Mineral nutrition of beef cattle is one component of ruminant nutrition that most producers address by simply purchasing a commercial supplement for their herd. However, this practice, while generally effective, can be wasteful. In many cases, commercial mineral supplements are formulated to provide in excess of 100% of the nutrient requirements for many different minerals. However, at least a portion of the minerals required by beef cows are provided by the feeds the cows are consuming. The formulation of supplements to supply only what the animal needs may provide an opportunity for cost savings. This paper will describe the process of developing specifications that can be presented to a feed manufacturer to develop a mineral supplement