Tom Brink, Five Rivers Cattle Feeding, a guest speaker during the Educational Forum held the evening prior to the Fall Sale, discussed factors affecting feeder cattle value. Tom then presented the final summary for Phase One of the Southern Carcass Improvement Project.
The Southern Carcass Improvement Project is a research project to determine how much carcass improvement can be made in one generation, using high carcass value Angus AI bulls on typical Southern-origin beef cows, representing typical Bos indicus-influenced genetics most often found in Southern states.

The results show considerable differences. While USDA Yield Grades were similar for both groups, two-thirds of the Angus-sired calves graded Choice, while none of the Southern-sired calves graded higher than Select. On average, the Angus-sired group finished with 103 points higher marbling scores, ribeye areas that were 0.96 square inches larger, 0.12 inches more backfat and 61 pounds heavier carcass weights compared with the Southern-sired group. These differences added up to an average carcass-value advantage of $134 per head for the Angus-sired group. The Angus-sired calves had higher feed intake in the feedyard, resulting in $41.31 higher average feeding costs, so the net economic advantage averaged $92.72 per head. More information can be found at www.gardinerangus.com. 

 

University of Arkansas junior, Nicole Gurley, Huntsville, Arkansas, has been selected as the 2012 Gardiner Angus Ranch spring intern. Nicole will complete her Bachelor of Science degree in Animal Science in the spring of 2012. She plans to continue her education at Kansas State University with the goal of obtaining a degree in veterinary medicine, specializing in large animals. 

Nicole stated, "This internship will be a great opportunity for me to work hands-on and gain a better understanding of all phases of the cattle industry from one of the premier operations. Coming from a cow-calf operation in northwest Arkansas, I realize my experiences are limited. An internship at Gardiner Angus Ranch will provide a wealth of knowledge and experience."

As a GAR intern, Nicole will experience all day-to-day operations, including AI breeding, ultrasound pregnancy diagnosis, super-ovulation of donors, embryo collection, semen testing of sale bulls, preparation of sale cattle and conducting the annual spring sale.  

In addition, she will receive training and assist in heat detection, record keeping, monitoring cows and calves for sickness, operating heavy equipment, feeding silage and hay, freeze branding, assisting in semen collection and bull evaluation, daily handling and moving of sale cattle.
In describing Nicole's selection, Mark Gardiner stated, "We are impressed with Nicole's persistence and discipline in her pursuit of this internship. Her intelligence, willingness to be challenged and passion for the beef industry are assets that will help determine her success in the future. We welcome Nicole to Gardiner Angus Ranch!"

The goal of the internship program is to increase the knowledge and ability of undergraduate students in ranch management and marketing of purebred cattle and to enhance their potential to become leaders in the livestock industry. 

More information about the GAR Internship Program can be found at  www.gardinerangus.com. Applications for the Fall 2012 internships are due March 15, 2012.  

Many GAR customers realize the value of access to our U.S. Premium Beef delivery rights. Today, the demand for the delivery rights exceeds our supply. All 4,000 delivery slots at USPB have been leased for the remainder of the fiscal year which ends August 31. In the future, we will continue to encourage our retained ownership customers to use the delivery rights. However, we will require prior authorization. If you are a GAR customer retaining ownership and would like to use the delivery rights, please contact Mark Gardiner at (620) 635-5095 for prior authorization.

More than $3.7 million in premiums and dividends have been paid to GAR customers using USPB delivery rights. 

  We have received several requests for videos of the presentations and educational forum from our spring sale. Now, all GAR videos can be found on the Gardiner Angus Ranch channel at www.YouTube.com/GardinerAngusRanch. We will continue to post new videos on YouTube and keep you updated on Facebook.  

  If you are not a Facebook "friend", we hope you will go to www.Facebook.com/GardinerAngusRanch and sign up to follow us.