MARKETING...
That Much Better?
Predicted beef dollars really add up.
Cattle genetics have made big improvements since the American Angus Association released its beef value ($B) index in 2004. Often called “dollar beef,” it was one of the first tools to combine expected progeny differences (EPDs) for feedyard and carcass traits with economic measures. At the time, the breed average was +$23.79, and $45.48 represented the top 1%.
“Now today, we’re three times that, or higher,” says cattle feeder Sam Hands of Triangle H, Garden City, Kan. “So, are the cattle really three times better?” Read more.
In the Cattle Markets
Restaurant Performance Index falls.
The latest data, released June 1, 2017, reflects a steep drop — 1.5% — from March to April in the Restaurant Performance Index (RPI). The RPI is a monthly composite of the health of the U.S. restaurant industry and is measured in values relative to 100. Values exceeding 100 indicate the industry is expanding, while values below 100 indicate contraction.
April currently stands at 100.3, just barely over the 100 mark. The National Restaurant Association (NRA) cites a net decline in customer traffic and same-store sales, as well as a decline in optimism over the economy, compared to the March survey. Fig. 1 shows the RPI from 2003 to April 2017. Read more.
USMEF President Retires
USMEF kicks off spring conference, announces succession plan.
The U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) opened its spring conference May 24 in Arlington, Va., with an extensive discussion of the current international trade environment and a review of year-to-date export results for U.S. pork, beef and lamb. The federation also announced the successor to longtime USMEF President and CEO Philip Seng. Dan Halstrom, USMEF senior vice president for marketing, will become president Sept. 1 and assume the title of president and CEO Dec. 1. Seng will remain with the organization as CEO emeritus through July 2018. Read more.
Better Beef Leads Value Gain
Quality, branding add nearly $50 million per year to beef economy.
When cattle gain or lose $150 in per-head value in a week, it’s easy to lose sight of what lifts that value trend over the years. A University of Missouri (MU) study of 2003-2016 boxed-beef cutout values isolates the contribution of branded and Prime sales.
The work by MU economist Scott Brown builds on the 2007 CattleFax “Value of Quality Analysis” and updates Brown’s earlier finding that quality “added $4.5 billion to the beef economy in the nine years from 2005 through 2013.”
That total at the start of this year and going back to 2003 comes to $7.28 billion, including $750 million last year, with a 14-year average annual increase of $34 million. The impact is rising, with the average yearly gain since 2009 at $46 million, and up $100 million last year. Read more.
Ginette Gottswiller
The Source
Using registered Angus bulls can help you stand out from the crowd.
Time and time again I hear the same story: “I sold my calves for the same price as my neighbor who buys his black-hided bulls from the sale barn. I pay top dollar for good quality genetics from Mr. Angus Breeder and don’t get a penny more! What is wrong?”
Let’s think about that situation for a moment. Mr. Cattle Buyer is sitting on the bleachers and in runs a nice-looking set of black-hided feeder calves. In less than two minutes they are sold and out the gate. In runs another group of black-hided calves that look like peas in a pod. Out the door they go in 1 1/2 minutes. Quick evaluation time, auctioneer comments, orders to fill and maybe how the board is doing are the motivating factors for this buyer. Read more.
2017 Meat Production Estimates Trimmed
Total red meat and poultry production is expected to total near 100 billion pounds.
U.S. meat production is growing more slowly than previously expected. Many analysts have trimmed their estimates and USDA, in the latest monthly estimates, reduced forecasts for 2017 beef, pork and poultry production from earlier levels. Total red meat and poultry production is expected to total near 100 billion pounds (lb.), a new record level. However, slower growth in meat production, combined with improving trade balances for all meats, is holding meat consumption estimates close to year-ago levels. Per capita retail beef consumption is projected to increase less than 1% while pork and broiler consumption may be slightly lower year over year.
Beef production is currently projected to increase 3.4% year over year. Cattle slaughter for the year to date is still running about 6% higher year over year but slaughter rates for most classes of cattle have moderated recently and are expected to have smaller year-over-year increases in the second half of 2017. Read more.
Beef Takes Center Stage During
NYC #BeefTogether Meat Retreat
Food bloggers learn how to break down beef.
Seven New York City bloggers and retail influencers attended a day-long #BeefTogether meat retreat, all thanks to a partnership between the national beef checkoff and the New York and South Dakota Beef Councils.
The event was a meat fabrication and culinary experience hosted at the Brooklyn FoodWorks kitchen in Brooklyn. Attendees had the opportunity to observe Kari Underly, a master butcher and author of The Art of Cutting Beef, break down two beef subprimals, the rib and the top butt, with the opportunity to fabricate their own. Read more.
Angus Calendar
To view the Angus Calendar, a comprehensive list of Angus sales, click here.