From Farm Roundups to Restructuring :

1. From Farm Roundups to Restructuring: The Beef Industry

2. Branding Day on the Ranch Branding is a communal activity on the ranch Social event after a long winter Neighbors come together to work, eat and share stories Take turns going to nearby farms Whole families participate, everyone has a job Ranching is not a job but is a way of life

3. The process… Everyone has a job Ropers chase calves into corral and rope them- most prestigious task Rastlers (usually children) hold calf down Branded, tagged, vaccinated and castrated by men Workers are gentle, care about animals Calves are more frightened then harmed

4. The Old Fashioned Process • Technology changed the branding process • Instead of today’s butane fire ranchers used wood fire to heat brands • Instead of ear tags, numbers were carved into flesh with a knife • No hormone implants were used • Some outfits try to recreate these old methods • Today’s methods are more humane in general

5. The Conventional Beef Industry • Beef industry spread quickly after the Civil War • Between 1866-1880 millions of cattle were driven from Texas to Kansas and to other interior states • Processed in Chicago and other Eastern states • Good economy for ranchers • Within a decade the Great Plains become dominated by free-range cattle • 1874-First barbed wire in U.S- no more free-range • 1870s- invention of windmill and spread of irrigation systems turned South Western states into a new corn belt • Increase in production of corn encouraged grain-fed cattle • Today, beef production is the largest component of the U.S economy • 50%of U.S beef is raised by farmers with 100 head of cattle or less,and 1/3 of thosefarmershave 50 head orless

6. The Conventional Beef Industry • Calves are weaned at 300 lbs • They graze in pastures and eat corn stubble until they reach “feeder weight”- 600-800lbs • Some calves are broken into trough feeding early, called “back-grounding” • “Back-grounded” calves gain 2lbs per day, about the same as pasture-fed calves • “Back-grounding” costs more than pasturing

7. The Conventional Beef Indstry • “Transient” cattle go to prairie to fatten up before going to feedlot • Cattle can go to feedlot at anytime in their lives • 400lbs-light feeders 600lbs-heavey feeders • Transported in 18 wheel trucks • Unloaded at feedlot into metal pens holding up to 500 head • Transportation of cattle causes loss in body weight- 5-6% for long hauls and 2-3% for short hauls

8. The Conventional Beef Industry • Feedlots buy cattle from ranchers, or raise them as “custom feeders” • CustomFeeders are cattleboardedbyfeeldlots- “BovineHotels” • Feedlotsmarketcattlewhenthey are “finished” orreadyforslaughter • Owners are chargedeither a flat rate, or a mark-up of thefood and medicine thatthefeedlotsupplies (currently $1.60/day in Kansas toboard a cow)

9. The Conventional Beef Industry • It takes 1 person to tend 1,000 head of cattle in a conventional feedlot • Feedlots are as efficient as possible, calculating food and hormones to maximize growth rate • Cattle in a feedlot eat 24-32lbs and gain about 3lbs/day • Feedlot cattle produce up to 30lbs of manure/day • Manure is spread on fields to fertilize the crops • Cattle stay in feedlots 4-5 months • Slaughtered at 1,100-1,300lbs and are between 14-18 months old

10. The Conventional Beef Indistry Previous to eh 1900’s, cattle were thought to be bland at a young age, and were not slaughtered until they were 4-5 years old Post 1900, cattle maturity was pushed to 2 years Chain grocery stores of the1940’s increased demand for meat and supported the trend of “baby beef”

11. The Meat Packing Industry Urban Industry- problem of smells Industry began with packing pork in barrels for export to West Indies Problem with meat preservation Beef slaughtered only as needed Technology redefined meat packing industry with refrigeration, the railroad, and machinery

12. The Meat Packing Industry • 1827-Chicago’s first slaughterhouse • Became prosperous because of outlets through the Great Lakes, the Erie Canal and later, the Rail Roads • Called the “Yards”- could hold 200 horses, 21,000 cattle, 22,000 sheep, 75,000 hogs • Meat packing industry became dominated by corporations due to increase in technology (mainly refrigeration) which allowed the packers to work year round (not just in winter) • The “big 5”- Swift, Armour, Morris, Cudahy and Wilson

13. The Meat Packing Industry • Toady’s “Big 5”- actually 3- IBP, ConAgra and Smithfield • Meat Packing Industry has low profit margins, must be efficient • Previously butchers were skilled craftsmen, paid well • Developed the production line (disassembly line) involving the chain system (controlled by overseer), individual repetitive jobs and deskilling of the labor force • Lowering of wages (unskilled labor)

14. Drawing Conclusions • Comparison between the family operated ranch and corporate owned feed lots • No community • No skills • No relationship to the animal • Just a job • Degradation of environment as well as social status of workers • Treatment of cattle