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Source and Aged calves

B

BRG

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Apr 20, 2005
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Location
North Western SD
I just got off the phone with the Red Angus Commecial marketing man. Dr. Hoss. He was at the Superior Livestock sale held in Sheridan, WY this week. He had the sale results in his hand of how the Source and Aged calves did compared to the ones that were not. They said that the Source and Aged calves sold for a $3.70/cwt premium. To me that is huge. On a 550 lbs calf that comes to $20 bucks a calf. Granted that is a country wide audiance for bidders, I am not sure it would be that much at alot of the sale barns around the country, but I know it would at some. Do many of you use a Source and Aged tagging system?
 
As a canuck I believe we were seeing a premium for doing it, but it is hard to sort out exactly how much. Preconditioned, age, source and documented genetics obtain a premium, but what percentage is for age verification hard to say. Some producers were getting a direct check from the processor for providing age verified calves.
Thanks to the intelligence of our provincial government making age verification mandatory I am pretty sure the age and source part of that bonus is now gone. :mad:
 
I don't believe we see a single cent for our efforts up here with regards to age verification. We will get less if they are not age verified though. We have seen no improvement in price or markets since going to this method and so far all it's done is cost us a couple bucks per animal sold. Now I understand the CCIA feels they need an extra $.60 per tag to maintain the systems viability. I don't remember anyone asking us how much we'd need to make our operations viable.
This system we have in place has many advantages for many parts of the industry except at the producer level. And it is the producer bearing most of the cost with no financial incentive.
 
Here in the states the evidence is there; if your desire is to sell calves at the top of the market, then source and age verification is one of the requirements. At the same time, that qualification has to be a part of a total package to really ring a bell. A preconditioning program is almost essential and weaning the calves for some period at the ranch is another big deal for the feeder. These things take out the risk of death loss and sickness, but they do come at some cost for the producer, no doubt. Also, some known feedlot performance and carcass quality are big benefits along with a solid and uniform set of genetics. I don't care if the cattle are solid red or solid black, solid Herefords or solid smokeys, they ought to be generally the same calves across the board. These factors combined create the added value.

Oh by the way, it sure helps if potential buyers know about all of this!! Pick up the phone, give five feedlots a call before the sale and tell them all about your cattle! Get a bid, get a floor under them. Relying on your market man to do all the work is not nearly as good a hedge as picking up the phone yourself.

HP
 
High Plains said:
Here in the states the evidence is there; if your desire is to sell calves at the top of the market, then source and age verification is one of the requirements. At the same time, that qualification has to be a part of a total package to really ring a bell. A preconditioning program is almost essential and weaning the calves for some period at the ranch is another big deal for the feeder. These things take out the risk of death loss and sickness, but they do come at some cost for the producer, no doubt. Also, some known feedlot performance and carcass quality are big benefits along with a solid and uniform set of genetics. I don't care if the cattle are solid red or solid black, solid Herefords or solid smokeys, they ought to be generally the same calves across the board. These factors combined create the added value.

Oh by the way, it sure helps if potential buyers know about all of this!! Pick up the phone, give five feedlots a call before the sale and tell them all about your cattle! Get a bid, get a floor under them. Relying on your market man to do all the work is not nearly as good a hedge as picking up the phone yourself.

HP
Click to expand...

I couldn't agree more. I just wrote almost the same thing for our annual Newsletter. The day of just taking cattle to the barn and selling them is over, if you want to make the most possible.
 
Been the same here for years--BUT that didn't necessarily mean a Government eartag in the calfs ear....I've watched them sold sourced and aged for years with a hot iron brand- and State Brand Division transfer of ownership inspection for ID- and signed affidavits verifying age, area origin, feed/nonfeed stuff, verification of no steriods/implants and no antibiotics, certification of shots program....
 
