MTBC’s mission of inspiring global bat conservation. The collaboration seeks to determine if bats can sustainably replace chemical pest control in pecan orchards and grazing lands, potentially saving farmers significant costs.

RANCHING KNOW-HOW

Training Labor to Detect BRD Early

Early detection of bovine respiratory disease (BRD) is crucial for better outcomes, as the disease progresses rapidly. Effective treatment must begin as soon as clinical signs are noticed, according to experts Dr. Nathan Meyer and Dr. Bob Smith. While technology for early detection is emerging, trained human observation remains key. Spotting subtle signs of BRD requires experience and focus. Training pen riders, often with the guidance of a veterinarian, is essential for identifying and treating BRD early. Practical training methods include shadowing experienced staff and continuous coaching to improve skills and ensure successful outcomes.

Biosecurity Basics and Beyond

Biosecurity is crucial for animal production, though often underestimated. Recent H5N1 bird flu outbreaks in the dairy industry highlight the need for all producers to be vigilant. Biosecurity aims to protect animals by minimizing pathogen movement through separation, cleaning, and disinfecting. Producers should follow daily biosecurity protocols, with resources available from the Beef Quality Assurance program. Enhanced biosecurity plans are advised to guard against diseases like foot and mouth disease, which, while not a food safety risk, could severely impact the U.S. beef export market.

RANCHING AROUND THE WORLD RECAP

🇧🇷 Brazil Fines Rancher $50 Million for Damage to Amazon [Drovers]

🇨🇦 Prairie forecast: Cooler weather coming, but little precipitation [Canadian Cattlemen]

CATTLE COMMUNITY

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

READER POLL

LAST WEEK’S RESULTS

THOUGHTS FROM VOTERS

Yes, A Significant Portion

• “I can take the $2,000 per acre annual profit and buy more land that is suitable for ranching but is not suitable for macro solar projects.”

Yes, A Small Portion

• “It depends on the offer.”

• “I’d lease less productive areas and areas with high wildlife damage.”

No

• “Solar farms on top of productive agriculture land is a folly we can't afford. Our agriculture land is already disappearing at an alarming rate to suburban development, increasing the pressure on farmers and ranchers to produce higher quantities to make up the difference, and adding solar infrastructure incursion will only exacerbate the problem.”

• “I am seeing quality land sacrificed to solar in my area. I understand the need for alternative energy, but I am also waiting for the long-term studies on the effects to local communities. I also see a lack of interest by second or third generations in farming or ranching, leading to this solar expansion, which concerns me even more.”

• “Solar energy has a place, but its place is not to take land out of production. I'll gladly incorporate it in other ways, but it is going too far. It's not just taking out production land, it is taking out habitat, too.”

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