NUTRITION AND BEEF QUALITY by Mike Mehren Ph.D.

NUTRITION AND BEEF QUALITY
by Mike Mehren Ph.D.

Several years ago I participated in the first BQA (Beef Quality Assurance) meetings in Oregon and Washington. These meetings introduced cattlemen and women to the latest techniques in management and health practices to use to reduce carcass losses at the packing plant, and improve the wholesome food image of beef to the consumer.
At that time, we addressed feed additives and their proper use and withdrawal, if required. We also discussed possible feed contaminants such as pesticides, herbicides, and other farm chemicals. The other parts of the workshop dealt with proper drug selection, injection sites, implants, and implant sites. Processing was discussed showing
techniques that could be used to decrease bruises.

My part was to discuss ways to make certain that the feed that was purchased was safe for livestock. As luck would have it, my part was dropped, and lo and behold along came BSE. I don’t mean to imply that I would have had any impact; but certainly this incident reminds me how important feed safety is in the ‘big picture’.

The feed industry has many new regulations regarding the safety of feed ingredients for ruminants (beef, dairy, buffalo, goats, sheep, deer, elk, llamas, and alpacas). It won’t be too long before your individual ranch will be included to insure feed safety. This process begins when an ingredient or premix is delivered to the ranch. It must be transported in a truck or container that is certified to be clean. This means that no products having animal protein can be shipped in the same vessel. It also means that no chemicals harmful to animals have been carried. This latter might refer to waste products from certain industries, petro chemicals, some fertilizers, and many categories of items called hazardous materials. This will include your farm trucks, if you pick up a feed or supplement from any source.

The mill or ranch must document that goods in the amount ordered and of that particular product are what actually arrived. If the bags are torn or have been opened, this may necessitate the product being refused. Bulk ingredients must be sampled and inspected on arrival. If the product looks or smells different than normal it should not be unloaded until it has been cleared or rejected. If the product is supposed to be pelleted and a load arrives that isn’t, it should be held until it is approved or rejected. This is also true if the pellets are a different size, color, or have a different smell. Everything may be ok. Maybe the pellet die was broken, or a different carrier was used and the mill chose to make the substitution rather than delay your order. This should be documented in case any question about your source of feed is ever raised.

Products with a lot of moisture such a potato waste, liquid whey, or a liquid supplement are very difficult to check. They may arrive in a sealed truck and be pumped into a tank or pond. Liquid supplement manufacturers normally retain a sample of every batch that they make. This is for your protection as well as theirs. However, waste products from food industries are just that…waste…there is little or no quality control. The product is dumped into a pit and instantly mixed with whatever is already on hand. I remember an instance years ago where a feedlot sampled its potato waste and found it was 90% moisture and 4% ash as fed. On a 100% dry basis, this product was 40% dirt.
No wonder the cattle weren’t performing very well! We worked with the supplier and they changed their process to filter out most of the dirt.

Right now virtually every commercial feed mill in the United States has been inspected in the last year. A commercial mill is one that sells feed to customers rather than makes feed only for their own animals. This is true whether the mill makes medicated feed or not. I don’t think it will be too long before feedlot mills and ranch mills whether they are a mixer truck or mill at the ranch will be inspected for compliance with feed regulations. This will be true for mills or ranches making feed for any mammals or birds.

When BSE was found in WA, the State and Fed government started an immediate search for the source of the feed as well as the source of the animal. I won’t attempt to discuss how animal movement is documented, the national premise and animal I.D. will eventually address that issue. However, every supplier of feed whether it was mixed or a single ingredient became part of the investigation into the source of the disease. This list could include the hay grower, silage grower, corn farmer, grain elevator, trucker, railcar, commodity source, waste producer and hauler. The local feed store may have sold salt, mineral supplement, fly blocks, hog concentrate, and chick starter to the ranch. Each one of those products may have to be followed to their point of manufacture. You want to make certain that you are not the weak link in the chain if your ranch, mill, or store is involved.

