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August 22, 2011


MARKETING...


In the Cattle Markets

A look back, and a look forward.

This year, fed-cattle prices will average about 18% above a year ago, while calf prices surge about 30%. The only real beneficiaries of record-high cattle prices in 2011 will be cow-calf producers and breeding stock providers in non-drought regions.

After a few good months in early 2011, cattle feeding began to record huge losses. Even with higher fed-cattle prices this fall, the red ink will continue on feedlot closeouts for at least the balance of 2011.

Cattle feeders pocketed good profits during the first four months of the year, but as the second quarter progressed seasonally lower, fed-cattle prices collided with surging feedstuff costs. Cost-of-gain in feedlots shot up to well over $100.00 per hundredweight (cwt.). Corn costs set record highs and caused rather volatile calf and yearling prices.

Several forces are shaping the U.S. cattle and beef industry, all of which may have rather long-term implications. Read more.

Researching the Perfect Steak

Aroma, taste evaluated by Texas AgriLife Research scientist.

Both taste and aroma are key factors one meat scientist is using to learn more about producing a better tasting steak. Chris Kerth, a Texas AgriLife Research meat scientist and associate professor in the department of animal science at Texas A&M University in College Station, is using AromaTrax technology in his laboratory to evaluate both aroma and flavor.

"We analyze all methods of sensory (input) using taste and aroma," said Kerth, who was recently featured on National Public Radio's Science Friday broadcast from San Antonio. Kerth also presented his research at the Texas A&M Beef Cattle Short Course in College Station, sponsored by the Texas AgriLife Extension Service. Read more.


CAB Mythbusters

What they thought they knew that just ain't true.

When I was hired by Certified Angus Beef LLC (CAB) in 2006, I was stoked. I was finishing my senior year of college and, like the typical fresh-faced grad, I knew it all. I knew I was joining an enthusiastic team that promoted the world's largest brand of beef. I knew they were going to pay me to do what I loved: writing about and for the livestock industry. I knew CAB was a quality product. (They fed me well during my training!)

But, I didn't know how much I didn't know.

I soon began to hear rumblings from classmates, neighbors back home and even my own family, such as, "Isn't that just a black-hided program?" or "Don't a lot of dairy cows qualify?" Well, the quick answers are "no" and "no." But one more thing I knew: Those two-letter answers never satisfy those who truly want to understand. Read more.


Exports On Record Pace

U.S. beef, pork exports close big first half with solid June results.

If the trend established in the first six months of the year holds up, U.S. beef and pork exports are likely to set several new records in 2011, and each could eclipse the $5 billion mark for the first time ever. According to statistics released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF), June beef exports achieved the second-highest value ever at $461.8 million. This was 23% higher than June 2010, and has been surpassed only once — by the March 2011 value total of $475.2 million. Read more.

Demand for the Brand is
Good News for Angus Producers

Beef is the protein of choice for celebrations, but most people know how little there was to celebrate with respect to beef demand in the 1980s and early 1990s.

Demand was down, but spirits were not, at least not among those who worked for the Certified Angus Beef® (CAB®) brand. Founded at the start of that downward spiral, the brand was just hitting its stride as overall demand finally began to recover in the last years of the 20th century and into this millennium.

Of course, basic economic lingo reminds us it's not only about demand. Does the phrase "supply and demand" ring a bell? Read more.


The Best Cattle and Cattlemen

Here's a link to a video we hope you will find of value. Kansas cattle feeder Mark Sebranek likes to work with ranchers who know about quality and want to know more, who coordinate health and management from ranch to feedyard. They know that starts on the ranch, and the information comes back to the ranch. Here's the clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnXwBn47Q3Q



Is 70 Million Pounds Significant?

CAB President John Stika talks about the significance to cattlemen of an all-time record CAB sales month of 70 million pounds for June. Here's the clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZ-0JrvBkYU



Turning Beef Byproducts Into Plastic

University of Alberta professor creating plastic from beef.

They look a little like fake cookies, the kind you'd find in a child's toy oven, but the chocolate brown plastic discs created by University of Alberta (U of A) researcher David Bressler and his lab represent the future of ingenious recycling.

Using the throwaway parts of beef carcasses that were sidelined from the value-added production process after bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) devastated the industry in 2003, Bressler, an associate professor in the U of A Department of Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science has collaborated with iindustry, government and other researchers to forge cattle proteins into heavy-duty plastics that could soon be used in everything from car parts to CD cases. Read more.


Angus Calendar

To view the Angus Calendar, a complete list of Angus sales, click here.



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