Info graphic courtesy of the VT Ag Econ Club.
View larger: http://news.cals.vt.edu/fbm-update/files/2016/10/Ag-Econ-Club-Info-Graphic-2016.pdf
Info graphic courtesy of the VT Ag Econ Club.
View larger: http://news.cals.vt.edu/fbm-update/files/2016/10/Ag-Econ-Club-Info-Graphic-2016.pdf
Contributed by Carl Stafford, Senior Extension Agent, Animal Science, Culpeper County
Wintering cost is one of the biggest expenses in producing beef cattle. John Howe, Spotsylvania Extension Agent, explained the difference in the cost of a pound of dry matter from pasture vs. that from harvested feed. He found that the equipment harvested feed can run 3 to 4 times the cost of that harvested by cattle. Gordon Groover supports Howe in his article, “What I Know about Forage Economics,” Virginia Forager, Fall 2016, page 7. He finds that each ton of hay could have more than $200 per ton equipment depreciation before “out-of-pocket” expenses are added.
Theme: Tall Fescue in the 21st Century: Understanding and Managing Tall Fescue in Grazing Systems
Gordon Groover, Extension Specialist, Ag and Applied Economics, VA Tech
Dates: January 26-29, 2016
Tall Fescue in the 21st Century is the theme for the Virginia Forage and Grassland Council (VFGC) and Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE) winter forage conferences. This year’s conference highlights current knowledge and practice that producers can apply to management of their tall fescue based grazing systems. This year’s speakers are nationally recognized experts in tall fescue production and management. The morning program will focus on understanding issues and problems with tall fescue and the afternoon program will explore potential solutions to these problems. Continue reading
Market Maker, a web-based portal that serves as a virtual marketplace for producers, distributors, and sellers, and buyers of agricultural products, seeks to provide farm-to-fork access to participants in the food supply chain. Continue reading
Santerra Boyd, Garret Chambers, Matthew Harris, and Montgomery McCarthy, all Virginia Kohl Centre students; Dr. Gordon Groover, Kohl Centre Facilitator, Associate Professor and Extension Program Leader, Virginia Tech; Dr. Kimberly Morgan, Kohl Junior Facility Fellow, Agricultural and Applied Economics, Virginia Tech
Market Maker allows for harvest facilities to more effectively advertise their businesses and for producers to find harvesting facilities that best fit their needs. The purpose of this fact sheet is to provide information about MarketMaker to Extension agents, VDACS employees, harvest and packing facilities, and animal producers. Visit this site to learn more about MarketMaker https://foodmarketmaker.com/main/why. After addressing the need for improved avenues of communication between harvest facilities and animal producers, an educational video tutorial was developed by the authors to demonstrate the steps a manager can take to register their meat processing facility on the Market Maker database https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hs1xNzPav4k.
The complete publication an be found at: https://pubs.ext.vt.edu/AAEC/AAEC-86/AAEC-86-pdf.pdf
Tom Stanley, Extension Agent, Farm Business Management, Rockingham, Augusta, Rockbridge, Highland, and Bath Counties
These are good times in the cattle business with record high prices for calves and feed prices that have moderated following the severe drought in the Corn Belt in 2012. Beef cattle are the leading agricultural product in most Virginia Counties west of the Blue Ridge in terms of land use and gross receipts, thus the favorable cattle market is good news. The three to five year outlook for the cow/calf sector (the predominant type of beef production in Virginia) is very strong. This has many cattlemen contemplating how they might retain their own heifer calves or acquire additional cows to capitalize on this profitable environment. Continue reading
Gordon Groover, Extension Economist, Farm Management, Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Virginia Tech
The 2012 Agricultural Census contains a wealth of information for all sectors of U.S. and Virginia agriculture. One of Virginia’s most widely dispersed commodities in Virginia is the cattle herd, found from the Alleghany Mountains to the Tidewater. Continue reading
Peter Callan (peter.callan@vt.edu), Extension Agent, Farm Business Management, Northern District and Kelly Liddington (klidding@vt.edu), Extension Agent, Animal Science, Richmond County
The recent decline in corn prices has some Virginia cattle producers feeding 600 pound weaned calves to higher weights. Furthermore, this management decision has been supported by the strengthening of cattle prices in September with premiums on cattle futures in deferred months. Calculation of the cost of feed for an animal to gain one pound of weight is key to determining the profitability of retaining ownership of these cattle. This article discusses the profitability of keeping 600 pound feeder calves by feeding them simple and complex rations as compared to just taking the calves of the cows and selling at the sale barn. Continue reading