
Premier Research on Hoop Barns for Beef Production Begins at ISU
(Posted on 7/18/2008)
For years, beef producers and environmental specialists have looked for economical ways to curb intensive runoff from feedlots. In addition, environmental regulations in high-rainfall areas, such as Iowa, are creating increased interest in new livestock production systems. As a result, specialists at Iowa State University (ISU) have begun research to quantify the environment in a bedded hoop barn used for finishing cattle, and to compare beef cattle performance in hoops to conventional open feedlots.