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Houston County Beef Cattle Feeding
Beef Cattle And Swine
Important To Agriculture
Economy In Houston County
By Virgil Adams
An important source of
information for the Com
mittee on Agriculture of
Governor Carter’s Goals for
Georgia program was “An
Appraisal of Georgia
Agriculture and Related
Activities" by Dr Joseph C.
l*urcell.
Dr Purcell, agricultural
economist at Uie Georgia
experiment Station, ex
periment, Ga , look a look at
each agricultural com
modity and enterprise in the
state and told the committee
how he sees it • now and in
the future
Beef
Dr Purcell explains that
the US. beef industry
consists of two basic phases
One is the production of
feeder cattle (calves), with
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processing grade beef as a
by-product through the
culling and replacement
process. The other pluise is
finishing cattle, largely on
grain, to meet the demand
for fresh block land - steaks,
roasts, etc.
Cattle feeding has ex
panded very rapidly in this
country during the past two
decades. In fact, the beef
industry has enjoyed the
greatest market growth rate
of any major agicullural
industry in the U.S. During
this period Dr. Purcell
says this is due to a strong
perference for beef, and the
undergirding affluence
necessary to buy this meat.
The growth in demand for
high quality beef - plus
abundant supplies of grain -
has created an exceptionally
favorable market growth
rate for feeder cattle
produced in Georgia. Also,
the growing popularity of
fast food services and
cookout has brought rapid
expansion to the market for
lower grade beef, especially
hamburger. A large part of
the hamburger grade beef is
currently imported into the
United States, and Dr.
Purcell believes this offers a
considerable potential for
expanding this industry in
Georgia.
He believes our com
petitive position in the
production of feeder cattle
(the cow-calf operation) is
good. He cited Georgia's
advantage in winter forage
production as providing a
basis for growing out feeder
calves. But Georgia is in a
poor competitive position in
cattle feeding because of
higher grain prices than
those prevailing in major
feeding areas. Cattle
slaughter activities are
production oriented; thus
Georgia is in a poor com
petitive position to expand in
this area.
Swine
Traditionally, pork has
been the major meat con
sumed in Georgia.
Gradually, though, it is being
replaced by beef and
poultry.
According to Dr. Furcell,
pork production was well
adapted to the subsistence
type of agriculture which
prevailed in Georgia up to
World War 11. He adds that
tradition apparently is
responsible - at least in part -
for the commercial pork
industry that currently
exists in the state.
Fork production and
consumption, relative to
other meats in the U.S., has
declined during the past two
decades because of rapid
expansion and decreasing
prices in poultry meat.
Nevertheless, pork does
have a realitively hard
market in breakfast meats.
And the substitution of cheap
poultry' for pork in the soft
markets appears to have
about run its course. So Dr.
Furcell anticipates growth
in the domestic pork market
at rates at least equal to the
population growth.
However, he believes
Georgia's competitive
position in pork production is
poor. He points out that the
industry requires large
quantities of grain as its
basic input, and that
Georgia's ability’ to compete
in grain production is not
good.
The economist explains
that hog slaughter is
production oriented, and
adds that the best potential
for expanding pork
production and related
activities may be in nor
thwest Georgia. This in
dustry would be based
largely on midwest grain.
But Dr. Purcell says its
success depends largely on
organization and efficiency.
"Any natural advantage for
expansion of the pork in
dustry in Georgia simply
does not exist,” he declares.
Poultry and Eggs
This industry has ex
panded rapidly in Georgia
during the last 20 years. And
since World War II it has
gone through an almost
complete reorganization
with respect to location,
scale and vertical in
tegration. It has been
characterized by a rapid
increase in efficiency of
production.
Dr. Purcell says the ad
vantage gained by Georgia
was largely in the area of
vertical organization and
adoption of new technology
which developed here before
it did in other producing
areas. The modernized
organization of the industry
in the beginning moved
Georgia ahead in the com
petitive market. But now,
the ag economist points out,
this advantage can be
duplicated in most any
location. So Georgia has no
lasting natural or economic
advantage in the poultry
industry.
Dr Purcell calls Georgia's
competitive position in
poultry production “fair".
He points out that many
other areas have an ad
vantage of lower cost feed
and access to major
markets.
Much of the increase in
consumption of poultry meat
the past two decades
resulted from increased
production and declining
prices. With the increasing
affluence of the American
public, the domestic market
demand for poultry and eggs
is expected to lose some of its
market to substitutes.
True, poultry meat is a
relatively inexpensive, high
grade protein food. But as
Dr. Purcell says, it does not
rank very high on the meat
perference scale.
Dairy
Georgia’s dairy industry is
limited largely to the
production and processing of
Grade A fresh fluid milk and
related products - ice cream
and cottage cheese, for
example. Hard Cheese,
butter, canned milk, milk
powder and other dairy
products are shipped in from
other states - primarily
Wisconsin and Minnesota.
Dr. Purcell says the
domestic market for dairy
products has expanded
relatively little on a milk-fat
basis, but adds that “the
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commercial market for fluid
Grade A milk in Georgia has
enjoyed a healthy growth”.
The reason for this, he ex
plains, is due to the
migration of people from
rural to urban areas.
The agricultural
economist believes
Georgia’s competitive
position in producing milk
for the local fresh fluid
market remains relatively
strong, and that the potential
for growth in the com
mercial Grade A dairy in
dustry here is good. ‘‘Con
tinued growth in the
population, urbanization,
affluence and nutritional
awareness are expected to
strengthen the market for
fresh fluid milk", he says. In
addition, fresh fluid milk is a
bulky perishable product
that is expensive to tran
sport.
On the other hand, our
state’s competitive position
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in the production of con
centrated, less perishable
products - even for the local
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market - is poor because of
higher production costs than
in major dairy states.