LIVESTOCK DECISIONS

| COSTS AND RETURNS | OUTLOOK AND PRICES | MARKETS | OTHER |

LIVESTOCK DECISIONS COSTS AND RETURNS

Budgets and Record Summaries

Information Files

• Livestock Enterprise Budgets for Iowa -- B1-21
• Organic Dairy Production Planning Concepts -- B1-24
• Returns from Farrowing and Finishing Hogs -- B1-30
• Monthly Swine Farrow to Finish Returns (10 year summary) -- B1-31
• Returns from Cattle Feeding -- B1-35
• Monthly Cattle Feeding Returns (10 year summary) -- B1-36
• Dairy Goats
• Sheep

Newsletter Articles

• Planning for the future with enterprise analysis -- December 2012

Decision Tools (xls)

• Beef Cow Share Agreement Analysis -- B1-20, C2-36
• Farrow-to-Finish
• Finishing Feeder Pigs
• Producing weaned 12 lb. pigs - Total Confinement
• Finishing weaned 12 lb. pigs – Total Confinement
• Finishing Yearling Steers
• Finishing Steer Calves
• Finishing Yearling Heifers
• Backgrounding Steer Calves
• Beef Cow-Calf
• Ewe Flock
• Finishing Feeder Lamb
• Grade A Dairy
• Organic Dairy Budget -- B1-24

Teaching Activities (doc)

• Livestock Enterprise Budget Prices -- B1-20
• Livestock Enterprise Budgets 1 -- B1-21
• Livestock Enterprise Budgets 2 -- B1-21

Profitability

Information Files

• Value of Manure Nutrients -- B1-65
• Optimal Marketing Dates for Feedlot Enterprise Profitability -- B1-70
• Ten Ways to Cut Cattle Feeder Costs -- B1-71
• Retained Ownership Strategies for Cow Herds -- B1-72
• Livestock Production - Specialize While Retaining Income Diversification -- B1-76
• Cost of Organic Pork Production -- B1-80

Newsletter Articles

• Switching to organic pork production has potential advantages and drawbacks -- June 2009
• Value of manure nutrients -- March 2007
• Profiting from the cattle cycle: alternative cow herd investment strategies -- May 2001
• Foot–and-mouth-disease update and implications -- April 2001
• Retained ownership strategies for cow-calf producers -- October 2000
• Swine manure management practices -- September 1998
• Critical success factors for dairy expansion -- July 1998
• Payoff from new swine technologies -- April 1998
• Developing a pork production strategy -- April 1998
• Can family farmers compete in pork production? -- March 1998
• Why farmers quit producing pork -- January 1998
• Options for backgrounding calves -- December 1997
• Long run planning prices for pork producers -- December 1997
• Positioning your pork enterprise in a dynamic industry -- July 1997
• The dairy expansion decision -- June 1997
• What affects cattle feeding profitability -- February 1997
• Cattle pricing strategies -- January 1997
• Pricing pigs -- January 1997

Decision

• Manure Calculator -- B1-65

Insurance

Information Files

• Revenue Insurance for Livestock Producers -- B1-50
• Livestock Gross Margin: A Risk Management Tool for Cattle Feeders -- B1-51
• Risk Management Tool for Sheep Producers -- B1-52
• LGM Dairy - A Risk Management Tool for Milk Producers -- B1-53

Newsletter Articles

• Livestock risk protection now available for lambs -- October 2007
• Livestock Gross Margin: A new risk management tool for cattle feeders -- May 2006
• Price insurance for cattle producers -- September 2003
• Livestock revenue insurance: How did it perform? -- February 2003

Decision Tools (xls)

• Livestock Revenue Protection (LRP) Analyzer -- B1-50

Government Programs

Information Files

• 2008 Farm Bill Dairy Provisions -- B1-55
• Weather-related Sales of Livestock – C4-28

OUTLOOK AND PRICES

Prices

Information Files

• Livestock Planning Prices -- B1-10
• Deductible Livestock Costs for Adjusting Income Tax Returns -- B1-15
• Historic Hog and Lamb Prices -- B2-10
• Historic Cattle Prices -- B2-12
• Seasonal Hog Price Patterns -- B2-14
• Hog Price Changes by Two-week Periods -- B2-15
• Seasonal Cattle Price Patterns -- B2-19
• Cattle Price Changes by Two-week Periods -- B2-20
• Feeder Pig Pricing Formulas -- B3-50

Teaching Activities (doc)

• Livestock Planning Prices -- B1-10
• Seasonal Hog Price Patterns -- B2-14
• Seasonal Cattle Price Patterns -- B2-19
• Cattle Price Changes by Two-week Periods -- B2-20

