On Sept. 30, Dairy Farmers of Canada (DFC) released the most recent update of a regular study highlighting the important economic impact of the dairy sector in Canada.

August was a strong month for U.S. red meat exports as beef export volume was the largest in nearly two years and both beef and pork exports posted the highest monthly values of 2016, according to statistics released by the USDA and compiled by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF).

The 1998 movie The Horse Whisperer starring Robert Redford hit the movie screens with a story of a man who “whispers” to horses. I have often thought of this movie and the perception that people can talk to animals.

Any trip to a supermarket or restaurant these days would suggest that many safe, effective, science-based and common practices in agriculture are on a collective collision course with expectations down the food chain about how food “ought” to be produced.

Most Progressive Cattleman readers believe the cattle market is still viable.

Every rancher or farmer works cattle a little differently depending on a variety of factors from herd size, type and age to equipment and facility layout and budget, yet too often standard equipment does not accommodate these needs.

John Steinbeck, in his first-person account, Travels with Charley: In Search of America, wrote this of discovering Montana: “I’m in love with Montana. For other states I have admiration, respect, recognition, even some affection. But with Montana it is love. And it’s difficult to analyze love when you’re in it. 

These are challenging economic times for the beef industry – times that require ranchers to do everything they can to get the most out of their input investments. This is especially the case with purchased feed ingredients.

The focus for graziers has always been on forage quality in meeting the nutrient requirements of pastured cattle. The content of crude protein, neutral- and acid-detergent fiber (structural carbohydrates), water-soluble carbohydrates, crude fiber and minerals in a specific forage has been used for estimating forage quality and for formulating supplemental concentrate rations.

The beef industry’s transition to larger beef supplies in 2016 has been challenging. A persistently bearish psychology and ridiculous volatility in live and feeder cattle futures recently has contributed to a meltdown in cash markets and a mood among producers that is best described as fear.