Page 4 - Effertz Key Ranch Annual Bull Sale – March 9, 2023

CURRENT INDUSTRY

I’d like to point out a few things that we have learned about the current status of our industry. Our packers have
a labor issue and with efficiency being one of their main motivators, every hook in a processing plant that carries
a 900lb. carcass vs a 700lb. carcass is huge for their bottom line. Their costs to that point are close to equal and
a 200lb. difference in carcass weight tells us that pounds are of the upmost importance right now. With that in
mind, here are the data results of our last two years finishing our own cull calves in an audited program:

- 93% of the 262 head total graded Prime and Choice - 245 out of the 262 head.
- 94% yield graded 1, 2 or 3 – 248 out of 262 head.
- Average dressing percent was 65% over both 2020 and 2021

Now, those stats reflect a premium set of cattle, and the packer rewarded it to the tune of a $1.22 live price on a
$1.09 base in 2020, and a $1.43 price on a $1.30 base in 2021. The total premium reflected in 2020 was $175/
head and $182/head in 2021. The common denominator in the ability of these cattle to grade that well is the
prevalence of the Leptin gene we have been striving for in our herd. The tremendous dressing percent on these
cattle can be credited to the performance bred into them. Combining pounds, carcass and yield is a “win-win” for
every part of the industry.

WHY DO WE LEPTIN TEST OUR BULLS?

Dr. Eric DeVuyst, OSU Ag Economist wrote in
an Oklahoma Extension Service circular The
Economics of Gene Testing..

Geneotype (TT) fed cattle are more profitable
than lean genotype (CC) cattle. Differences in
profit, range from $14 to $60 per head.

The same mutation has been investigated in milk production and beef calf weaning weight. DeVuyst et al. (2008)
also reports heavier calf weaning weights for TT and CT cows. The effect was significant in crossbred cows. TT cows
wean heavier calves than CC cows. Crossbred TT cows wean calves weighing 27 pounds more than calves weaned
from crossbred CC cows.

Their analysis found that TT and CT cows were more profitable than CC cows due to 1.) higher calf weaning weights
and 2.) longer productive lives. Differences in profitability ranged from $15 to $39 per year depending on breed.

I have been visiting with Leigh Marquess of Quantum Genetix in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. He is still cur-
rently working with Cactus feeders and five other large feedlots who use his feedlot DNA panel to add value to their
feeder cattle. There is more and more evidence that the Leptin carrying cattle can be fed longer and more efficiently
in order to make a larger carcass weight and increase marbling. Cattle that are tested with this panel are given a
specific ID and fed according to their DNA in order increase their efficiency. These cattle have a higher yield grade
and cutability score on the rail. So, we here at EKR, are going to continue this 20-year path to keep adding value to
our customers’ calves.

2 *Yearling weights, final performance, profit index, ultrasound and scrotal measurement will be available in late February.