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ARM AND Q anch F I ULLETIN Vol. 22, No. 10 October 1967 THE B IG O N E Beef is the largest single source of income for clined, heifer calves have increasingly become U.S. farmers, according to the Statistical Re destined for the feedlot rather than the milk porting Service. Receipts from a record slaugh barn or for use as veal. The sharp reduction in ter reached $10.4 billion in 1966, making beef veal output underscores this trend. our number 1 cash commodity. The average volume of cow beef has changed very little in the past 20 years. Despite In order to attain this lead position, the this long-range plateau, however, production industry has grown steadily since World War II. Keeping pace with the thriving postwar has fluctuated to some degree from year to year economy and a 40-percent boom in popula as a result of weather conditions, feed costs, tion, the volume of beef output has grown at and calf prices, as well as shifts in the rate of an average annual rate of over 4 percent. Last decline in dairy animals. With the increases year, production reached an all-time high of for steer and heifer beef, output of cow beef 19.7 billion pounds, which was double the has decreased from 40 percent of the total to only 20 percent. 1946 figure. The SRS says that the demand by consumers for higher quality meat is the key to many of the changes experienced by the cattle industry. Cattle producers have met this demand by sharply increasing the production of fed beef. In order to accomplish this objective, substan tial changes have been made in the past 20 years. The task of raising the quality of the Nation’s beef output has been accomplished Substantial changes also have occurred in primarily through feedlot operations. Produc the makeup of the beef produced. Output of tion of fed beef has nearly quadrupled in the steer beef has about doubled since World War postwar years, accounting for most of the gain II, and its proportion of the total has ranged in total beef output during this period. Twenty mainly between 55 and 60 percent. Production years ago, fed beef comprised slightly more of heifer beef has more than quadrupled during than one-third of the country’s beef produc the past 20 years, with its proportion of the tion; in 1966, it accounted for about two-thirds total about doubling in recent years to reach a of the total. level of around one-fifth. The three top grades — Prime, Choice, and As numbers of beef cattle have continued to Good — make up the bulk of fed beef produc increase and those of dairy animals have de tion. U.S. cattlemen produced about 1.5 milThis growth has meant changes within the beef industry. In the case of the composition of the cattle population, dairy cattle accounted for only a fifth of the cattle inventory at the beginning of this year, compared with about 50 percent two decades ago. Meanwhile, beef cattle numbers doubled and comprised nearly 80 percent of the inventory. F E D E R A L R E S E R V E DALLAS, B A N K TEXAS OF D A L L A S lion tons of Choice and Prime grade beef in While they are on the road, many of the 1946; Americans ate over 5.0 million tons older children become part of the hired farm of these grades in 1966. With two-thirds of labor force; others serve as daytime baby the beef being fattened off the range, the pro sitters for their younger brothers and sisters. duction of Choice beef has tripled, approach The ERS states that in many cases, the parents ing 50 percent of total output in recent years. have neither the interest nor the ability to help educate their children, and local authorities The volume of Good grade beef doubled by the late fifties, when its share of the output rose are often reluctant to enforce truancy laws for migrant boys and girls. to over 27 percent. This proportion subse quently declined, however, and has remained Following the crops may mean traveling a at about 18 percent for the past several years. distance of 1,000 or more miles from home. Production of Prime grade beef also has de The farther away the job, the more likely it creased slightly relative to total output. This is that the migratory family head will take the grade accounted for about 4 percent of the children along. total last year, compared with 5 to 6 percent for the 1946-48 period. Grades of Standard Poultry Virus Identified and below, which represented nearly one-half The virus that causes acute avian leukosis, of the production immediately after World or Marek’s disease in poultry, has been grown War II, account for about 30 percent of the in a laboratory and examined under an elec total beef output. tron microscope, according to Dr. Keyvan Nazerian, Microbiologist with the Agricultural Open Road Is Only Classroom Research Service of the U.S. Department of For Many Migratory Children Agriculture. The discovery agrees with find Many of the Na ings by British researchers that Marek’s dis tion’s 140,000 mi ease is caused by a herpetic virus. The herpes gratory c h ild re n group of viruses is unrelated to the virus group were not enrolled involved in lymphomatosis, another cancerlike in school when it poultry disease. began this fall, In recent years, Marek’s disease has cost points out the Eco poultrymen millions of dollars in losses of nomic Research Service. About 50,000 of these young chickens. Although some of the symp youngsters will be on the road from October toms of Marek’s disease are the same as those through May, traveling with migrant parents of lymphomatosis, indications are that the two from one farm job to another. Some of the are separate diseases. Lymphomatosis, a other 90,000 children may have missed the first chronic form that strikes older birds, and the few weeks of school because they had not re acute Marek’s disease are not known to affect turned to home base after following the crops human beings. all summer. The ERS says that no other group of American children have fewer schooling op Cotton "Shortfall" Announced portunities and a lower educational level than these migrant children. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has an About half of all migratory households have children under 14 years of age, totaling about a quarter of a million youngsters. Of these, the ones who suffer most from inadequate school ing belong to the one out of five families who take their children with them as they pursue seasonal farm work. Schooling for many of these migrant children is part-time, at best. nounced that the upland cotton “shortfall” (the amount by which estimated requirements for upland cotton for domestic use and export dur ing the 1967*68 marketing year exceed the 1967 production of such cotton) is placed at 5.6 million bales. This determination for the 1967-68 marketing year (which began August 1) was made in accordance with the provisions of Section 404 of the Food and Agriculture wide from the withers (the ridge between the Act of 1965. Upland cotton requirements for shoulder bones) to the loin on one side of the domestic use and export during the 1967-68 animal. marketing year currently are estimated to be Cattle moving through the passageway of 13.7 million bales, and the 1967 crop of up the sprayer activate the system by pushing a land cotton in the United States is indicated, lever. Spraying a cow requires less than 1 sec as of September 1, at 8.1 million bales. ond, and the spray cuts off automatically be The shortfall may be revised later in the fore the animal leaves the passageway. The year if there are changes in estimated require sprayer is completely portable and requires no ments or production. In accordance with pro electrical outlets; adjustments in the amounts visions of Section 404, the USDA will make of spray can be made easily. available for unrestricted use at current market The USDA researchers have completed 5 prices a quantity of cotton equal to the short months of field studies with the ultralowfall. The cotton will be offered for sale in such volume sprayer. Two dairy herds were treated a manner that market prices would not be with 2-percent and 1-percent ciodrin at the affected unduly. rate of 1 milliliter per animal after each milk ing. Complete control of horn flies was ob Ul+ralow-Volume Sprayer for tained on the treated cattle, while untreated ani Controlling Horn Flies mals nearby had 500 to 1,000 horn flies each. U.S. Department of Agriculture scientists The second year of field testing is under have developed an ultralow-volume sprayer that automatically applies an insecticide to cat way, together with tests to determine applica tle to protect them from horn flies. The experi tion rates for and effectiveness of various in mental sprayer can dispense from 1 to 5 milli secticides. Tests also are being conducted to liters (about one-thirtieth to one-sixth of an determine if residues of certain insecticides ounce) of spray accurately, consistently, and appear in milk from animals treated with the precisely. Work on the sprayer was conducted ultralow-volume sprayer. at the USDA’s Livestock Insect Laboratory at Boll W eevil Campaign Kerrville, Texas. The 1967 phase of a coopera Horn flies cause heavy economic losses to tive campaign to halt the cattle producers, especially in the South and westward spread of the boll Southwest. These small bloodsucking pests irri weevil, a major cotton pest, tate cattle and adversely affect their vitality. began September 5 in the Large numbers of horn flies can result in a 10Texas High Plains, as well as to 20-percent decline in milk production of in the Presidio area of Texas dairy cattle and can lower weight gains of beef and in adjoining parts of cattle as much as one-half pound a day. Mexico, announced the U.S. Department of The experimental sprayer consistently ap Agriculture. The campaign was started in plies a very low volume of spray, even when 1964, with multiple treatment of 290,000 the cattle move rapidly and follow each other acres near Lubbock, Texas. As a result of the closely. The sprayer does not startle the cattle. control program and effective in-season con It uses very small amounts of insecticide, there trol by producers, the treatment area in the by reducing treatment costs. High Plains has been reduced to about 80,000 The heart of the new ultralow-volume acres this year. The USDA’s Agricultural Re sprayer is a measuring and control device that search Service is cooperating in the program regulates the amount of spray forced through with the Plains Cotton Growers, Inc., Texas the nozzle and onto the animal. A single nozzle A&M University, the Texas State Department emits a band of spray approximately 1 foot of Agriculture, and the Mexican Government. This year’s treatments involve the use of un Corn O ff the Cob diluted malathion or guthion applied by air Americans eat the grain equivalent of more craft at the rate of 1 pint or less per acre. These than a pound of corn per capita each week in low-volume treatments will be made at regular corn products, points out the Statistical Re intervals until cold weather halts boll weevil porting Service. This amount is the almost un activity. The purpose of the treatments is to stop reproduction of the weevils and to keep noticed corn in our diets — the corn syrup, the pests from achieving a firm diapause state starch, prepared cereals, and all other proc — the metabolic rest stage that allows the in essed foods made from corn. Each year we sect to survive cold weather and a period with consume over 32 pounds of food products made from corn, which is equal to about 56 out food. pounds of corn as grain. Increased use in re cent years is largely the result of more corn Beetle Is Carrier of Salmonella sugar and syrup in our diets. The dermestid beetle can be a carrier of Salmonella, reports the U.S. Department of Futures Trading Volume Agriculture. Salmonella is a genus of bacteria Breaks Previous Record that is frequently associated with various types The volume of trading in agricultural com of food poisoning, accompanied by gastro intestinal inflammation. Despite elaborate pre modities on regulated futures markets in the cautions taken by industry, the bacteria appear Nation advanced to an all-time high in the fiscal year ended June 30, 1967. For the fifth sporadically in processed foods and feeds. successive year, commodity trading exceeded The USDA says that tests of dermestid the record set in each of the previous fiscal beetles which were collected at one location years, according to the U.S. Department of Ag revealed that crushed larvae placed on a cul riculture. Futures trading in the 15 commodi ture medium were all positive for the Salmo ties regulated by the Commodity Exchange nella bacteria. Adult beetles that were infected Authority increased 17 percent to reach a total externally were found to carry an internal of 16.9 million transactions, valued at $75 bil infection also. lion. Entomologists with the USDA’s Agricultural Corn was the leading commodity on U.S. Research Service speculate that in a plant in futures markets during the 1967 fiscal year. fested with these beetles, it would be possible The volume traded— 13.0 billion bushels — for the insects to carry the Salmonella orga was more than double that of the preceding nism from infected areas into clean areas, in year and was an all-time high. In wheat fu cluding holding or packer bins. Moreover, tures, the volume of trading on all markets products that previously had been pasteurized was 10.4 billion bushels, or almost 75 percent or sterilized could be infected. Rats, birds, and larger than in fiscal 1966. Soybeans — the even human beings can be carriers of Salmo leader in recent years — declined in volume nella organisms. to 9.5 billion bushels but ranked third among regulated commodities traded. Other grains The ARS entomologists say that controlling with an increased volume of trading during the beetle infestation, and thus breaking this fiscal 1967 were oats and grain sorghums. The chain of transmission, would be of tremendous volume of rye was much lower than in 1966. importance to the food and feed industries. They point out, however, that their present findings are preliminary. The specialists are Less than 45 percent of all 4-H Club mem continuing their observations in order to obtain bers live on farms, reports Texas A&M Uni sound data upon which they hope to be able to versity. Of the remainder, 33 percent reside base positive recommendations to the food and in rural areas, and the rest live in towns and feed industries. cities with populations over 2,500 residents.
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