Researchers at University of Missouriâs Southwest Research Center are inviting beef producers to take part in a program to identify beef cows that use feed efficiently.
MU Extension researchers will mine data from the GrowSafe system to help producers select breeding stock cows that eat less than other cows while producing calves with similar growth, says Reagan Bluel, interim superintendent of Southwest Center, an MU research farm in Lawrence County.
Currently, most systems measure feed efficiency by pens. The GrowSafe system tracks individual feed intake and weight gain. Cows that eat less will reward producers by reducing ongoing production costs over long periods, Bluel says.
Mindy Ward
EARLY EVALUATION: Researchers at the University of Missouri want to identify replacement heifers that take less money to feed but produce healthy calves. Cattle producers can enroll spring-born heifers in a program that uses GrowSafe technology to monitor feed intake. There is a nominal fee. Beef producers are being sought for GrowSafe system research at the University of Missouri.
Dec 14, 2020
University of Missouri Extension researchers will mine data from the GrowSafe system to help producers select breeding stock cows that eat less while producing healthy calves.
Researchers at the University of Missouri’s Southwest Research Center are inviting beef producers to take part in a program to identify beef cows that use feed efficiently, says Reagan Bluel, interim superintendent of MU Southwest Research Center, located in Lawrence County.