– Kenny Burdine, University of Kentucky Feeder cattle markets continue to get hit hard. Not surprising, volumes were quite light last week, but prices still dropped drastically. Based on weekly averages, 850 lb Medium / Large Frame #1-2 steer price is down nearly $22 per cwt over the last two weeks. After holding impressively for [...]

– Garth Ruff, OSU Extension Henry County; Jason Hartschuh, OSU Extension Crawford County; Allen Gahler, OSU Extension Sandusky County (originally published in Ohio Farmer on-line) Teff, Italian ryegrass, oats and corn were included with 5 other ‘covers’ in this study The combination of poor quality hay made in 2018, historic alfalfa winter kill, and excessive [...]

– Jason Jones, Ohio Grasslands & Grazing Coordinator, Pheasants Forever, Inc. and Quail Forever Interested farmers may now submit applications to enroll acres into the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) Grasslands. The signup period for 2020 will run from March 16 through May 15. Through CRP Grasslands, a participant can maintain common practices such as grazing, [...]

Most know that calves are not born with any immunoglobulins, which are critical for the health of a new born calf. Immunoglobulins are supplied by the cow via colostrum, or first milk, and calves only have a 24 hour window to ingest these molecules through the lining of their gut before that window closes. During [...]

– Chris Teutsch, UK Research and Education Center at Princeton Figure 1. Excessive rainfall and high livestock concentration in and around hay feeding areas has resulted in almost complete disturbance. Wet conditions this winter have resulted in almost complete disturbance in and around hay feeding areas. Even well-designed hay feeding pads will have significant damage [...]

– Jason Hartschuh, OSU Extension Crawford County, AgNR Educator and Stan Smith, OSU Extension PA, Fairfield County (originally published in the Ohio Farmer on-line) With somewhere around 1.5 million acres that were not planted last spring to the intended crops of corn or soybeans due to the extraordinary weather, today, Ohio farmers likely have more [...]

– Jeff Lehmkuhler, PhD, PAS Associate Extension Professor As we see the events unfold in response to COVID-19, I thought I would share a few things to consider in any emergency. Emergency preparedness first came to light for me early in my graduate student career when the hurricane hit North Carolina and my swine colleagues [...]

– Dr. Andrew Griffith, Assistant Professor, Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Tennessee FED CATTLE: Fed cattle traded $3 to $4 lower compared to last week. Prices on a live basis were mainly $109 to $110 while dressed prices were mostly $173 to $175. The 5-area weighted average prices thru Thursday were $109.35 [...]

For at least the past dozen years we’ve shared how anything that decreases the particle size of forages also increases the surface area for the bacteria to attach, thus speeding up the rate of digestion and allowing the beef animal to receive more total nutrients in a shorter time. In short, processing long stem forages [...]

– Dr. Elliott Dennis, Assistant Professor, Livestock Marketing Economist, Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Nebraska – Lincoln The media and market attention surrounding coronavirus (COVID-19) has been near deafening. Uncertainty surrounding the severity, transmission rates, case fatality, and government policies has induced large amounts of volatility into the markets. Market analysts are still trying [...]