Antibiotic Stewardship: Protecting Animal and Human Health

By Myriah Johnson, Ph.D.Economics Program Leader and Agricultural Economics Consultant Promoting the proper use of antibiotics in animal agriculture to preserve their efficacy for both animal and human health is of prime importance. That’s a goal of the International Consortium for Antimicrobial Stewardship in Agriculture (ICASA), which Noble Research Institute became a founding member of in 2018. The industry-oriented program was created by the nonprofit Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research to advance…

Continue ReadingAntibiotic Stewardship: Protecting Animal and Human Health

Overcoming Barriers to Entry for the Next Generation of Ranchers

By Dan ChildsSenior Agricultural Economics Consultant The U.S. Department of Agriculture has been saying for years that the average age of the American farmer is going up. The latest estimate of the average age is 59.3 years, as the baby-boom generation gets older. As a result, it has been estimated that 70% of the land in agriculture will change hands by 2031. This is a startling forecast and one worth contemplating in terms…

Continue ReadingOvercoming Barriers to Entry for the Next Generation of Ranchers

Knowing Your Ranch Can Promote Accuracy in Estimating Grazeable Acres

By Josh Gaskamp, Technical Consultation Manager and Wildlife and Range Consultantand Mike Proctor, Senior Research Associate 1 Estimating grazeable acreage as well as forage availability is vital to understanding the carrying capacity of a ranch and accurately setting a proper stocking rate. Mapping software (i.e., ArcGIS) is a tool commonly used to estimate grazeable acreage for cattle, with minimal technical expertise required. With this tool, managers can use aerial imagery of their ranch…

Continue ReadingKnowing Your Ranch Can Promote Accuracy in Estimating Grazeable Acres

Not All Rainfall Is Effective

By Hugh AljoeDirector of Producer Relations The old adage, “We are never more than three weeks away from a drought,” is commonly used by producers here in the southern Great Plains. However, depending on the management of the property, drought may be closer than some think and considerably further out for others. A 3-inch rain may result in different outcomes for different producers even if the pastures and soils are similar. The observable…

Continue ReadingNot All Rainfall Is Effective

Grazing Native Grass Pastures Is More Economical Than Feeding Hay to Cows in Winter

Robert Wells, Ph.D.Livestock Consultant It is typically reported that cow winter supplementation accounts for 40 to 60% of the total annual cost of maintaining a cow, but that cost depends greatly on whether hay is being supplemented in lieu of dormant standing forage for the cow. When you can supply standing forage in the form of native grass pasture instead of a bale of hay, the total winter feed cost will be dramatically…

Continue ReadingGrazing Native Grass Pastures Is More Economical Than Feeding Hay to Cows in Winter