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

NEWS

❄️ Winter Feeding Forecast

❄️ Winter Feeding Forecast - By mid-November, many cow-calf operators are starting or already feeding hay, with winter feed costs being a major expense. USDA estimates 2024 hay production will be higher than 2023, improving availability. Efficient hay storage and feeding can reduce costs significantly.

🏛 Trump Names Ag Sec - Brooke Rollins, president of the America First Policy Institute, has been selected as USDA Secretary by President-elect Donald Trump. A Texas native with deep agricultural ties, Rollins will focus on supporting farmers, trade policies, and rural development.

🥩 Meat Myths - Dr. Peer Ederer at the Henry C. Gardiner Global Food Systems Conference argued that the push to reduce meat consumption is oversimplified, noting rising obesity and diabetes despite declining meat intake. Health issues are more complex than just eliminating meat.

🔒 Beefing Up Biosecurity - Oregon State University is leading a project to prepare cattle producers in Oregon, California, and Idaho for foreign animal diseases like foot-and-mouth. The initiative focuses on training Extension agents, enhancing biosecurity plans, and mitigating production and financial risks for cattle producers.

🔄 Unlearning Fundamentals - A major weather event in the Great Plains has spiked demand for feeders, driving prices higher as supplies tighten. The smallest calf crop in history, combined with fewer placements, is expected to result in sharply higher beef prices in 2025.

RANCHING KNOW-HOW

Winter Feeding Beef Cows on Pasture

2024 has been a challenging year for pasture production, with drought severely impacting forage availability. Extension experts Jason Hartschuh and others highlight key strategies for winter feeding, including hay inventory, forage testing, working with a nutritionist, and considering cost-effective protein sources. Flexibility and culling may also be necessary to manage limited resources.

Secure Food Supply Resources

Livestock producers should be prepared for foreign disease outbreaks, like Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD), which affects cattle, pigs, sheep, and goats. Resources like securefoodsupply.org and species-specific sites offer contingency plans, including biosecurity, traceability, and movement permits to mitigate risks.

RANCHING AROUND THE WORLD RECAP

🇧🇷 Brazil beef exports continue to climb [The Cattle Site]

🇧🇷 Brazilian meatpacker JBS agrees to invest $2.5 bln in Nigeria, build six factories [Reuters]

🇲🇽 Mexico Notifies United States of New World Screwworm Detection [National Beef Wire]

🇦🇷 Electronic caravans: The offers of the six companies competing for a multi-million dollar business were revealed [La Nacion]

CATTLE COMMUNITY

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

READER POLL

LAST WEEK’S RESULTS

THOUGHTS FROM VOTERS

Yes

• “We raise beef cattle and know that it's a delicious, healthy source of nutritious food. We also know that grazing cattle are the best natural consumer of forage, reducing the need for mechanical or chemical removal of plant growth. If a restaurant spreads false information about beef products, we won't spend our hard earned money on their product.”

• “I will not patronize an establishment or product that violates my personal or professional standards.”

No

• “Cost is the single biggest factor.”

Depends

• “I do not do high end anyway- so that's not an issue - but I do want to know that it's meat and not something else, I would like to know it's done ethically, but we all know what they show/say is not always what goes on behind the curtain so to speak. Sometimes I will avoid a place with a lot of publicity until I can do my own research. It really depends on what is being said and by whom. And my restaurant choices are different from my grocery store choices in many ways. A quick burger from a chain fast food, verses sit down restaurant, verses grocery - all different setting and choices.”