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SARE 1996 Highlights
Fatter Profits From Leaner Beef
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Ranchers as well as consumers could benefit from pasture-based systems
for finishing beef cattle. Pastured cattle gain weight more economically
and provide leaner steaks than feedlot-fattened steers, according to a
SARE study in Missouri involving crosses of Angus, Gelbvieh and Hereford
breeds. Cattle rotating through tall fescue/mixed clover paddocks and
fed no grain gained weight at a cost of $41 per hundredweight, compared
with $57 for steers fed only a rapid-gain, corn-based ration in confinement.
The grain-fed steers finished faster and most graded higher at slaughter
than the pastured cattle--but would have lost at least $25 per head based
on 1995 beef prices. Fed stockpiled pasture for 45 days after the grazing
season ended, each of the pastured cattle could have netted ranchers $40
in profits, the analysis shows. Researchers obtained intermediate results
when pastured cattle received some grain supplementation. In 1996, the
project will focus on pasture-nutrient analysis and meat quality, such
as beef flavor differences, cholesterol analysis and fat and protein content.
This SARE-sponsored research has sparked many collaborative studies, such
as one that could result in a computer-based grading tool more objective
than human graders in slaughter plants. Consumers might gain in other
ways too, additional studies show. Pasturing can enhance cattle health,
reduce mud and manure in slaughterhouses, improve leather quality and
protect water resources. (North Central Region projects ANC94-21 and LNC94-76)
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