The Kansas beef cattle sector generated $8.32 billion in money receipts in 2020. That’s 47% of the state’s agricultural money receipts in simply that 12 months. From ranches to backgrounders to feedyards to processing, the Kansas beef cattle trade covers each hyperlink within the beef chain.
The 2022 Kansas Governor’s Summit on Agricultural Development Beef Sector preconference on-line breakout session took a take a look at the meat processing sector’s capability, and what which may imply for the way forward for Kansas’ cattle trade.
Processing
The Kansas Division of Agriculture’s IMPLAN (IMpact evaluation for PLANning) financial mannequin experiences that the state’s beef cattle trade, from beginning to processing, has a direct output of $22.4 billion and practically 75,000 jobs. And in 2021, beef and beef merchandise exports totaled greater than $1.8 billion, main the nation.
One of many challenges to the meat cattle sector is processing plant capability. The pandemic introduced consideration to the necessity for a sturdy native processing sector to enrich the most important beef packing amenities. These smaller, native processors deal with fewer animals, however they’re important to filling the demand for regionally sourced meat.
Glynn Tonsor, assistant professor in ag economics at Kansas State College, spoke through the on-line sector breakout session. He defined that when there are too many cattle relative to packing capability, there’s a wider worth distinction between dwell cattle and boxed beef costs. There are a number of components that go into the capability equation, however to start out, the supply of labor within the crops can imply the distinction between operating that plant at prime capability, or at a decrease determine, he mentioned.
Capability
It’s not only a matter of constructing new crops or increasing present ones, he continued. Tonsor listed 13 totally different packing plant building or growth bulletins which can be to be accomplished within the subsequent three to 5 years or so. He cautioned cattle producers, although, that quite a bit can occur between an announcement and the primary supply of cattle. For starters, will there be sufficient cattle to recoup the prices to place up the ability, the allowing, the sourcing of labor?
“It’s not ample to simply construct the ability; you want cattle to run via it and folks to function it,” he mentioned. It’s undoubtedly a problem and a chance for Kansas cattle producers to work via sooner or later.
Traceability and response
Kansas cattle producers have lengthy acknowledged that the sector must proceed to enhance its cattle traceability and response plans in case of a serious animal illness outbreak. Callahan Grund, government director of U.S. CattleTrace, and Sara McReynolds, KDA assistant animal well being commissioner, up to date the sector contributors on three matters:
- Livestock tags. Grund confirmed the U.S. CattleTrace’s new Tag Retailer, the place cattle producers should purchase cattle tags with traceable dual-frequency, low-frequency or high-frequency expertise at a reduced worth that makes them similar to visible tags that they could already be utilizing. Go to uscattletrace.org/tagstore.
- Safe Beef Provide coaching. McReynolds mentioned a Could regional beef packer assembly with 11 different states helped form the state’s Safe Beef Provide Plan. The aim was to deal with the packer sector of the chain, to make sure enterprise continuity in case of a possible foot-and-mouth illness outbreak in Kansas. One other train is deliberate for later this 12 months, and people ought to attain out to KDA for particulars.
- KDA backtag. McReynolds mentioned for the previous 12 months, KDA has been growing a knowledge assortment system for livestock markets to assist with the traceability of bulls and cows being bought via public sale barns. The aim is to gather information chute-side and support livestock markets — particularly with these on the state’s borders — with veterinary inspections, earlier than the animals cross state traces.
