Academic literature on the topic 'Beef cattle Economic aspects New Zealand'

Beef and lamb meat production is associated with important cultural, economic and environmental impacts in most countries worldwide. However, it is also related with sustainability challenges. To enable cattle and sheep farming to develop in line with sustainability, existing knowledge need to be implemented and identified knowledge gaps filled. The purpose of this article was to systematically map the scientific literature on environmental, economic and social sustainability at farm-level beef and lamb meat production to identify knowledge gaps and to point to important future actions and areas of research. Papers published January 2000–August 2020 with a geographical origin in Europe, Northern America, and Australia-New Zealand were included. The systematic literature search resulted in a total of 1355 hits; however, after removing papers which were considered out of the scope of the study, and duplicate papers, only 22 and 11 papers related to beef and sheep farming, respectively were retained for further analysis. Of these, only 11 in total included all three sustainability dimensions. Several papers only mentioned one or two of the sustainability dimensions or put them in relation to that/those main dimension covered, thus limiting the extent to which possible synergies or tradeoffs between different sustainability aspects actually can be studied. This indicates a need for a more comprehensive approach when studying farm-level sustainability. Future research would benefit from a more holistic approach and include all dimensions of sustainability within the same study. Further, focus should also be on how to measure and assess sustainability aspects in a standardized way.

The liveweight of New Zealand beef cows has increased in recent decades due to selection for higher growth rates. Published data suggest that the efficiency of beef cow production decreases with increasing cow liveweight. Changes in beef herd size, feed demand, production, and cash operating surplus (COS) were simulated with average mature cow liveweight varied to 450, 500, 550, and 600 kg. With total annual beef feed demand fixed at the same level, in all scenarios cow numbers and numbers of weaned calves decreased with increasing cow liveweight. When the model was run with consistent efficiency of calf production across the mature cow liveweights (scenario A), heavier cows were more profitable. However, using published efficiency data (scenarios B and C), herds of heavier cows were less profitable. The likely most realistic scenario for New Zealand hill country farms (scenario B) had COS decrease from New Zealand Dollars (NZD) 456/ha with a herd of 450 kg cows to NZD 424/ha with 600 kg cows. Reductions in COS were relatively small, which may not deter farmers from breeding heavier cows for higher calf growth rates. However, the results of this analysis combined with indirect potential economic impacts suggest that the heaviest cows may not be optimal for New Zealand hill country conditions.

Ethology, the research field of animal behaviour, during the past half century developed into an independent science and became more important in recent years as the farming industry has turned toward quality production. Farm animals respond for every environmental factor. Essential to know the answers to avoid unpleasant economic consequences. Based on the shepherds’ experience, this science has merged with modern technology, constantly expanding and searching new methods. According to the literature the article summarizes the observation methods in cattle grazing. This paper introduces the beginnings and shows the future trends. Finally we share personal experiences as the Hungarian Grey cattle grazing behaviour at conditions of Hortobágy, Hungary.

Abstract This presentation provides a descriptive overview of economic and marketing trends and key changes in cattle feeding over the last two decades. The focus will highlight four major areas: aspects of beef demand (domestic and foreign), market-driven carcass characteristics, economically driven producer production trends, and marketing arrangements. The last two decades have brought unique challenges and opportunities to the beef industry through demand changes and production technologies. Consumer diet trends, the rise and fall of saturated fat, and the expansion into the global marketplace have all shaped the beef demand profile. New technologies also have shaped feedlot management and marketing. Over the last two decades, changes have revolutionized fed cattle marketing, rewarding quality through alternative marketing arrangements, especially formula pricing, including grid pricing. Evolutionary changes have been seen in carcass grading characteristics (e.g., Choice/Select price spread) and helped focus production practices to zero in on producing higher-quality beef. Trends at the feedlot such as carcass weights, days on feed, and other productivity measures have also been shaped by in-part by economics. Last, we will offer a few comments on emerging issues and trends.

