Corah spoke to participants at the Applied Reproductive Strategies in Beef Cattle convention on Dec. 3, and cited the proliferation of CAB qualifying beef in 2012, which reached 811 million pounds from 3.2 million head of cattle.
Corah, who holds a doctorate in reproductive physiology, said today’s pregnancy rates in cow herds, enhanced through artificial insemination technology and synchronization programs, have pushed reproductive success rates higher than he’d ever imagined.
“Protocols have come a long way, it’s a compliment to the work of these researchers and the job they’re doing.”
Those progressive methods push the industry toward the same goal – to meet customer demand. With prices higher and national herd numbers lower, the customer is more selective than ever with the dollar he spends.
“For us to be successful and sustainable in the beef cattle industry, we’ve got to sell product. … We’ve got to sell them at a price point that’s a lot higher than it was five to eight years ago because of the input costs.”
The genetics that enhance quality cuts and greater qualification to prime, choice and Certified Angus Beef grading, are essential to meeting that demand and price pressure, Corah said.
Citing surveys about customer eating experiences: Corah said only 4 percent of prime beef customers rate their eating experience as poor. When you go to the upper two-third cuts of choice beef, only 5 percent say the eating was undesireable.
At low choice, the undesirable eating experience rating jumps to 14 percent. “Folks that’s too high,” Corah said. “If you’re going to sell beef product at the prices we’ve got, you cannot have 14 out of every 100 steaks at a restaurant being undesirable.”
To sell beef in today’s protein market requires a quality eating experience for the customer, and more management input for the producer.
But that work will pay off, Corah explained as he addressed four key myths related to beef quality production.
There’s no money to be made in quality cuts
Corah said most instances show the extra effort to capture dollars on quality grade paid off. Producer groups allied with CAB have reported the top 25 percent of their cattle, based mainly on quality grade premiums, returned and extra $115 per head. The top 50 percent returned $94 per head. The increase in CAB-qualifed beef in 2012 resulted in a jump of close to $200 per carcass weight.
Further proof this year was found in the choice-select spread, which started around $10 for much of the early year, went up to $22 spread, even pushing $25 to $28 – largely created by the demand from retailers such as Kroger and Walmart.
The market has gotten stronger for premium beef, Corah said, since the 2008-09 recession, especially at the retail level.
You sacrifice growth and pounds to hit quality targets
Producers don’t give up pounds and quality, Corah explained, especially considering the progress breeds like Angus have made in growth traits.
“You’re able to select for low birthweight EPDs and still get growth,” he said. “I would have told you 10 to 15 years ago that it was impossible to get yearling EPDs of 100 associated with birthweight EPDs of zero to plus 1.
“Today we accomplish that through genetic selection, and we can do the same thing with growth and marbling.”
As quality grades have improved, the industry’s average daily gain rates were also rising. The industry, especially A.I. and seedstock firms, along with cow-calf producers, have taken advantage of genetic research to improve their growth, yield grades and marbling.
High-quality cattle do not feed well
Using the research conducted by JBS Five Rivers Cattle Feeding, Corah said higher growth/higher grade cattle performed at high levels when compared with low growth/low grade cattle, and resulting in higher profits. With higher average daily gain, lower feedlot cost of gain comparisons, the high growth/high grade cattle hit 73 percent prime and choice (compared to 40 percent for low growth/grade), creating a $27.30 per head profit, compared to a $58.29 per head loss for the lower grading cattle.
“In cattle business that’s a huge spread,” Corah said. “These cattle do feed well because of their ability to grow and convert feed, and still hang on the rail from a quality carcass standpoint.”
You cannot have functional cows and focus on quality
Corah said functional and quality cattle are not antagonistic traits. “There’s zero relationship between selecting genetically for marbling and the functionality of the cows.”
He cited research from Twig Marston on the influence of selecting for marbling in a beef herd, and not giving up access to other traits.
“You can have a bunch of functionality in your cows and still get end-quality cattle.”
As technology further improves through DNA testing, genomic-enhanced EPDs, and other prediction tools for seedstock operators, the industry should use every opportunity to make genetics push pounds and carcass traits at the same time.
“That’s your challenge as cow-calf producers,” Corah said. “As genetic engineers of this product that goes into the food chain, you, through the management the decisions, have a huge influence on where these cattle are going to stack up relative to what the consumer is telling us they’re looking for.” 
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Certified Angus Beef Vice President Larry Corah addresses producers and participants at the Applied Reproductive Strategies in Beef Cattle conference on Dec. 3. Staff photo.
