Page 196 - The Welfare of Cattle

ChaPter 16

an Overview of the Segments of the
Beef Cattle Industry and animal Welfare
Implications of Beef Industry Practices

Jason K. Ahola, John J. Wagner, and Terry Engle
Colorado State University

CONteNtS

Segments of the U.S. Beef Cattle Industry .................................................................................... 173
An Overview of Animal Welfare Implications of Beef Industry Practices .................................... 174
The Five Freedoms ......................................................................................................................... 174
History of Animal Welfare Regulation........................................................................................... 175
Demand by Retailers, Food Service, and Consumers .................................................................... 175
Market-Driven On-Farm Animal Welfare Audits........................................................................... 176
Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) and Cattle Welfare ....................................................................... 177
American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Perspective .................................................. 178
Conclusions .................................................................................................................................... 179
Online Resources ........................................................................................................................... 179
References ..................................................................................................................................... 179

SeGMeNtS OF the U.S. BeeF CattLe INDUStrY

The U.S. beef cattle industry is a very dynamic and robust industry. Local, regional, and inter-
national events can influence the U.S. beef cattle industry. Unlike most industries, the U.S. beef
cattle industry is not controlled by one overall management program. Instead, it is composed of
several independent operating segments that are loosely linked together in a supply chain fashion
by live cattle and end products (Field, 2007). In general, the U.S. beef cattle industry is composed
of seven segments: (1) seedstock producers, (2) commercial cow-calf producers, (3) yearling/stocker
or backgrounding feedlot operators, (4) finishing feedlot operators, (5) packers, (6) retailers and
foodservice distributors, and (7) consumers (Field, 2007).
Briefly, the seedstock producers are cow-calf producers that specialize in generating breed-
ing stock with improved genetics to ultimately be utilized by commercial cow-calf producers.
Commercial cow-calf producers purchase genetics (in the form of bulls, cows, embryos or semen)
from seedstock producers to improve their herd genetics. In a commercial cow-calf operation, the
goal is to have each cow produce one calf per year. The calf is raised by its mother on pasture

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