How much ear is too much in a US sale barn?

[ga. prime]

I don't mind a 10 or 15 cent discount when I am hauling a calf that has weaned out 20% heavier I am still money ahead. Crossbred calf will wean out 10% heavier than a purebred a 3 way cross with Brimmer influence will wean out 20% heavier. When we haul to the salebarn we are selling pounds across the scale.

Very good point. I think that's sound economics for 1/4 eared or less cattle in my local markets. Usually get a bigger hit than 10 or 15% on 1/2 eared though.

 

[BC]

Here in East Texas, we typically see 1/4 blood or less cattle sell right with the cattle without Brahman influence. Cattle showing 3/8 plus Brahman influence will see some discount with the calves showing over 1/2 Brahman seeing the most discount. The exception to this would be Brangus heifers. The top end of these will bring top steer prices.

 

[aussie_cowgirl]

I really like Brahman meat.

 

[Keren]

lol, just like I like heifer meat, but MLA research tells us they dont eat as well as steers lol

 

[Roan]

Thanks for all the info, didnt know that about the ear breeds! We really dont have them up north where I am.

 

[alacattleman]

http://marketnews.usda.gov/gear/browseb ... _LS143.TXT, why are they putting brahmanX out by the price,???

 

[Uncle Dude]

http://marketnews.usda.gov/gear/browseby/txt/MG_LS143.TXT, why are they putting brahmanX out by the price,???

Wow they are treating Brahman X like Holsteins in that market! The reason I asked the questions about eared cattle, is I like the features that Brahman has to offer like heat resistance and cow longevity, but that cow would have to produce a lot of years to overcome than .10 a lbs difference at the sale.

 

[alacattleman]

their trying too get cattleman :arrow: >>>>>in our area<<<< too get completely away from brahman influenced cattle by putting that beside the discounts

 

[Txwalt]

To say that cattle are discounted for brahman influence or any other reason because of buyers whims is a fallacy. Cattle prices are determined by expected marketability and profitability.

:clap: :clap:

 

[Santas and Duhram Reds]

Calves are discounted for multiple reasons, and many/most of them have nothing to do with marketability or profitability of the end product.

 

[Caustic Burno]

Calves are discounted for multiple reasons, and many/most of them have nothing to do with marketability or profitability of the end product.

You hit the nail on the head, seen many a longhorn go for 40 cents a pound those t bones end up right in the butcher counter along with everything else.

 

[alacattleman]

Calves are discounted for multiple reasons, and many/most of them have nothing to do with marketability or profitability of the end product.

You hit the nail on the head, seen many a longhorn go for 40 cents a pound those t bones end up right in the butcher counter along with everything else.

bet those t bones where drier and tougher than grandpaws razor strop,,, hence the 40 cents a pound

 

[Caustic Burno]

Calves are discounted for multiple reasons, and many/most of them have nothing to do with marketability or profitability of the end product.

You hit the nail on the head, seen many a longhorn go for 40 cents a pound those t bones end up right in the butcher counter along with everything else.

bet those t bones where drier and tougher than grandpaws razor strop,,, hence the 40 cents a pound

I doubt if you could tell the difference unless some one told us. This is a prime example as how we as a group are always chasing the next better breed of cattle, that ends up costing us the farm. Instead on running extremely efficient cattle that have low input cost and raise a healthy calf with no assitance for our environment. I knew a fellow that ran 2000 head of momma cows and his entire calf herd went through his butcher shop, they were grass fed only, looked like a box of crayons looking at them and nothing was steered. People raved about his beef.
As a group we are our on worst enemy you can not get any two cowmen to agree on breed and that is because there is not a perfect breed just perfect breeds for your operation and management style.
Buyers discount for anything under the sun I have seen every breed there is discounted at one time or other at the salebarn. There job is to pay us as little as possible and fill the trailer. Soon as these go down the chute and the hide comes off they are all the same color.

 

[ga. prime]

Calves are discounted for multiple reasons, and many/most of them have nothing to do with marketability or profitability of the end product.

In a competitive auction, calves are bought at a price level where the buyer expects to profit from his sale of the animal or the end product to another buyer. That's what makes auctions work. Buyers that buy calves and profit from them. If they didn't, buyers at auctions would be out of business pronto and there wouldn't be any more auctions. It has everything to do with marketabilty and profitability.

