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January 1, 2004
BeefTalk: Sum of the Parts Determines Beef Carcass Value
As we turn over the calendar to a new year, it’s a time to take stock of where we’ve been and make changes to keep life on course. That process is as important professionally as it is personally. As they look forward, it is important for beef producers to know where their industry is at today. The other day I was walking past the fresh beef display at the local super market and realized that in six steps I had passed the beef section. In an average walk, one step takes a second. The beef industry had only six seconds of my time to get my attention. I felt a little defeated, but then realized it took three steps to pass the fresh pork section and three steps to pass the fresh poultry. As I reviewed the general layout of the store, I moved to the frozen meat, most notably the poultry and fish coolers. The cooler walkabout took 25 steps, not counting the processed and cured products and numerous other frozen products. Such adventures need to be buffered with all the other outlets for beef and new products being offered. (The new Cheeseburger Fry should be popping up on menus all across the country soon.) The beef carcass is often viewed in simplistic terms of value. Pricing the carcass, however, is complicated as those of us attending a workshop sponsored by Decatur County Feed Yard found out. We were asked to find the value of calf 67603. The calf, harvested on August 8, weighed 1,320 pounds and was on feed for 138 days, gaining 504 pounds with a feed efficiency of 5.69 pounds of dry matter per pound of gain. A carcass breakdown revealed 32 retail cuts. There were 15 retail cuts out of 420 pounds of forequarter: ribeye roll, shortribs/back ribs, cap/wedge meat, chuck clod, boneless chuck roll, arm deep pectoralis, chuck tender, neck bones, outer skirtsteak, inner skirtsteak, boneless brisket, 50/50 trim, 90/10 trim, fat and bone. The most valued cut was 25 pounds ribeye roll at $124.80. The 46 pounds of boneless chuck roll brought $80.57. The actual total value of 31 plus pounds of fat was $3.14. The total value of the forequarter was $534.69. Seventeen retail products came out of the 374 pounds of hindquarter: defatted tenderloin, boneless short-cut strip loin, top sirloin butt, bottom sirloin butt/flap, bottom sirloin butt/ ball tip, bottom sirloin butt/tri-tip, knuckle, top inside round, eye of round, bottom round flat, heel of round, flank steak, kidney, 50/50/ trim, 90/10 trim, fat and bone. The most valued cut was 13.3 pounds of defatted tenderloin at $109.39, followed by 23 pounds of strip loin at $105.98 and 29 pounds of bottom round $102.96. The actual value of 91 pounds of fat was $4.53. The total value of the hindquarter was $584.46. I don’t know how many of the 32 total retail products were in the display. I was focused on finding a chuck roast, and there were none, but several other products were present. The value of a steer must be the sum of the parts. Each retail product is critical for the total value of a carcass to reach a maximum level, in addition to the nontraditional products like hide, internal organs, etc., which had a crop credit of $112.07. The total value of the carcass was $1231.22. The merchandising at the fresh beef cooler is the final step in the process. About six seconds with the consumer caps the countless hours spent in the production and fabrication of calf 67603. May you find all your
ear tags. ### Source:
Kris Ringwall, (701) 483-2427, kringwal@ndsuext.nodak.edu
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North Dakota State University |