Genetic improvement programs for livestock and pasture plants have been central to the development of the New Zealand (NZ) pastoral industry. Although genetic improvement of livestock is easily shown to improve animal production on-farm, the link between genetic improvement of pasture plants and animal production is less direct. For several reasons, gains in farm output arising from improved plant performance are more difficult to confirm than those arising from livestock improvement, which has led to some debate in the livestock industries about which plant traits to prioritise in future breeding programs to deliver the greatest benefit. This review investigates this situation, with the aim of understanding how genetic improvement of perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.), the predominant pasture grass, may more directly contribute towards increased productivity in the NZ dairy industry. The review focuses on the dairy industry, since it is the largest contributor to the total value of NZ agricultural exports. Also, because rates of pasture renewal are greater in the dairy industry compared with the sheep and beef industries, genetic gain in pasture plants is likely to have the greatest impact if the correct plant traits are targeted. The review highlights that many aspects of ryegrass growth and ecology have been manipulated through breeding, with evidence to show that plant performance has been altered as a result. However, it is not clear to what extent these gains have contributed to the economic development of the NZ dairy industry. There are opportunities for breeders and scientists to work together more closely in defining economic traits that positively influence pasture performance and to translate this information to objectives for breeding programs, systematically linking information on the measured traits of ryegrass cultivars to economic values for those traits to assist farmer decision-making regarding the most appropriate cultivars to use in their farm system, and better defining genotype × environment interactions in key productivity traits of modern ryegrass cultivars. Changes in priorities for investment of public- and industry-good funds in forage improvement research and development will be needed if these opportunities are to be captured.

A proposed animal welfare assessment protocol for semi-arid rangeland-based cow–calf systems in Namibia combined 40 measures from a protocol developed for beef cattle in New Zealand with additional Namibia-specific measures. Preliminary validation of the protocol had been undertaken with five herds in one semi-commercial village. The aim of the current study was to apply this protocol and compare animal welfare across three cow–calf production systems in Namibia. A total of 2529 beef cows were evaluated during pregnancy testing in the yards of 17 commercial, 20 semi-commercial, and 18 communal (total: 55) herds followed by an assessment of farm resources and a questionnaire-guided interview. Non-parametric tests were used to evaluate the difference in the welfare scores between the production systems. The results indicated a discrepancy of animal welfare between the three farm types, with a marked separation of commercial farms from semi-commercial, and communal village farms in the least. The differences in these production systems were mainly driven by economic gains through access to better beef export market for commercial farms and semi-commercial villages, as well as by the differences in the available grazing land, facility designs/quality, and traditional customs in the village systems. The results indicate an advantage of commercialization over communalization.

<p>Our review concludes that organic standards need to account for a broader set of criteria in order to retain claims to ‘sustainability’. Measurements of the ecological, economic and social outcomes from over 96 kiwifruit, sheep/beef and dairy farms in New Zealand between 2004 and 2012 by The <em>Agricultural Research Group on Sustainability</em> (ARGOS) project showed some enhanced ecosystem services from organic agriculture that will assist a “land-sharing” approach for sustainable land management. However, the efficiency of provisioning services is reduced in organic systems and this potentially undermines a “land-sparing” strategy to secure food security and ecosystem services. Other aspects of the farm operation that are not considered in the organic standards sometimes had just as much or even a greater effect on ecosystem services than restriction of chemical inputs and synthetic fertilisers. An organic farming version of the <em>New Zealand Sustainability Dashboard</em> will integrate organic standards and wider agricultural best practice into a broad and multidimensional sustainability assessment framework and package of learning tools. There is huge variation in performance of farms within a given farming system. Therefore improving ecosystem services depends as much on locally tuned learning and adjustments of farm practice on individual farms as on uptake of organic or Integrated Management farming system protocols.</p>

Considering the current low prices for coarse wool (fibre diameter > 30 µm), a grading up transition to a shedding flock may eliminate wool harvesting costs and increase sheep farm profit. This transition could be achieved by breeding non-shedding ewes with Wiltshire rams. A bio-economic system-dynamics model of a pastoral sheep farming enterprise was used to simulate this grading up transition from 2580 Romney ewes to a similarly-sized flock of fully shedding third or fourth cross Wiltshire–Romney ewes. The total annual sheep feed demand was constrained within a ±5% range to minimise disruption to the on-farm beef cattle enterprise. Wool harvesting expenses were eliminated after seven years of transition, and with reduced feed demand for wool growth, the post-transition shedding flocks had more ewes producing more lambs and achieving greater annual profit compared with the base Romney flock. The net present values of transition were 7% higher than the maintenance of the base Romney flock with a farmgate wool price of $2.15/kg. Results suggest that coarse wool-producing farmers should consider a grading up transition to a shedding flock, and the collection of data on the production of Wiltshire–Romney sheep in New Zealand would improve the accuracy of model predictions.

