Agricultural News
Angus Source Continues to Bring Premiums for Angus Calves
Fri, 23 Oct 2015 13:27:19 CDT
Angus Source is a cattle verification program that's been around for more than a decade. Ginette Gottswiller, Director of Commercial Programs for Angus Source said the program has proven its worth to cattle producers since its inception in 2003. When the U.S. discovered its first case of Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in 2005, Angus Source became a Processed Verified Program (PVP) with third-party verification. At that time, packers were paying a premium for verified cattle. In February 2013, she said that premium went away when Japan changed its beef import restrictions to 30 months of age.
"Obviously, source and age verification has still continued to be prevalent in the beef cattle industry," Gottswiller said.
Angus Source is dedication to the Angus breed. Gottswiller said the program provides a premium for Angus cattle because of the information being providing to potential buyers. In having genetic verification, she said they send out emails to buyers prior to sale day.
"Giving them time to study the genetic quality of those calves that are being sold, so they don't have to make a snap 30 second decision," Gottswiller said. "They've had the time to do their homework, let's say and make a more qualified decision on those calves."
Genetic verification with the Angus Source program is relatively easy. Angus Source offers a calving book free of charge through the program. Gottswiller said producers will need to keep track of basic calving records, such as when the first and last calf of the season is born, identify the sires of the calf crop and all calves need to born on that individual ranch.
The outlook for value-added programs will remain strong. Gottwiller believes buyers will continue to look for producers that are going the extra mile in utilizing these programs. Even as cattle prices fluctuate, she said premiums will remain.
"Those could be some of the things that's going to give you a more profitable bottom line at the end of year, as opposed to a negative number as maybe prices continue this fluctuation," Gottswiller said.
Radio Oklahoma Network Farm Director Ron Hays featured Gottswiller on the Beef Buzz feature. Click or tap on the LISTEN BAR below to listen to today's Beef Buzz.
The Beef Buzz is a regular feature heard on radio stations around the region on the Radio Oklahoma Network- but is also a regular audio feature found on this website as well. Click on the LISTEN BAR below for today's show- and check out our archives for older Beef Buzz shows covering the gamut of the beef cattle industry today.
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