Quality Time – Radio Releases
Quality Time is the latest service Certified Angus Beef LLC (CAB) offers its agricultural broadcasting media. The attached PDFs feature links to high-quality MP3 recordings of industry leaders and CAB staff. Feel free to use each radio release in its entirety, or use them as the opportunity arises. You can ask to be added to the Quality Time e-list by using the Contact Us page.
April 2008
Lung adhesions lead to less profit
by Steve Suther
Sick cattle hurt performance and quality.
Related files: pdf-1
mp3-2
mp3-3
mp3-4
March 2008
Retail survey shows beef trends
Consumers want more information and more choices - those are just two retail beef trends identified in the 2007 National Meat Case study.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
February 2008
Putting Beef Consumers First
by Steve Suther
At NCBA, four companies announced a partnership to build bridges between consumers and beef producers.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
mp3-3
mp3-4
The benefits of individual animal identification (ID) keep adding up. Related files: mp3-1 mp3-2 mp3-3
January 2008
A healthy difference
by Steve Suther
Keeping cattle healthy is all about preparation.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
mp3-3
mp3-4
November 2007
Sorting for quality
by Steve Suther
Sorting cattle for harvest may increase their quality grades.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
October 2007
The Value of Quality
by Steve Suther
U-S-D-A Prime, Choice, Select and Standard have been the staples of graded beef since the late 1970s. But recently a sort-of fifth grade as emerged: Premium Choice.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
mp3-3
mp3-4
Producers across the country are committed to raising the kind of beef consumers want. Certified Angus Beef LLC (CAB) recently recognized a handful of these ranchers and feedlot managers for their part in producing high quality beef.
August 2007
Here's the Premium
by Steve Suther
If you raise calves, you've heard about the premiums for marketing them a certain way or following specific health protocols. But does breed type make a difference, and is there a premium for calves at weaning? Research says yes, according to Larry Corah vice president of the Certified Angus Beef Program.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
mp3-3
mp3-4
July 2007
CAB sets volume records
by Steve Suther, Director of Industry Information
Certified Angus Beef moved 56 million pounds in June. That's more than any other month in the brand's history.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
You might think raising the kind of beef consumers want means extra cost. You'd be wrong, according to research from the Certified Angus Beef Program. A study of 12,000 cattle fed in the CAB Feedlot Licensing Program in 2005 found those pens with the highest rate of brand acceptance were also the cheapest to produce. Related files: mp3-1 mp3-2 mp3-3 mp3-4
June 2007
Feeding hard and fast
Nebraska research shows an early start in the feedlot gives a grading advantage over yearlings.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
May 2007
Calf Nutrition Pays
A regional field representative for Purina Mills says the key is providing enough energy throughout an animal's life.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
A countless number of Americans enjoy beef, and real estate tycoon Donald Trump is one of them. Last week he launched his line of Trump Steaks, and these Certified Angus Beef brand Prime steaks are sold through The Sharper Image. Trump says the C-A-B Prime exacting specifications create the perfect eating experience. Related files: mp3-1 mp3-2 mp3-3 mp3-4 mp3-5
April 2007
What a packer wants
Packers and cattle producers need each other to please the beef consumer. Sometimes communications break down and the mixed signals leave cattlemen wondering what packers really want.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
mp3-3
mp3-4
March 2007
Poor disposition, poor beef quality
Cattlemen know wild cattle can damage facilities and even hurt people working around them. According to a recent study, such cattle can hurt profits, too.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
mp3-3
mp3-4
mp3-5
February 2007
Genetics Affect Marbling
If you want your cattle to win quality grade premiums, you have to start at the beginning—if not sooner. Planning comes before conception.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
January 2007
The cost of variability
Efficiency is a key to success in cattle feeding. That is because it is such a narrow-margin business. But price discovery is all about weight and quality, where variation within a pen can present challenges when it comes to selling on a carcass-merit basis. On the other hand, says Certified Angus Beef feedlot specialist Paul Dykstra, greater uniformity in a pen brings more efficiency and marketing opportunities.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
mp3-3
The 2006 National Angus Carcass Challenge featured a record-setting Grand Champion pen. Related files: mp3-1 Backfat targets make a difference
Certified Angus Beef's Larry Corah says cattle should be marketed when their backfat reaches five-tenths to six-tenths of an inch. Many cattle feeders aim for a leaner, four-tenths inch, but Corah says that could cut the percentage of cattle grading Choice by up to half. Related files: mp3-1 mp3-2
December 2006
Quality begins early in calf's life
Producers who plan to sell cattle on a value-based grid should remember that most premiums come from higher quality grades. Getting more cattle to qualify for USDA Choice, Prime and premium brands takes focused cowherd management.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
mp3-3
mp3-4
mp3-5
November 2006
CAB to enhance uniformity specs
In response to beef industry changes and consumer demand, the Certified Angus Beef board of directors voted this fall to adopt a uniformity requirement for the brand.
Related files: mp3-1
mp3-2
mp3-3
mp3-4
October 2006
Practice makes perfect, or at least better!
Progress comes when feedlots and ranchers "partner up." Cattle producers who have sold calves at weaning as the end of their concern, may want to look at other options if calf prices trend lower in the years ahead. Retaining full or part ownership of calves
Related files: mp3-1
August 2006
With cattle, quality pays at every step
High quality cattle pay in all sectors of the beef industry. Iowa State University data show cattle that are at least 75-percent Angus will out-gain and out-grade cattle with the least amount of Angus influence. That can add up to nearly $68 more per head
Related files: mp3-1
In recent years, beef producers have been able to reap greater value from their cattle--thanks to the addition of value-added products to the beef market. Related files: mp3-1 Cattle producers don’t have to choose between quality, or efficiency and growth
South Dakota State University's Kelly Bruns says it's just a matter of matching growth implant potency with cattle diet. If calves have been on a high-forage diet, it's best to wait or use low-potency implants to match their growth rate. Fleshy cattle, st Related files: mp3-1
July 2006
The world demands top quality beef, a U.S. specialty
As cattle producers watch the world beef market slowly reopen its doors, they might consider what drives this nearly limitless source of demand. Competing successfully in the global beef trade means playing to a key U.S. strength--high quality, grain-fed b
Related files: mp3-1
June 2006
Healthy cattle mean higher quality and profit potential
It's in a producer's best interest to keep cattle healthy, says Iowa State Extension Beef Specialist Darrell Busby. Healthy cattle gain faster and more efficiently, of course. But Busby’s research also shows they are 44 percent more likely to reach Prime
Related files: mp3-1
Economists say the cattle price cycle has entered a five-year downtrend. But higher quality should hold on to more value. Related files: mp3-1