The state and level of development of livestock industries depend on internal (availability of basic production funds, material and labor resources, the level of technological and technical support, etc.) and external factors (the state of the country's economy, fluctuations in market conditions, the solvency of the population, natural resources, economic and political stability, etc.). The effectiveness of livestock industries and the level of their development are determined by a favorable combination of internal and external factors, with their rational use. The research aims to study and analyze the state and level of development of animal husbandry industries in the Russian Federation and abroad, with further identification of areas for improving efficiency and developing recommendations for their further development. As of 2019, compared to the pre-reform period (1990), the number of livestock of agricultural animals in the Russian Federation has sharply decreased: cattle (cattle) - by 3 times, including cows-by 2.6 times, pigs-by 1.5 times, sheep and goats-by 2.6 times. This led to a decrease in the density of livestock per 100 hectares of agricultural land, which reduces the efficiency of land use, including hayfields and pastures. On the territories of the Russian Federation, there are quite a lot of natural forage lands, which, with reasonable specialization and territorial placement of livestock industries, can increase the efficiency of their use. The lack of a unified policy to improve the sustainability of agroecological systems and their effective use in the country does not allow us to reach the pre-reform level of livestock production. For the period from 2010 to 2019, beef production decreased by 6.7%, and milk production by 0.5 %. For meat and meat products, the actual production volumes are above the established threshold of food security, and for milk and dairy products, this level has not yet been reached. So, by 2019, taking into account reserves, the share of domestic production was 83.1 % (with a threshold value of 90 %), and the share of imports was 16.9 %. All this dictates the need to study internal and external factors affecting the development of livestock industries, identify internal reserves and, on this basis, increase production volumes, and ensure competitiveness in the foreign market. In the world market of livestock production, the leading positions are occupied by such industrialized countries as the United States, Canada, Northern Europe, Australia, New Zealand. The analysis of the state of development of animal husbandry in these countries allows us to conclude that the growth of livestock production and livestock productivity was promoted by taking into account and combining internal and external factors - the use of industrial industrial technologies (dairy cattle breeding), taking into account natural factors (meat cattle breeding). The use of cheap sources of natural forage land and climatic conditions that allow for the production of livestock products in some of these countries (Australia, New Zealand, some US states) without the construction of capital livestock buildings makes it possible to obtain cheap, high-quality and competitive products. Taking into account the experience of foreign countries, taking into account the possibilities of agroecological systems, it is necessary to choose the right specialization of livestock industries and on this basis to increase the production volumes and efficiency of livestock products

Introduction. The article assesses the importance of economic efficiency of agricultural production sustainable development in the conditions of the national economy openness. It is noted that sustainable development as a new form of social dynamics, applies to all spheres of socio-economic life and requires scientific and methodological development of models and mechanisms for its implementation in the practice of management. The least developed aspects of it now remain the problem of assessing the economic component of the agricultural production sustainable development in the conditions of the national economy openness. The purpose of the article is to assess the economic component of sustainable development of agricultural production in the conditions of the national economy openness. Within the achieve-ment of the goal, the following tasks were identified: research into the dynamics of the main indicators of the agricultural production level; estimation of indicators of agricultural enterprises economic activity; research of the self-sufficiency level in Ukraine by the main types of food. Results. It has been researched that in the agricultural sector of agrarian production of Ukraine there are positive changes – yields of all included in the analysis crops tend to increase. However, the indicators of the stability level of such growth (coefficient of variation) show significant differentiation. Despite the low values of the variation coefficients in agricultural productivity (excluding the average daily growth of pigs), the current state of the domestic livestock industry cannot be called satisfactory – because the number of cattle and pigs that are not compensated for the growth of animals continues to decline. As a result, production of milk, beef and pork decreases. In livestock farming, the decrease in production can only be compensated by the increase in poultry meat production. Conclusions. There is an extremely unstable dynamics of agricultural production. In our opinion, the main reason for the sharp fluctuations in production downward was: 1) rapid devaluation of the hryvnia; 2) the loss of traditional markets. The real flow of investment into agriculture demonstrates extremely volatile dynamics. The real dynamics of capital investment in Ukraine’s agriculture, not distorted by inflationary influence, has a low level of stability. Keywords: agricultural production, sustainable development, social infrastructure, rural territories, food security, economic component of sustainable development, production efficiency.