LIVESTOCK DECISIONS MARKETS

Prices

Information Files

• Historic Hog and Lamb Prices -- B2-10
• Historic Cattle Prices -- B2-12
• Seasonal Hog Price Patterns -- B2-14
• Hog Price Changes by Two-week Periods -- B2-15
• Seasonal Cattle Price Patterns -- B2-19
• Cattle Price Changes by Two-week Periods -- B2-20

Teaching Activities (doc)

• Seasonal Hog Price Patterns -- B2-14
• Hog Prices Changes by Two-week Periods -- B2-15
• Seasonal Cattle Price Patterns -- B2-19

Basis

Information Files

• Understanding Livestock Basis -- B2-40
• Lean Hog Basis -- B2-41
• Live Cattle Basis -- B2-42
• Feeder Cattle Basis -- B2-43
• Understanding and Using Milk Price Basis -- B2-44
• Feeder Steer-Heifer Price Spread -- B2-45

Teaching Activities

• Understanding Livestock Basis -- B2-40
• Lean Hog Basis -- B2-41

Plans

Information Files

• Developing a Hog Marketing Plan -- B2-33
• Cattle Marketing Decisions -- B2-35

Decision Tools (xls)

• Cow Sell Calculator -- B2-35
• Cow Repurchase Calculator -- B2-35

Tools

Information Files

• Hedging of Livestock -- B2-50
• Hog Contracting -- B2-51
• Livestock Options Market -- B2-52
• Frequency of Profitable Hedging Opportunities for Lean Hogs, 1999-2008 -- B2-53
• How Often Can Cattle Feeders Hedge a Profit with Futures? -- B2-54
• Estimating Corn Use by Iowa Livestock and Poultry -- B2-55

Teaching Activities

• Hedging of Livestock -- B2-50
• Iowa Livestock and Poultry Corn Use Calculator-- B2-50
• Simple Hog Market Calculator -- B2-53
• Swine Marketing Decision Calculator -- B2-53

Analysis

Information Files

• Hog Price Forecast Errors In The Last 10 Years: Lean Hog Futures Market & Seasonal Index -- B2-60
• Cattle Price Forecast Errors: Live Cattle Futures & Seasonal Index -- B2-61
• Hog Futures - The Life of a Contract Comparing Expiration to Weekly Futures Prices -- B2-62
• Live Cattle Futures - The Life of a Contract: Comparing Expiration to Weekly Futures Prices -- B2-63
• Feeder Cattle Futures - The Life of a Contract: Comparing Expiration to Weekly Futures Prices -- B2-64
• Feeder Cattle Futures Forecast Errors, 1990-2008 -- B2-65
• Live Cattle Futures Forecast Errors, 1990-2008 -- B2-66
• Lean Hog Futures Forecast Errors, 1990-2008 -- B2-67

Newsletter Articles

• Overcoming Information Barriers in Cattle Marketing -- June 2003
• Live cattle futures and options: How have they done? Part 2 -- October 2000
• Live cattle futures and options: How have they done? Part 1 -- September 2000

LIVESTOCK DECISIONS OTHER

Industry Analysis

Newsletter Articles

• The hog industry: It wasn’t supposed to happen this way! -- October 2009
• Dairy farming success in the bioeconomy -- February 2008
• Are more livestock in Iowa’s future? -- December 2005
• Presence of Mad Cow disease in U.S. raises significant questions concerning U.S. food safety policies -- December 2003
• Living with hogs in rural Iowa -- August 2003
• Country of Origin Labeling -- May 2003
• Country of origin labeling guidelines -- October 2002
• The new U.S. meat industry -- July 2001
• The changing pork industry structure -- October 1998
• Texas cattle feeders take on Oprah Winfrey -- testing the Veggie Libel Law -- August 1998
• Competition in pork processing -- June 1998
• Iowa's pork processing industry -- May 1998
• Opportunities for Iowa pork exports -- February 1998
• What rural Iowans think about hogs -- January 1998
• Pork industry changes affecting farmers/agribusinesses -- January 1998
• Changes in how pork is produced -- February 1997

Contracts

Newsletter Articles

• Do farm payments promote rural economic growth? -- May 2005

Value-added

Newsletter Articles

• Beef quality assurance “down under” -- August 2002
• ISO 9001-2000 - a brief discussion -- July 2001
• The Iowa Quality Beef Supply Network -- Should I Invest? -- December 1999
• Northern Plains Premium Beef Cooperative -- Should I Join? -- March 1997

Networking

Facilities

• Estimated Cost for Livestock Fencing -- B1-75
• The Economics of Finishing Hogs in Hoop Structures and Confinement; Seasonal and Annual Comparison -- B1-81

• Plan ahead to avoid heat stress in cattle -- July 2011
• Hoops for swine: A good choice for beginning farmers? -- June 1997

|return to text-only home page|

|Ag Decision Maker Home Page|