In today's markets, "Age and Source Verified" means that they've been approved as such through a third party "process verified program" such as AngusSource, Red Angus Certification, IMI Global, AgInfoLink, MicroBeef etc. This makes the beef product eligible for export to countries such as Japan that require "20 months and younger" age on the cattle. Packers pay from $10 to $60 per head for cattle with this verification, depending on time of year. Mostly averaging from $25 to $35 per head. The rancher doesn't get this money directly, unless retaining ownership, of course. However, if this very cheap step has been taken and all or most of the factors described above are included, then we're talking about premium cattle that will bring the money. Of course "natural" and "NHTC" qualifiers are an additional premium area most of the time. But "natural" bawling calves aren't worth much premium, too much risk of sickness and "falling out" of the natural program when they need a shot of antibiotic. That's the way it is today.

HP
 
I was thinking about looking into doing this age source for awhile, but not sure how to go about it. Whats all involved with it? Might be a dumb question :oops: Would it be of value if you just sell at the local sale barn, or does it pay better if you sell with superior or direct market to a feeder?
 
We've been doing it for about 4 years. As stated above there is about a $20 a head premium by spending about $3 to do it. I've been doing it with IMI Global. Next year I plan on doing the NHTC certification too.
 
High Plains said:
In today's markets, "Age and Source Verified" means that they've been approved as such through a third party "process verified program" such as AngusSource, Red Angus Certification, IMI Global, AgInfoLink, MicroBeef etc. This makes the beef product eligible for export to countries such as Japan that require "20 months and younger" age on the cattle. Packers pay from $10 to $60 per head for cattle with this verification, depending on time of year. Mostly averaging from $25 to $35 per head. The rancher doesn't get this money directly, unless retaining ownership, of course. However, if this very cheap step has been taken and all or most of the factors described above are included, then we're talking about premium cattle that will bring the money. Of course "natural" and "NHTC" qualifiers are an additional premium area most of the time. But "natural" bawling calves aren't worth much premium, too much risk of sickness and "falling out" of the natural program when they need a shot of antibiotic. That's the way it is today.

HP
Click to expand...

Thats where these cattle were/are headed too- into the USDA's BEV program-- and programs shipping to Japan and others.... Some of the feeders preferred the use of affidavits because it allowed them to utilyze whatever ID system they had sat up for in their feedlots...Some of the loads I inspected out were going to Colorado feedlots that used "eye readers" and their own tagging system to identify- and the paper trail for "signed verification"....

Interesting you mentioned Angus Source which is kind of a hot topic right now after all the money the AAA has lost with it- and then all the questions that arose on the associations financial stability after they had to raise dues almost 300%- and cut services to members apparently because of these financial problems....
 
Oldtimer said:
Been the same here for years--BUT that didn't necessarily mean a Government eartag in the calfs ear....I've watched them sold sourced and aged for years with a hot iron brand- and State Brand Division transfer of ownership inspection for ID- and signed affidavits verifying age, area origin, feed/nonfeed stuff, verification of no steriods/implants and no antibiotics, certification of shots program....
Click to expand...

OT we are source and age verified and never had to put a government tag in their ear. What the heck are you talking about??????? :???:

We've been source and age verified for the past 5 years, we have a 3rd party who contacts us about the verification. In order to do that, we have to send in several options, one option is to make copies of our calving book. Maybe you don't keep as good records as we do??????????
 
Hanta Yo said:
Oldtimer said:
Been the same here for years--BUT that didn't necessarily mean a Government eartag in the calfs ear....I've watched them sold sourced and aged for years with a hot iron brand- and State Brand Division transfer of ownership inspection for ID- and signed affidavits verifying age, area origin, feed/nonfeed stuff, verification of no steriods/implants and no antibiotics, certification of shots program....
Click to expand...

OT we are source and age verified and never had to put a government tag in their ear. What the heck are you talking about??????? :???:

We've been source and age verified for the past 5 years, we have a 3rd party who contacts us about the verification. In order to do that, we have to send in several options, one option is to make copies of our calving book. Maybe you don't keep as good records as we do??????????
Click to expand...

Mine go back to the 60's, when I first started tagging--- how far back does yours go?
I have books on the bulls/sires purchased- and which years used- that go back to 30's...

My affidavit has on it that I will supply all calving records at any purchasers request.....
 
I just sold my fed steers a couple weeks ago. They paid $35 per head for the source and aged certificate. I didn't have to retag them, they used my calving record, and breeding records and my id tags as proof for verification. Little bit of paperwork but was well worth it.

Brian
 

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