CALF News Aug./Sept 2018

44 CALF News • August | September 2018 • www.calfnews.net Another major change is moving their calving date for all the cows to March 1. Heifers calve in a 160-acre pasture and are checked throughout the day – no night checking. The same percentage came through with a calf this spring as when they calved in a lot and checked them all night. Cows calve in larger pastures – half and full sections – and are checked once a day. “All cattle are grazed year-round,” he says.“There’s no ‘going to grass’ date for us. They are expected to forage for themselves unless deep snow or ice prevents it.” Norris says his job is to manage the grazing closely during the growing season to ensure they will have adequate forage for the rest of the year. All in all, in spite of the drought, the Norris family is living out their dream at the CK. Norris makes saddles and chaps in his spare time, and Tobina was get- ting ready for a craft fair that week. SMOKY HILLS Continued from page 39 He has a great deal of respect for the ranch owners and their management style. He really only seems to have one problem; it’s hard to order a pizza if your name is Chuck Norris.“They think I’m a crank call,” he laughs.  The CK Ranch herd grazes year round. PRICE PRESSURE Continued from page 41 U.S. gross national product may actually slide to 2.5 percent as a result of trade uncertainty. Again, pressure on U.S. grain prices would appear to benefit beef producers and feeders. But higher hay costs caused by the Southern Plains drought, along with bare pastures, will likely force more cows to be liquidated. Whether that would put a dent in the some 31 million beef cows seen in the U.S. at the beginning of the year remains to be seen.“The main thing is to grab a good price while you can,” Anderson says.“These opportunities won’t last. We continue to increase beef production and that leads to lower prices. So, we just need to be prepared for that.” Lenz points out that large hog numbers and tariff pressure on hog sales to China could hurt cattle prices. “There is a lot of uncertainty and a lot of unknowns,” he concludes,“and the market doesn’t like uncertainty.”  WORLD MEAT CONGRESS Continued from page 37 and very different generation of influ- encers. Have we moved away from the Golden Rule: “treat others the way we want to be treated” to the Platinum Rule: “treat others the way they want to be treated”? The remainder of the day was filled with presentations and panel discussions from the brightest scientific minds and industry experts, including what’s new in the red meat supply chain; how consum- ers are becoming more educated and wanting more answers about food production practices and attributes, including sustainability, animal care, human nutrition and health; plus the strategies being taken to answer the con- cerns of tomorrow’s consumer in regard to their meat-buying habits and enjoy- ment of eating experiences. The closing ceremony validated the Congress’s theme to collaborate and “Trust in Trade.”We are called to be articulate in the future. Do our custom- ers believe we are contributing to their family’s’ existence? The 2020 Congress will be hosted in Cancun, Mexico. The event concluded with a Taste of Texas party at the Circle R Ranch where everyone enjoyed a Wild West experience, including superb BBQ, a live country music band and arma- dillo races. A Fort Worth Stockyard and ranch tour was offered Saturday morning. Export markets are an integral part of livestock and grain production, and the World Meat Congress is an excellent col- laboration of efforts through IMS and USMEF in continuing to strengthen and solidify business relationships through- out the world.  U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue