Possible Impacts of the Expected Shift From Cow-Calf to Cow-Calf-Yearling Enterprises on Beef Production and Beef Prices

Retention of young cattle and marketing older cattle from the range has been suggested as one of the profitable means of adjustment for the cow-calf operator. This study was to determine the impacts of the shift from cow-calf ranching operation to cow-calf-yearling operation on the feed energy budget of the ranch, cow herd size, beef production and market price of beef. Ten alternative livestock management options involving cow-calf-yearling operations were tested for these impacts, using two representative Utah size ranches (150 and 300 cow ranches). The extra feed needed to accomodate the increased number of yearlings and the decrease required in brood cow herd size were estimated. Changes in beef production in Utah, the Western eleven States, and the change on national price of beef were estimated from marketing projections of four types of beef. These projections were based on three levels of adoption for the management options by producers in each area. Under complete retention of home grown calves, the total amount of feed required to support the typical cow-calf operation was 93% of the total feed needed for the cow~calf short yearling and 85% of the total feed required for the cow-calf long-yearling operation. Only the production of long-yearlings resulted in a considerable decrease in brood cow carrying capacity (8 to 31%)· Marketing baby-beef and grass-fed beef produced a substantial decrease in beef tonnage and a corresponding increase in beef price. Light-fed short-yearlings and heavy-fed beef (from both short and long yearlings) showed a considerable beef increase in Utah and the western region. Only the marketing of heavy-fed short-yearlings produced a positive change in the beef produced nationally and a slight decrease in beef price (0.3 to 2 %)