 

[Santas and Duhram Reds]

And it is a fallacy to believe that every discount given by buyers is justly merited and not relying on a buyers wim. Yes, marketability and profitability are major forces behind any auction, and increasing profitability and marketability relies on wims whether they are just/accurate or not.

 

[BC]

And it is a fallacy to believe that every discount given by buyers is justly merited and not relying on a buyers wim. Yes, marketability and profitability are major forces behind any auction, and increasing profitability and marketability relies on wims whether they are just/accurate or not.

Order buyers bid on what kind of cattle they have been told their customers will accept. They just want to make their $0.50 per cwt commission and will try to put any calf on an order that they think they won't get cut back on them.

I have a part time job as an order buyer for a small order buying company and I also raise some Santa Gertrudis cattle. Many times I can not put a Gert, Beefmaster or good Brahman X on an order because the customer has specified 1/4 blood or less, even though I personally think those crossbred calves are just as good. Another factor is where those calves will wind up. We have been shipping some steers from here in East Texas to New Mexico. Those good 3/8 to 1/2 blood calves just can not hair up for the winters out there.

 

[Santas and Duhram Reds]

Ultimately, isn't your order buying company the true bidder/buyer. I realize they are making the call on how much Brahman influence they are willing to accept, which in turn affects your buying tendencies, but they themselves are still making a call that may or may not be justified. They could just as easily tell you they want all black calves and that is making an assumption on an animal they know nothing about and may in fact perform worse than a Brahman influenced animal and this is all based on a wim.

Also, as far as hairing up, my cattle have no problems hairing up. In your case, you are taking an animal from the south and making them adjust in a short period of time. All animals will experience a shock under these conditions. Also, a Brahman influenced animal that is already in an environment that is "colder" shouldn't be discounted for that particular reason so in my opinion that excuse doesn't hold water for all Brahman influenced animals to be discounted. If it is a weather issue, then all cattle raised in the south should have a discount compared to cattle raised in Northern country. And in turn, shouldn't Bos Taurus cattle be discounted at certain times of the year when they will be experiencing the heat of summer.

Another point, there have been studies on Brahman influence cattle and there ability to perform in colder weather. It has been found that Brahman influenced cattle like Santas are able to perform in colder weather.
link:
http://jds.fass.org/cgi/reprint/39/6/715.pdf

My point is that many people assume that Brahman influenced cattle are inferior because they either can not perform in the feedlot, have poorer meat quality, etc. when that isn't always the case. I guess that's why the cattle we raise have to be just slightly better than the avg. cow to make up for the discrimination we sometimes receive at the sale barn.

One more point, do your buyers discount you for a Hereford calf that may have a blemished/scarred eye too? Does that blemished/scarred eye really affect their profitability when they are cutting him up? I really don't think it does. Buyers find any reason they can to get discounts and these discounts are not always justified.

 

[novatech]

If the meat was unpalatable they would not be bought no matter what the price. You take a bunch of salty, mishandled, bremmers and run a test on them they will be tough. You that a bunch of properly raised and handled bremmers you are much more likely to have acceptable beef. A lot of the opinions about Brahman beef stem from the days of old. Not many people raise their Brahmans that way any more. The auctions commonly start them lower so they end lower. The testing on the quality that different people have done mean very little. It depends on the selection and their handling technique.
There are people that specialize in Brahman terminals. They know how to feed them, handle them, and process them. They do this because they can buy them cheaper.
I don't believe you would find many Brahman that would meat CAB standards, But to say all Brahman beef is tough is simply rubbish.

 

[ga. prime]

If a person is selling calves at a typical sale barn and those calves sell consistently below average, there's a reason for it. The reason is because their profit potential makes them not worth average price - that's not a whim or fancy. If it were a whim or fancy, two or more buyers would quickly recognize the gold mine of profit potential and run the price up accordingly. It works real simple.

 

[novatech]

If a person is selling calves at a typical sale barn and those calves sell consistently below average, there's a reason for it. The reason is because their profit potential makes them not worth average price - that's not a whim or fancy. If it were a whim or fancy, two or more buyers would quickly recognize the gold mine of profit potential and run the price up accordingly. It works real simple.

I believe that preconceived notions play a much greater role than you may think. The same as black hair brings more money. We may have to say we are going to agree that we disagree on this one. But I still respect your opinion.