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Opinion: Beef breeding must aim for profitability

I was reading a blog post by Doug Ferguson of Beef Magazine recently when I stumbled upon a statement that will likely offend some friends of mine.

Ferguson wrote, “seed stock are cattle the industry needs; registered cattle chase the fads and show banners.”

This brings me to my question: are you investing in a seed stock operation and adding value to the cattle industry? Or are you investing in a registered cattle operation? We often get wrapped up in the fads created and desired in the show ring, but we are hurting the overall well-being of the industry by continuing to breed traits that either have no added benefit to our businesses’ annual profit or severely hinder that profit — not to mention if profit is even present in the business.

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US Soy: Strategic use of soybean meal to maximize pig carcass weight during the summer dip

Video: US Soy: Strategic use of soybean meal to maximize pig carcass weight during the summer dip

David Rosero, PhD, assistant professor of animal science at Iowa State University, and R. Dean Boyd, PhD, consultant with Animal Nutrition Research, recently spoke at the Iowa Swine Day Pre-Conference Symposium, titled Soybean 360º: Expanding our horizons through discoveries and field-proven feeding strategies for improving pork production. The event was sponsored by Iowa State University and U.S. Soy.

Every pig producer, nutritionist and veterinarian is familiar with the summer dip. Pig weight loss hits right as market prices are typically rising in July and August, creating a double-hit financially. New nutrition studies conducted on-farm have led leading nutritionists to a solution that includes higher soybean meal inclusion rates in the summer diet.