Consumer Connection Template

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The Beef Industry
Structure of the beef industry, how it functions
and its geographic distribution.
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Beef Products

• Primary Product of Beef Production
• Finished or Fat Cattle
• Fed to desired fatness endpoint
• .2 to 1 inch of backfat
• Intramuscular fat or marbling Quality Grade
• Prime, choice, select, standard eating quality
• corn fed 60 300 days white fat
• 1-2.5 years of age at harvest
• Maximum quality at high yield of meat
• Yield Grade scale of 1-5, 1 is highest lean
• Steers or heifers not used for breeding

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Beef Products

• Secondary Products of Beef Production
• Older cows, intact males, older bulls
• Ponderosa steaks, processing beef, ground beef
• Wide range in Quality Grade
• Commercial, cutter, canner, bullock
• leftovers from production cycle

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MEAT PRODUCTION End product are animals
harvested for meat Breeding stock -
Genes Reproducing herd or flock multiply
animals Finishing or Fattening produce
acceptable end product Harvesting Wholesale/Retai
l to Consumers
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Are there vertically integrated animal
industries? Is the beef industry vertically
integrated? What would horizontal integration
mean in an animal industry?
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Segments of Beef Cattle Industry

• Purebred (seedstock) cow/calf producers
• Commercial cow/calf producers
• Stocker/grower operations
• Feedlots (finishing)
• Packers, wholesalers, retailers, consumers

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Life Cycle Cow-calf production

• weaning
• 7 to 9 months of age (adjust to 205 days)
• 400 to 700 lbs.
• typically in fall
• 1st breeding of replacement heifers
• puberty 12 13 months of age
• bred by 15 months, typically in spring

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Life Cycle Cow-calf production

• calving of heifers
• 2 years of age
• typically in spring for forage availability for
  lactation
• Longevity 6-10 years
• Calf crop 50 bulls, 50 heifers
• Where do they go after weaning?

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Purebred Cow/Calf Producers

• Function
• produce breeding stock (mostly bulls) for
  commercial other seedstock producers
• provide superior genetics

• End Product
• bulls pedigrees, performance and EPDs
• for natural mating directly to commercial
  producers
• for artificial insemination
• sell or lease bulls to AI studs Semen
• 10 70 of bulls for breeding, rest as feedlot
  cattle

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Purebred Cow/Calf Producers

• End Product
• heifers 20-50 kept as replacements
• 20 50 sold to other purebred producers
• 20 50 - feedlot cattle

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Seedstock Producer
BULLS
HEIFERS
COWS
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Commercial Cow/Calf Producers

• Function
• produce calves for harvest (meat)
• sold to a feedlot or stocker operator at weaning
• retained ownership finish calves themselves
• 100 of steers
• produce replacement breeding females for herd
• top 20-50 of heifers, rest to feedlot

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What states have the most beef cows?