When should you butcher a Holstein steer?
When should you butcher a Holstein steer?
Age at slaughter “typically” can be from 12 to 22 months of age for the high quality grade market. The reason for the range in age is that some calves are weaned and go directly to a feeding facility and are finished for slaughter.
What are Holstein bull calves good for?
Holstein cows are traditionally dairy animals. Female calves are kept and grown into milkers; male calves, which account for slightly more than half of all dairy calves born, says Brent Buchanan, dairy educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension of St.
What are Holstein steers used for?
Holstein steers usually are placed in the feedlot either as light-weight (250-350 pounds) calves or as feeders (600- 800 pounds). The growth of Holstein feeder steers is gen- erally more consistent than for conventional beef breeds.
Is Holstein good beef?
Beef from finished Holstein finished steers has many desirable characteristics and provides a consistent product. Researchers from Cornell University found Holstein steers had 5.28 percent less meat yield compared to small-frame Angus steers at the same shrunk weight.
How much is a Holstein steer worth?
At the Aug. 24 auction at New Holland Sales Stables, slaughter Holstein steers weighing 1,330 to 1,670 pounds brought $127 to $132 per hundredweight. To put that in perspective, at the same sale in 2013, Holstein steers brought an average of $108 per hundredweight, and in 2014, they averaged $148.
How much is a Holstein bull worth?
Holstein bull calves, which fetched between $500-$600 per head in 2014, are now selling for less than $100 – in some cases dramatically lower. Typically, contracted Holstein steers have run at a $7 to $10 per cwt discount to beef breed steers.
How much meat is in a Holstein steer?
From that you will get about 65% of the carcass weight, or roughly 490 pounds, as boneless, trimmed beef. If you look at that as a percentage of the live weight of the steer you started with, it is approximately 40% of the live weight. Remaining components of the weight are fat trim and bone.
Are Holstein cows good for butchering?
Holsteins, Jerseys, and other dairy breeds are being used for meat once the milking is done. And it’s turned out to be some of the best-tasting beef around. Most American beef cattle, of which there are hundreds of breeds, including Angus and Hereford, are fattened quickly on a diet of grains.
