Brian Beer
Area Livestock Agent
Cattle producers always try to maximize the value of the calves they market. Group marketing efforts, like the Tri-County Feeder Cattle Sale, provide opportunities for farmers to improve market prices. Clemson Extension coordinated the off-farm feeder cattle sale for cattlemen in the region. Twelve area farmers sold 886 head of feeder calves (10 loads, 2 partial loads) using this alternative marketing option. Marketing feeder calves off-farm resulted in a $0.20 per pound higher price when compared to traditional auction markets. The price increase resulted in $134 per head of additional revenue to area farmers. Marketing feeder calves using this alternative generated a total of $118,724 increase in revenue, an average of $9,834 per farm.
