Feedlot Forum 2023 Will Feature Strategies To Increase Income

By Sherry Hoyer

Feedlot Forum 2023 returns to the Terrace View Event Center in Sioux Center on Jan. 17 with a production-focused agenda. Iowa State University extension beef specialist Beth Doran said the session presenters will provide information to increase income for beef producers and allied agri-business professionals. 

“This year’s short, power-packed program features strategies to improve the profitability of the feedlot enterprise,” she said. “We also have more than 20 sponsors with cutting edge technologies to help enhance feedlot returns.”  

Zach Smith, assistant professor in animal science at South Dakota State University, will begin the day by sharing research on best management practices to enhance the feeding value of high moisture corn and earlage. With the accelerated cost of feed, maximizing nutritional quality of feed is an effective way to improve cattle performance and reduce the number of days cattle are on feed.

Although testing the nutritional value of earlage and high moisture corn is routine for many feed producers, sometimes interpretation and use of the analyses can be challenging. To help producers sort through the numbers, Wes Gentry, nutritionist with Midwest PMS LLC, will explain how to implement the test results when formulating a cattle diet, and will provide an update on important changes in implant labels. 

According to Iowa State University associate professor in agricultural and biosystems engineering Dan Andersen, manure can be a currency creator for a beef feedlot. Andersen will talk about current and future markets for carbon credits, and about manure treatments that can provide a positive financial impact. Specifically, he’ll describe treatments such as composting that turn manure into a marketable product, and what’s necessary to make this work.

Caitlyn Grudzinski, market analyst and account executive for Commodity and Ingredient Hedging, will round out the forum with a market outlook. She’ll also share the impact of major factors such as drought, inflation, transportation and consumer demand on the price of fed cattle and returns to cattle feeding.