During Cattlemen’s Congress, Senior Farm and Ranch Broadcaster Ron Hays had the opportunity to sit down with Executive Vice President of Production for Certified Angus Beef (CAB) Bruce Cobb. They discussed the quality improvements in beef, the sky high demand, and the impending herd rebuild and what it will do for the beef industry.
Cobb says that the process of improving beef quality isn’t as complicated as some might think. “It is all about the consumer,” he said. “If we will stay focused on what the consumer wants, the producers who are focused on high quality will continue to win.”
According to Cobb, the consumer has demanded Certified Angus Beef year after year and that demand is growing.
“We can see it, not just in the demand signals, but also in economic signals,” Cobb explained. “Look at the value of a Certified Angus Beef carcass versus a Choice carcass versus a Select carcass – the economic values are significantly different.”
Although Certified Angus Beef is a prominent brand in the business, Cobb feels like many don’t fully grasp that it is owned and governed by cattle producers. “We respond to a board of directors at Certified Angus Beef that comes from the Board of Directors at the American Angus Association. It is exciting if you look across the whole food industry. There aren’t many entities that dominate in their food category that is governed by a group of producers.”
Cobb’s production team focuses on maximizing the supply of Certified Angus Beef by working with producers, packers, and processors. He shared, “We work with all of those entities to help continue to grow that supply and make sure that everyone understands what our demand is showing and what that economic signal is in each supply point.”
According to Cobb, the mood surrounding herd rebuilding is filled with question marks. Producers are trying to figure out when to start and do they start; however, Cobb said that the producers of high-quality beef are dependent on the quality component to drive their profitability so they aren’t concerned about the next year or two going forward.
“Moisture has and always will be a challenge,” Cobb admitted. “You have to have grass and you have to have water, but that profitability piece is driving the decisions. The decisions are being geared towards ramping up genetics because that is where the profitability opportunity is.”
Remembering the genetic improvements stemming from the last herd rebuild after the drought of 2014 – 2015, Cobb is confident that the results will be the same from the next rebuild.
He said, “Our business is driven by economics, and we didn’t have the demand of the economic signals in the last rebuild that we have now. In the last rebuild, the percentage of Angus influence in the herd jumped pretty noticeably over a three year period. Now, the marketplace wants more of that high-quality beef, Certified Angus Beef specifically, and that is going to be a bigger motivator this time around than it was in the last rebuild.”
The Beef Buzz is a regular feature heard on radio stations around the region on the Radio Oklahoma Ag Network and is a regular audio feature found on this website as well. Click on the LISTEN BAR at the top of the story for today’s show and check out our archives for older Beef Buzz shows covering the gamut of the beef cattle industry today.
