CALF_News_April_May_2020

16 CALF News • April | May 2020 • www.calfnews.net COVER STORY Trends Beef on Dairy Comes of Age By Betty Jo Gigot Publisher H ighlighting the advance- ment in the use of beef- on-dairy, Don Close, Rabo AgriFinance senior animal protein analyst, presented his paper, “Dairy Calves Get a Beef Makeover” at the Cattle Industry Convention in February. The presentation described the trend that shows that barriers between the beef and dairy sectors are breaking down and that advancement is a win for both beef and dairy. According to the report, as dairies manage to breed only select cows to desired dairy bulls for female replace- ments and, subsequently, open 70 percent of the herd to be bred to beef bulls, they are replacing calves that were often liabilities with animals that are creating value. Beef-on-dairy crosses are often worth $100 to $150 more than a conventional dairy animal. “Cattle producers benefit from calves that are fully functional in the beef pro- duction stream,” Close says.“Beef-on- dairy crosses are breeding high-quality carcasses with the improved muscle conformation desired by processors. “An additional advantage is that the dairy industry could create a sizable pool of cattle that is potential both individually source and age-verified with incredible consistency,” he continued. ”As the U.S. beef industry looks to expand trace into more international markets – the largest growth opportunity for beef demand – the ability to source and age-verify a consistent, quality product has excellent potential for value creation in the export market, as well as in the branded domestic market.” Rabobank anticipates an increase in the supply of beef-on-dairy calves in 2020, a trend that should continue to climb to the industry’s peak, or near- peak, over the next three to five years. Close’s report emphasized that, while there are advantages to both the dairy and the beef production streams, it is important to keep in mind that beef-on- dairy programs produce no additional cattle. “Whereas non-replacement dairy heifers would have conventionally ended up in the non-fed beef supply, beef-on- dairy programs strategically place them into the beef supply chain as fed beef animals, which should result in animals with improved muscle conformation and increased carcass yields of approximately three percent,” he said.“This modest shift in female utilization shouldn’t have any detrimental impact on the beef cow herd.” Close noted that improved technology such as sexed semen at more reasonable prices, and replacement female selection moving to the top 30 percent of dairy cows aligning with cull rates, opened up to 70 percent of the herd to breeding with beef bulls. “Currently, adopters are using two methods for choosing the maternal stock for replacement females,” he explained. “One is using sexed, dairy semen on breeding heifers, due to the higher conception rates. In some cases, dairies are also using genomics to select cows for breeding replacements.” According to Close’s report, while the beef-on-dairy program is a win-win for both the dairy producer and the cattle feeder, there is no free lunch for either side. In interviews with multiple cattle feeders who have significant experi- ence with beef-on-dairy crosses, the Continued on page 19  Rabobank’s Don Close discusses the potential for crossing dairy cows with beef bulls to generate quality beef and provide economic benefits for troubled dairy producers.