BeefWatch Archive

Beefwatch Archive

To read articles prior to September 2017, please visit the article archive on UNL Announce.

Calving Management and Reducing Calf Losses in Beef Herds

Factors Causing Calving Difficulty 

Will Seasonality Patterns for Beef Export Sales and Commitments Hold in 2021?

This article was first published by In the Cattle Markets

Trade occurs when price differences between the two locations are large enough after accounting for transportation cost, exchange rates, tariffs, etc. Exports vary throughout the year since prices reflect current and future supply and demand situations. Seasonality in cattle production, meat demand, and market disruptions are some examples of why wholesale beef prices increase and decrease within a year.

February 2021 Beefwatch Webinar Series Registration Now Open

The BeefWatch Webinar Series is designed to highlight management strategies in grazing, nutrition, reproduction, and economics to increase cow/calf and stocker production efficiency and profitability. Each session will feature industry experts and plenty of opportunity to interact to get your questions answered. More information about the BeefWatch Webinar Series can be found on our webpage: https://beef.unl.edu/beefwatch-webinar-series.

Considerations for Maintaining Condition in Breeding Bulls during Winter

For bulls coming out of the breeding season, body weight loss may have occurred, and we need to make sure that we get bulls back in condition before the next season. Also, with the weather starting to change, starting to think about how we are going to manage our breeding bulls through the winter to prepare them for the next breeding season will be important. This will be a good time to evaluate body condition and ensure that bulls have adequate protection from harsh weather.

The Livestock Indemnity Program Year-end Updates

This article is a summary of the December 10, 2020 Cornhusker Economics article titled: “The Livestock Indemnity Program: A Case for Managing Risk with Good Recordkeeping.”

Annual Cow Costs – The Big Three

When looking at annual cow costs and doing an economic analysis, three categories tend to make up the largest percentage of total costs:  feed, labor/equipment and cow depreciation.  Other expenses occur, such as breeding expense and veterinary costs, but they tend to be significantly less than the “Big Three.” To conduct an economic analysis, break the ranch into enterprises to understand where value is being created and costs are occurring. Land ownership, hay production, cow-calf and replacement heifer development are four of the major enterprises on many ranches.

Unit Cost of Production Workshop Valentine, Nebraska February 3 and 4

A two-day workshop this February will provide hands-on learning for cow-calf producers to learn how to calculate unit cost of production (UCOP). The meeting will take place February 3 and 4 (Wednesday and Thursday) at the Niobrara Lodge, 803 E Highway 20, Valentine, NE, from 8:30 a.m. - 4 p.m. CST.

The Likelihood of Regional Triggers Under the Industry’s Proposed '75% Rule'

This article was first published by In the Cattle Markets.

The New Face at Nebraska BQA

Jesse Fulton

Adding Sheep to a Cattle Operation in central Nebraska - A Producer’s Perspective

Multi-species grazing can be an option to more fully utilize grazing resources. In this month’s BeefWatch Producer Perspective Podcast, Jim Jenkins from Custer County, Nebraska discusses why he made the decision to add a band of sheep to his operation and the opportunities he sees for sheep to complement cattle in Nebraska.

Topics discussed include: