Livestock Producers Reminded To Test Feed

Aug 09, 2021

Manitoba Beef Producers is giving an update on the feed situation.

Melissa Atchison is the organization's vice president.

"If we can work with our annual crop producers to maybe use some of those low quality or low yielding grains that would be really helpful and promote some good will across the industry," she said. "I think there's going to be a lot of straw being fed this year. Check it for nitrates, get it feed tested and make sure your ration is balanced by a qualified nutritionist. Just to avoid any metabolic wrecks that could occur."

Atchison commented on the collaboration between livestock and crop producers.

"Certainly there's been a few producers who are really putting the word out there that they've got some crop that they would sooner switch to alternate use and there's been some good collaboration across the industry. It's been really nice to see. I understand they're in a really tight spot too, with feed grain prices and forward contacts. We're all in this together, it's been a bad year for everybody but I really am happy to see some of that collaboration across the industry."

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Video: Evolution of Beef Cattle Farming

The Clear Conversations podcast took to the road for a special episode recorded in Nashville during CattleCon, bringing listeners straight into the heart of the cattle industry. Host Tracy Sellers welcomed rancher Steve Wooten of Beatty Canyon Ranch in Colorado for a wide-ranging discussion that blended family history and sustainability, particularly as it relates to the future of beef production.

Sustainability emerged as a central theme of the conversation, a word that Wooten acknowledges can mean very different things depending on who you ask. For him, sustainability starts with the soil. Healthy soil produces healthy grass, which supports efficient cattle capable of producing year after year with minimal external inputs. It’s an approach that equally considers vegetation, animal efficiency, and long-term profitability.

That philosophy aligned naturally with Wooten’s involvement in the U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, where he served as a representative for the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association. The roundtable brings together the entire beef supply chain—from producers to retailers—along with universities, NGOs, and allied industries. Its goal is not regulation, Wooten emphasized, but collaboration, shared learning, and continuous improvement.