Cattle Risk Management
Lock in your prices with National Farmers Risk Management Tools
Volatility. Uncertainty. Marketing Risks.
Farmers today face an enormous amount of price risk as you market milk, livestock and grain. That means you need the advantages of futures and options.
Today’s agricultural markets shift with seasons and sometimes with the news cycle. Whether you’re raising cattle, producing milk or growing corn, soybeans or wheat, National Farmers offers risk management choices to help you level the global farm market playing field.
Harness the Pricing Power of Holstein Profit Plus
As a Holstein beef producer, you know your livestock operation provides an important element in the beef supply chain. Holsteins make up 10 percent of the U.S. calf crop. And you want and deserve profit in your cattle operation. We can guide you along the highway to profit through market intelligence and risk management.
If you raise Holstein steers already, you know some things are different than native beef, and you know packers can specialize in one type of animal or the other. That’s another good reason to capitalize on the relationships we at National Farmers have with major processors. We open marketing doors for today’s Holstein beef producer at processors where your cattle are wanted.
With the calf-fed system, the Holstein feeding sector of the beef industry has moved to, carcass weights have become lighter, 1,200 lbs. to 1,400 lbs., and the cuts are similar in size to the rest of the industry. (Univ. of Kentucky) You have what beef eaters want. We tip our hats to producers responsive to consumer desires. Your cattle are valuable.
Holstein Strengths
- Hide Value
- Marketed for All Cuts of Beef
- Predictable Feedlot Performance
- Trim Value
- Predictable Carcass Value
- Impressive Growth in Young Steers
- Calf Availability
- Consistency of the Breed
Quality Holstein Beef
Packers know you produce quality — and grading evidence shows it.
“The positive relationship found to exist between Prime premium level and Holstein steer prices is supportive of statements by industry stakeholders that Holstein are at least as likely to grade Prime as native steers…. As the market reward for Prime carcasses increases, packers are paying more for Holstein steers.”
Understanding the Market for Holstein Steers
Kenneth H. Burdine, Leigh J. Maynard, A. Lee Meyer
University of Kentucky Department of Agricultural Economics
Marketing Holstein Steers
You can do a great job producing, but you’ve got to do a great job marketing, too, and make all that effort count.
What affects the Holstein market most?
Vertical Integration
Sensitivity to Traditional Market Factors
Basis
Basis on Holstein steers has been more volatile than that of native beef. Holstein basis is strongest in the spring and weakest during the winter — typically. So you may wonder, with greater basis volatility, is it possible to successfully hedge Holstein steers? Yes it is, but the lion’s share of our Holstein cattle finisher customers use packer contracts to get the best possible basis.
Your Marketing Choices
So, how exactly do we help you manage market risk? We offer risk management strategies for Holstein cattle finishers. And we help you understand what to expect out of any contract you use.
- Hedges through CME futures Contracts (Link to Freedom Hedge Page)
- Processor Forward Contracts
- Exchange-Traded Options
We know you choose quality feed, have full vaccination programs, see to proper ventilation in your buildings, and look at every animal, every day to assure the cattle receive the attention they need. You love the Holstein cattle business. And we want to see to it that you receive rewards for it. The kind of rewards you take to the bank.
We work with leading processors and those processors like working with us — and with our member producers. They can rely on a steady supply from all of our members together. And they can count on you for quality. You win for both reasons.
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