BSE isn’t the only disease that can be transmitted from cattle to man. Others include Bovine Tuberculosis, Johne’s, Rabies, Leptospirosis, and Anthrax. These diseases are not transmitted through the meat, but they are a risk none the less. Contamination of meat by E Coli, Salmonella, and Campylobacter can be transmitted to man by poor
sanitation at the ranch, feedlot, and packing plant. Cooking improperly is a huge part of the equation that we cannot control. These all require our vigilance to make certain they don’t cause human illness. If you read the popular press it would be easy to believe that beef is the only source of E.Coli in the U.S. However, the National Institute of Health
reports that salami, alfalfa sprouts, lettuce, unpasteurized milk, apple juice, apple cider, and contaminated well water have also been reported as the source of E Coli 0157:H7 outbreaks. Gee, I wonder why the other products aren’t mentioned in the press?

I happen to be one of those skeptics who believe that we will have a case of BSE all of our own before within the next 10 years. The time between infection of the animal and physical symptoms are so long that it’s biologically impossible to detect every case. However, we need to do everything within our power to maintain a wholesome image.
The hardest part of the problem, as I see it, is to get the message to the person that has 2 cows, 4 pigs, some chickens, and 2 dogs. He works full time at a rendering plant and keeps his animals to eat himself, selling the rest to neighbors. He may well find that hog feed is the cheapest thing he can buy; he tries some on the cows and calves, the dogs, and the chickens. He’s pleasantly surprised that all like it and eat it quite well…and he saved a few bucks along with the hassle of having 4 different feeds for his animals. It doesn’t matter what it says on the label, because he’ll never read it anyway (my wife informs me that a woman would certainly read the label before buying it!)

In summary, a bruise or injection site is certainly a problem that should and can be managed. The damage it causes on a single animal is significant, but a case of BSE in a single animal has the potential to destroy the beef industry.

Michael J. Mehren, Ph.D. is a livestock nutritionist eating lots of beef to make sure it’s still safe around Hermiston, OR. Mehren can be contacted at 541-561-4762 or Email at mehrens@eotnet.net.



