“We’re relying on the dairy industry, with its steady numbers, to produce the pounds of meat we need.”

This was the message delivered by Arquimides Reyes, a professor of beef production and meat science at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, to dairy farmers and supporters at the Holstein Horizons program held during the National Holstein Convention. As the country’s native beef herd faces its lowest inventory in history, Reyes discussed the opportunity dairy farmers have to fill that gap as well as what producers should do to make the most of this market.

He noted that there are about 25 million fed cattle harvested in the U.S. each year, with just 5% of these animals classified as dairy-type. This does not differentiate between straight dairy animals and dairy-beef crossbreds. Animals from dairy farms have long been a consistent source of meat for the national beef industry due to year-round calving that contrasts with seasonal beef calving, and the rise of dairy-beef crossbreeding has only made these animals more valuable.

However, what has been less consistent is the performance of these animals, Reyes noted. Specifically, consistent meat production in dairy-beef crossbreds is a missing piece to the success of this supply chain.

“The rear one-third is where we’re lacking,” described Reyes. He explained that dairy-beef animals often look beefy through the front end and middle (where cuts like chuck and brisket are found), but they can struggle to gain as much weight around the area where cuts like sirloin come from. When a carcass is hanging on a rail, getting it to look uniformly like beef from top to bottom is the goal, Reyes said.

His team has studied if there are carcass differences between Holstein-Angus crossbreds and Holstein-SimAngus crossbreds to see if this might be an avenue to correct the beefiness problem. Based on preliminary data from a small sample size, there is very little difference in percentage of meat across carcass cuts.

While research continues on how to help dairy-beef animals put on weight more consistently, Reyes did not neglect to mention the importance of calf care in raising consistent crossbreds.

Health is everyone’s job, he urged, and that starts on the dairy farm where the animal is born. Be sure to first provide quality colostrum. Reyes also recommended keeping these animals on milk or milk replacer for eight to nine weeks to provide a good source of protein and help animals put on muscle as they grow. Wean them slowly and at the right time to help prevent health concerns. We know a respiratory event often impacts a dairy heifer calf through the rest of its growing life, and the same is true for a crossbred animal trying to grow and put on weight, Reyes said. He noted that in their studies, they have seen many crossbred animals with lung issues at harvest.

That care must be continued when dairy-beef animals move to a feedlot, he added. Reyes described that these cattle must be managed differently than native beef because they benefit from more fiber, less starch, a larger particle size, and, in general, a slower transition to being pushed for gain.

When dairy farmers and feedlot managers take all the steps they can to encourage a consistent supply of high-quality dairy-beef animals, the dairy industry becomes an even more important player in supporting the U.S. beef industry.