12/03/08 Optimum marketing weight

What is the optimal weight to market cattle? I'm Jeff Keane; I'll be back right after this with one suggestion. Finding the right weight to market fed cattle has always been open for discussion. Well in times of high feed and fuel costs some feeders might look at lighter weights to ship cattle since pounds of feed per pound of gain increase at a higher rate as cattle get heavier and closer to marketing. John Lawrence, PhD., economist and Director of Iowa Beef Center offers this recommendation. He states adding weight will pay until the cost of the last pound is equal to the revenue from that last pound. That sounds simple, but Dr. Lawrence does relate putting the economic rule-of-thumb into practice might be difficult since feed intake can change, feed per gain, feed prices and cattle prices can also vary as cattle fatten. One major consideration, of course, would be carcass quality when deciding on best market weight. Now if this seems like a lot to consider, Lawrence has more specific points and a spreadsheet calculator on the Iowa Beef Center website at www.iowabeefcenter.org. Now, I didn't look at the website, but I wonder if the more detailed analysis takes into account what weight the packer might require and how many times cattle would need to be run across the scales to find that last profitable pound? Just a fleeting thought, kind of like most of my thoughts. I'm Jeff Keane. Drover October 15, 2008