TEE BEEF CATTLE INDUSTRY 



413 



In a comparison of different breeds in 

 Kentucky, it appeared that Shorthorn 

 grades made a pound of gain on each 

 10.88 pounds of grain and Angus grades 

 on each 11.85 pounds of grain. Dur- 

 ing recent years the Angus has carried 

 away some of the chief prizes at fat 

 stock shows, and in block contests, and 

 many packers consider that the Angus 

 is better fitted than other breeds to 

 maintain a smooth, symmetrical form 

 without the development of lumps of fat 

 and without becoming patchy or irregu- 

 lar, even to a considerable age. 



Beef vs. dairy type — If there is any 

 point in beef production which is con- 

 sidered by beef raisers as thoroughly es- 

 tablished, it is that the beef type of ani- 

 mal is better adapted for the profitable 

 production of a fine quality of beef than 

 is the dairy type. This point has been 

 tested in numerous experiments and 

 has been submitted to the final judg- 

 ment of the butcher in an examination 

 of the meat on the block. At the Iowa 

 experiment station, Kennedy and others 

 found, in a comparative feeding experi- 

 ment, that the Angus required 9.18 

 pounds of grain and 4.1 pounds of 

 roughage for each pound of gain, at a 

 total cost of 8 cents a pound of meat; 

 the Holsteins required 8.2 pounds of 

 grain and 3.6 pounds of roughage for 

 each pound of gain, at a cost of 7 cents 

 a pound; the Jersey required 9.2 pounds 

 of grain and 4.4 pounds of roughage, at 

 a cost of 8 cents a pound of meat. Com- 

 paring beef steers in general with dairy 

 steers it was found that the cost of gain 

 in beef steers was 7.8 cents and in dairy 

 steers, 7.6 cents. The beef type of steer 

 made slightly greater average gains, 

 while the dairy steers made their gains 

 at a considerably less cost a pound. The 

 meat produced by the dairy steers was 

 not distributed on the body in such a 

 way as to command the highest price, 

 while in the case of beef steers, the 

 gains were distributed largely on the 

 jack, loin and hindquarters, thus greatly 

 increasing the weight of the prime cuts. 

 The return from the slaughter of the 

 teers, at wholesale prices, was appar- 

 ently greater in the case of the dairy 

 steers than in the beef steers; but this 

 was largely due to the fact that the beef 

 steers were bought at a higher price, and 

 had to be handled on a narrower margin. 



The dairy steers carried 25.8 per cent 

 of valuable cuts, while the beef steers 



carried 26.8 per cent of these cuts. The 

 dairy steers showed a higher percentage 

 of offal, a lower dressed weight, and a 

 higher percentage of fat on the internal 

 organs; while the beef steers carried a 

 higher percentage of prime cuts, and the 

 meat was more evenly and neatly cov- 

 ered with outside fat, showing a su- 

 perior marbling. Moreover, the color 

 of the fat in beef steers was whiter and 

 the lean meat was a brighter red. Lit- 

 tle difference was observed, however, in 

 the fineness of the grain of the meat. It 

 was concluded from this series of ex- 

 periments that it is not profitable or 

 desirable to feed steers of the dairy type 

 for beef purposes, for the reason that 

 they are unsatisfactory to the butcher, 

 who will pay considerably more for 

 beef steers. 



At the Kansas experiment station, 

 Cottrell found that Shorthorns dressed 



63.5 per cent; Angus, 62.6 per cent; 

 Jerseys, 59.5 per cent; and Holsteins, 



59.6 per cent. In the set of experiments in 

 which these percentages were obtained, 

 Shorthorns produced 28.1 per cent of 

 high-priced cuts; Angus, 27.5 per cent; 

 Jerseys, 27.9 per cent; and Holsteins, 

 27.1 per cent. The beef steers and 

 grades, as a whole, furnished 27.8 per 

 cent of high-priced cuts, and the dairy 

 steers, 27.5 per cent. The cost of feed- 

 ing for each 100 pounds of gain was 

 $15.41 for the Shorthorns, $17.31 for the 

 Angus, and $15.16 each for the Jerseys 

 and Holsteins. A comparison of Short- 

 horns and Jerseys in Mississippi gave 

 results which were quite satisfactory 

 for both breeds, but the butchers to 

 whom the meat was sold stated that the 

 Shorthorn meat was worth 50 cents to 

 75 cents a 100 pounds more than that of 

 the Jerseys. 



In a recent test at the Minnesota ex- 

 periment station, a cross bred Jersey- 

 Holstein steer cost less to raise to the 

 age of 38 months than a beef steer at 

 22 months. The dairy steer dressed 5 

 per cent less, but actually carried a 

 higher percentage of loin and other high- 

 priced cuts, and, therefore, made good 

 for the smaller percentage of dressed 

 beef. It was also shown that steers from 

 Jersey cows and Angus or Hereford 

 bulls make excellent baby beef. Such 

 cross bred steers closely resemble the 

 bulls in color and form and may pass, 

 except among experts, for Angus or 

 Hereford. Eecently it has become a 

 quite general practice to cross beef bulls 



