Throughout most of the 70’s and 80’s I worked with technical marketing programs for implants. The subject of growth stimulating implants was and continues to be a "hot" topic. It has been noted that implanting is one of, if not the most, profitable management practices. In the 70s and 80s, the implant field offered what seemed like a lot of options - five products. Implant technique and proper placement were critical points that were stressed as key factors that affected maximum return for implant expense. Well, today we still know the value of an implant, but according to Pete Anderson Ph.D. there are now 22 products containing five different drugs in 13 different combinations of ingredient levels, sold by five different companies supplying 10 implant devices. Today the challenge is to match the implant program to the cattle, nutrition, management, targeted market and length of feeding period.

As more cattle are sold on carcass-based arrangements, the characteristics that determine carcass value are becoming important to a greater portion of the feeding industry. One of the most important characteristics is the percentage of cattle that grade choice. If the spread between choice and select grade carcasses is high, choice grade carcasses are worth much more than select grade carcasses. On the other hand, if the spread is low, there is very little economic incentive to produce a high percentage of choice carcasses.

For early 1998, the choice/select spread was unusually low, around $2/cwt most weeks and occasionally virtually zero. In the second half of the year the spread had increased to nearly $12/cwt and then fell back to about $9/cwt.

 Chart 1 shows the trends for the spread over the last three years. Notice that the spread is narrower in the early months of each year. We do not pretend to know where it is going from here, just that predicting it correctly could be worth big money. Because implants are one of the factors that affect percentage choice, the implant program decisions that are being made now can affect value of carcasses this fall.

Dr. Anderson presented a summary of the implant area during a series of meetings sponsored by Land O’Lakes. In his presentation Dr. Anderson stressed key points relating to evaluating benefits, product choices, costs and risks. I know one constant with my experiences of the 70’s and 80’s is that the implant area is an area that requires attention in developing a total program. Land O’Lakes has several beef specialists available to help you develop a program that fits your system. If you would like more information about Land O’Lakes programs to improve your profitability, please contact us at webmaster@beeflinks.com