Four cattle operations in northwest Missouri's Andrew County will be featured on the 2011 State Beef Tour. Scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 27, this event is coordinated by the University of Missouri Extension Commercial Agriculture Program.

Johnnie Hubach is working to boost profits from his rolling grassland in Andrew County. The 2011 Missouri Beef Tour will stop at Hubach's farm on Aug. 27.

The first stop, at 12:30 p.m., will be at Saunders Cattle. Tim Saunders runs a stocker feeder operation. Saunders believes there is a baseline potential in most calves to make a Choice carcass. In 2010, his cattle graded about 86% Choice and Prime. He has recently completed upgrading his facility in order to minimize weather extremes and has constructed a new hoop building for his incoming cattle. The cattle will have shelter, shade, and protected water and feed. Smaller pens within the building also allow for more efficient sorting and sizing of calves.

The second stop on the tour will be at the farm of Johnnie and Kami Hubach. The Hubachs have been breeding Angus-based genetics into their cow-calf operation for 30 years and adopted management-intensive grazing to improve his forages and beef gains about 17 years ago. Johnnie Hubach's focus is to improve genetics across the board—from maternal characteristics to carcass performance. He retains all his heifers from both spring- and fall-calving herds. He employs embryo transfers in spring and fall cows and uses a variety of estrus-synchronization methods for successful and timely AI breeding.

The third tour stop will be at Whispering Wind Farm. The cow-calf operation also focuses on quality genetics. Owner Daniel Brewer keeps and backgrounds his calves after weaning. A key to Brewer's management is not overstocking his pastures. He uses rotational grazing and supplements with stockpiled grass in the winter.  

The last stop will be at Wayne Miller Angus. Veterinarian Wayne Miller runs a cattle-only enterprise, with no row crops. He uses grass pastures for rotational grazing. Miller's focus is on pasture management rather than making hay. He believes that not making hay allows him to increase his herd size while better utilizing pastures. Miller only buys hay when a good opportunity presents itself. He maintains two large hoop structures over concrete pits to protect the bales during storage. He believes that the strength of his operation is a very low death rate. His herd health program includes regular vaccinations, parasite control and deworming.

More beef expertise

Several members of the MU Extension Commercial Agriculture Program will be on the tour program. Veterinarians Scott Poock and Craig Payne will demonstrate pregnancy diagnosis using ultrasound and will discuss processing and health care procedures. Justin Sexten will offer nutrition advice, and Bob Weaber will talk about using genetics to improve herds. Missouri Department of Agriculture veterinarian Linda Hickam will cover trichomoniasis. Rodney Saunders with the USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service will discuss grazing and water systems, and John Kleiboeker with the Missouri Beef Industry Council will talk about the MU Show-Me Beef University.

The tour will conclude with a complimentary beef supper in Savannah.

FYI

For more information, and the addresses of the stops, contact Justin Sexten at 573-882-8154 or [email protected]; or James Humphrey, MU Extension livestock specialist in Andrew County, at 816-324-3147 or [email protected].

Source: MU Extension Commercial Agriculture Program