One thing that is for certain is that producers understand the value differences that are associated with superior genetics. Thus, they’re looking to position their operation for what promises to be a very lucrative time for the industry, and they are investing heavily in securing that future....More

You can still find wild extremes if you look, but the industry is focusing in and making dramatic progress on selecting for the economically relevant traits of beef production for the most part. In fact, seedstock producers are even surprised by the amount of progress. The high-selling bulls of five years ago would now be in the bottom 20% of most of this year’s sale offerings....More

High-school basketball season is in full swing, and that means plenty of bleacher time as my family watches my sister Kaley play ball. Our family is pretty big into sports; we love going to games and cheering on the Mitchell High School Kernels. We are lucky to have Dakota Wesleyan University (DWU) in town, as well, and after chores are done, you might find us watching a college game or two that DWU hosts at the local Mitchell Corn Palace....More

Management of reproduction really includes the manipulation of genetics, nutrition, fertility and estrus, and marketing. If you change any one of these, you may change one or all the others. Burke Teichert, former vice president and general manager of Deseret, provides the management ideas he’s found helpful in building whole-herd reproduction and profitability....More