50 Years of Progress: More Beef from Fewer Cattle
And Fewer Acres of Pasture and Feed Grains.

DENVER, Colorado – August 11, 2004 – Dr. Rod Preston and Dr. Tom Elam previewed their recently completed review of technical literature – “50 Years of Pharmaceutical Technology and Its Impact on the Beef We Provide Consumers” – at the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association’s (NCBA) mid-year meeting in Denver. In the paper, the authors take an in depth look at the economic, environmental and beef-quality implications of pharmaceutical technology, as well as other technologies, that have been adopted by the beef industry in the past 50 years.

According to the authors, the research revealed a number of significant findings:

1. Without the technological improvements of the past 50 years, the total U.S. cattle herd required to produce the 2004 beef supply would number more than 180 million animals instead of the current 95 million head, which would have major implications on land use and animal waste issues.
2. At current stocking rates, 180 million head of cattle, nearly twice today’s herd, would require additional land area about equal to the combined acreage of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado and Kansas to provide the additional pasture and feed grains.
3. Beef production per head of cattle in the U.S. herd has increased by more than 80 percent over the past 50 years, making the US the most efficient beef producer in the world.
4. While decreasing resource use, cattlemen have increased total beef production from 13.2 billion pounds to 27 billion pounds in the last 50 years.
5. Beef quality has improved while inflation-corrected retail prices have decreased by over 25 percent in the past 50 years.
6. Pharmaceutical technology in the feedlot has had a significant impact on the profitability of the cow calf segment. Production efficiencies in the feedlot have decreased the cost of feed and other inputs, enabling the feedlot manager to pay more for feeder cattle. A comparison of feeder steer prices vs. finished steer prices indicates that, over time, feeder steer price gains have increased more than finished steer prices.

Dr. Rod Preston is professor emeritus, Animal Science, and former holder of the Thornton Endowed Chair at Texas Tech University and past president of the American Society of Animal Science. He is currently conducting animal research and production consulting from his home in Pagosa Springs, Colorado.

Dr. Tom Elam is an Associate Lecturer in economics at Indiana University and is an adjunct fellow of the Hudson Institute’s Center for Global Food Issues. He is also president of Strategic Directions, an agricultural consulting firm in Carmel, Indiana.

This paper was funded by a grant from the Growth Enhancement Technology Information Taskforce, an organization of animal health company executives committed to providing educational materials to the beef industry and beef consumers. A copy of the paper can be obtained from the NCBA issues management team, from your animal health supplier or by calling McCormick Company at 515-251-8805.

Or you may download the complete paper “50 Years of Pharmaceutical Technology and Its Impact on the Beef We Provide Consumers” by clicking here.