The 2017 ag census was recently released, and it shows that the highest percentage of total farm expenditures – 15.3 % – is spent on animal feed and that livestock, poultry and related expense take another 11.7 %. Remarkably, tractors and self-propelled farm machinery only account for 3.5 %.

Implementing new technologies in the beef cow herd may help improve reproductive efficiency. Still, according to a new study from the USDA, not many producers are taking advantage of the many tech tools that are proven key performance indicators for herd profitability.

The advantages of hybrid vigor have long been acknowledged in the beef world. Compared to purebred or line-bred systems, the advantages include improvements in areas such as weaning weight, and cow longevity and fertility to name a few.

New research from the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program shows some surprising results. By reducing 27 seconds of milking time, the farms in the research test were able to gain of 15.8 minutes per milking shift. An additional 15 minutes is significant in the parlor as it allows producers to complete another turn of cows at each shift with no additional labor required, no other labor costs, and no detrimental effects on milk production.

Newborn calves are at specific risk for neo-natal bovine diarrhea complex, otherwise known as scours.

A lot of livestock producers we meet tell us they are ready to build. Some say they have been for a long time. They have talked with family. They have set goals. They have reviewed personal assets. They have considered succession. They see a future in growing their operation.

Being equipped in a fire department in a fire protection district means two things: hardware and adequate training. Is your rural fire protection district or fire department firefighters properly trained to fight fires in special circumstances that include livestock?

You can never plan too much into the design of a facility to house your livestock – and especially for fire prevention. Roughly two-thirds of fatal barn fires occur from October to March, according to an October 2018 report from the Animal Welfare Institute, with 36.8% occurring in January through March.