		NUTRITION AND BEEF QUALITY by Mike Mehren Ph.D. Several years ago I participated in the first BQA (Beef Quality Assurance) meetings in Oregon and Washington. These meetings introduced cattlemen and women to the latest techniques in management and health practices to use to reduce carcass losses at the packing plant, and improve the wholesome food image of beef to the consumer. At that time, we addressed feed additives and their proper use and withdrawal, if required. We also discussed possible feed contaminants such as pesticides, herbicides, and other farm chemicals. The other parts of the workshop dealt with proper drug selection, injection sites, implants, and implant sites. Processing was discussed showing techniques that could be used to decrease bruises. My part was to discuss ways to make certain that the feed that was purchased was safe for livestock. As luck would have it, my part was dropped, and lo and behold along came BSE. I don’t mean to imply that I would have had any impact; but certainly this incident reminds me how important feed safety is in the ‘big picture’. The feed industry has many new regulations regarding the safety of feed ingredients for ruminants (beef, dairy, buffalo, goats, sheep, deer, elk, llamas, and alpacas). It won’t be too long before your individual ranch will be included to insure feed safety. This process begins when an ingredient or premix is delivered to the ranch. It must be transported in a truck or container that is certified to be clean. This means that no products having animal protein can be shipped in the same vessel. It also means that no chemicals harmful to animals have been carried. This latter might refer to waste products from certain industries, petro chemicals, some fertilizers, and many categories of items called hazardous materials. This will include your farm trucks, if you pick up a feed or supplement from any source. The mill or ranch must document that goods in the amount ordered and of that particular product are what actually arrived. If the bags are torn or have been opened, this may necessitate the product being refused. Bulk ingredients must be sampled and inspected on arrival. If the product looks or smells different than normal it should not be unloaded until it has been cleared or rejected. If the product is supposed to be pelleted and a load arrives that isn’t, it should be held until it is approved or rejected. This is also true if the pellets are a different size, color, or have a different smell. Everything may be ok. Maybe the pellet die was broken, or a different carrier was used and the mill chose to make the substitution rather than delay your order. This should be documented in case any question about your source of feed is ever raised. Products with a lot of moisture such a potato waste, liquid whey, or a liquid supplement are very difficult to check. They may arrive in a sealed truck and be pumped into a tank or pond. Liquid supplement manufacturers normally retain a sample of every batch that they make. This is for your protection as well as theirs. However, waste products from food industries are just that…waste…there is little or no quality control. The product is dumped into a pit and instantly mixed with whatever is already on hand. I remember an instance years ago where a feedlot sampled its potato waste and found it was 90% moisture and 4% ash as fed. On a 100% dry basis, this product was 40% dirt. No wonder the cattle weren’t performing very well! We worked with the supplier and they changed their process to filter out most of the dirt. Right now virtually every commercial feed mill in the United States has been inspected in the last year. A commercial mill is one that sells feed to customers rather than makes feed only for their own animals. This is true whether the mill makes medicated feed or not. I don’t think it will be too long before feedlot mills and ranch mills whether they are a mixer truck or mill at the ranch will be inspected for compliance with feed regulations. This will be true for mills or ranches making feed for any mammals or birds. When BSE was found in WA, the State and Fed government started an immediate search for the source of the feed as well as the source of the animal. I won’t attempt to discuss how animal movement is documented, the national premise and animal I.D. will eventually address that issue. However, every supplier of feed whether it was mixed or a single ingredient became part of the investigation into the source of the disease. This list could include the hay grower, silage grower, corn farmer, grain elevator, trucker, railcar, commodity source, waste producer and hauler. The local feed store may have sold salt, mineral supplement, fly blocks, hog concentrate, and chick starter to the ranch. Each one of those products may have to be followed to their point of manufacture. You want to make certain that you are not the weak link in the chain if your ranch, mill, or store is involved. BSE isn’t the only disease that can be transmitted from cattle to man. Others include Bovine Tuberculosis, Johne’s, Rabies, Leptospirosis, and Anthrax. These diseases are not transmitted through the meat, but they are a risk none the less. Contamination of meat by E Coli, Salmonella, and Campylobacter can be transmitted to man by poor sanitation at the ranch, feedlot, and packing plant. Cooking improperly is a huge part of the equation that we cannot control. These all require our vigilance to make certain they don’t cause human illness. If you read the popular press it would be easy to believe that beef is the only source of E.Coli in the U.S. However, the National Institute of Health reports that salami, alfalfa sprouts, lettuce, unpasteurized milk, apple juice, apple cider, and contaminated well water have also been reported as the source of E Coli 0157:H7 outbreaks. Gee, I wonder why the other products aren’t mentioned in the press? I happen to be one of those skeptics who believe that we will have a case of BSE all of our own before within the next 10 years. The time between infection of the animal and physical symptoms are so long that it’s biologically impossible to detect every case. However, we need to do everything within our power to maintain a wholesome image. The hardest part of the problem, as I see it, is to get the message to the person that has 2 cows, 4 pigs, some chickens, and 2 dogs. He works full time at a rendering plant and keeps his animals to eat himself, selling the rest to neighbors. He may well find that hog feed is the cheapest thing he can buy; he tries some on the cows and calves, the dogs, and the chickens. He’s pleasantly surprised that all like it and eat it quite well…and he saved a few bucks along with the hassle of having 4 different feeds for his animals. It doesn’t matter what it says on the label, because he’ll never read it anyway (my wife informs me that a woman would certainly read the label before buying it!) In summary, a bruise or injection site is certainly a problem that should and can be managed. The damage it causes on a single animal is significant, but a case of BSE in a single animal has the potential to destroy the beef industry. Michael J. Mehren, Ph.D. is a livestock nutritionist eating lots of beef to make sure it’s still safe around Hermiston, OR. Mehren can be contacted at 541-561-4762 or Email at mehrens@eotnet.net.		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