The Link
What does ‘value’ mean exactly?
What does “value” mean exactly?
Is it a Black Friday sale you wait four hours for to hopefully get a deal? Or maybe it is when the dealership offers “0% interest, details apply.”
Marketing is powerful. That 0% interest deal, or sometimes the Black Friday deal, can save you money; however, for the deal to have true value, each individual has to make it fit their situation.
Value-added programs in the verification business are no different. The prices each company charges are not much different. Each one requires a program-compliant tag with age-and-source verification being the base claim. Most companies offer non-hormone-treated cattle (NHTC) and a never-ever-3 (NE3) claim, which some refer to as verified natural.
The suite of claims offered by AngusLink℠, a USDA Process Verified Program (PVP), is different. Remember when I said marketing was powerful? Angus is powerful marketing. Consumers and buyers know Angus means quality. Angus means integrity. Angus means value.
AngusLink combines the value, integrity and quality of Angus into a no-nonsense verification program that drives home the true worth of Angus genetics in the marketplace each and every day.
What does value mean?
The value of AngusLink means sellers of enrolled calves utilizing the Angus Verified claim will be rewarded for buying quality Angus genetics. It is evident from the data collected from calves that sold in summer 2020 on Northern Video Livestock Auction, Superior and Western Video Market that Angus genetics pay.
More than 40,000 head of AngusLink calves that had sold on the video sales by the end of July 2020 averaged more than $10 per hundredweight (cwt.) in premiums across the board.
AngusLink-enrolled calves with NHTC and the Angus Verified claim received more than $13 per cwt., and if they included our NeverEver3 claim, the value climbed to more than $15 per cwt. Those same producers who used AngusLink’s Angus Verified claim and added our EarthClaims-exclusive Global Animal Partnership (GAP) bundle, which includes NHTC-NE3, reaped $24 per cwt. more on sale day.
Time well-spent
Most producers comment it takes time to enroll. I agree, it does. Producers who are new to the programs obviously have a learning curve. However, like riding a horse, once you learn the process, it isn’t that difficult. Most producers have everything. Finding what you need can depend on your recordkeeping system.
Let’s break down the enrollment cost on the average video sale lot to determine if your time is being well-spent on enrolling in the AngusLink PVP program (see Table 1).
The definition of value is different for every person. However, utilizing value-added verification programs like AngusLink is a step toward setting your feeder calves apart from the other black-hided calves on sale day.
After all, you might just find out how much more valuable those calves can be to your bottom line. To learn more about AngusLink, visit www.anguslink.com or call the AngusLink team at 816-383-5100 to learn how to add more value to your feeder calves on sale day.
Editor’s note: The American Angus Association offers a host of programs to assist commercial cattlemen in profiting from their Angus genetics. Ginette Gottswiller is the Association’s director of verification services.
