With a solid reputation for raising quality Braunvieh-influenced cattle that grow fast and garner carcass premiums, Mitchell Farms was named the 2017 Commercial Producer of the Year during the BAA Annual Meeting in Kansas City in October 2018. Located just north of Frederick, Oklahoma, the Mitchell family runs about 650 cows and proudly uses Braunvieh bulls to sire feed-efficient, high-performance cattle.

Location, location, location. The saying applies to more than just the real estate business, and for Oklahoma, it is a key factor in producing beef.

You live and you learn, right? Vern Terrell readily admits he has. A diversified cattleman in the western edge of the Nebraska Sandhills – who farms and ranches alongside his wife, Marjean, his son Brock and his wife, Heidi – was willing to share what he considers to be “game-changers” for his operation with producers at the National Grazing Conference in Reno, Nevada.

I once asked a group of my students how many enterprises the typical cow-calf ranch has. Almost without fail they all said only one, the ranch. The answer in most cases is usually around four: the calf enterprise (selling calves at weaning); the replacement heifers (be it raising your own or for sale); the hay; and a land enterprise (this is where you analyze lease value of the property).