STAPLES, Minn. — Minnesota’s cow-calf herd continues to face challenges in growth.
The ins-and-outs of the industry were discussed Tuesday, Jan. 23, at the first of nine Cow/Calf Days put on by the University of Minnesota Extension.
At least some of the blame for a herd that is slow to grow can be placed squarely on fly pressure.
“Even in well managed herds we saw as much as 25 to 40% open cows. You know the reasons are varied,” said Dan Larson, beef analyst and nutritionist with Great Plains Livestock Consulting Inc., out of Eagle, Nebraska. Weather, especially in the West was wetter than normal, offering less nutrient content, and the summer was very hot for those breeding in June and July. Drought hit much of cattle country especially hard in 2023.
“And the fly pressure was horrendous,” Larson said.
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He suggested ways to improve odds include adding supplemental feeds, improving pasture forage with warm season forage and “for sure controlling flies was really evident this year.”
“It looks like the bulls simply got worn out. Even with adequate bull power, they just couldn’t handle the load through the heat and the flies,” Larson said.
Eric Mousel, assistant professor for beef systems management in the department of Animal Sciences at the University of Minnesota, concurred that fly issues have taken a toll, not everywhere, but in certain spots for four to five years, he’s heard about it.
“The fly pressure the last several years has just been unbelievable,” Mousel said. “Guys just weren't prepared for it.”
He added that flies were just one piece of the puzzle that producers have to deal with each year.
He said he’s not seen much rebuilding of the herd yet, in part due to a continuing drought.
“I think a lot of that just because it’s been dry,” Mousel said. “You know guys are just sort of waiting to see what happens. We just haven’t seen much movement in the price of bred stock, which would suggest that we’re not really back to rebuilding the herd yet.”
From a calf price standpoint, that’s good for the cow/calf operator marketing calves.
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Maintaining that strong pregnancy rate is a high priority and is normally an area where Minnesota producers lead the way.
“We typically run 97, 98% cows bred,” Mousel said. The state has fallen off a percentage point or two over the last few years in that area, which is not a huge concern. But Mousel said some producers who see double digit open rates have some significant concerns to overcome.
Beyond cow pregnancy rates being stung, producers have faced climbing costs of production.
Larson expressed the importance of controlling feed costs as that remains the highest cost in raising cattle. He shared data from one example of how it cost $912 annually to feed a mature cow in 2023. That cost was $550 in 2019. Cast out over the life of that cow, it became clear just how important it was that the cow was productive in calving each year in order to pay for those costs. In fact, it took seven to eight years for the cow to pay for itself, according to Larson.
When looking at those high costs, the work associated with raising that animal, and the effects of an ongoing drought, it’s not surprising that some producers have dropped the size of their herd.
The Minnesota Cattle on Feed report released by the USDA on Jan. 19, showed some more positive news. It showed that cattle on feed numbers have increased by 11% from a year ago, to 105,000 head. More positive news in Minnesota showed that placements of cattle and calves in Minnesota feedlots with a capacity of 1,000 or more head during December 2023 totaled 16,000 head, up 7% from November and up 23% from last year.
In comparison, U.S. total cattle and calves on feed was up 2% from 2023.
The Cow/Calf Day events continue throughout Feb. 9, throughout Minnesota, and are aimed at providing networking and education for Minnesota cow-calf producers.
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