2025 Beef Cattle Conference Highlights and Presentation Links

There were 171 cattle ranchers, industry professionals, and UF/IFAS faculty that attended the 2025 Northwest Florida Beef Cattle Conference & Trade Show, held in Marianna, on February 12, 2024. Credit: Doug Mayo, UF/IFAS

The 40th edition of the Northwest Florida Beef Cattle Conference & Trade Show was truly a special event that was held in Marianna, Florida on February 14th. There were five educational presentations from a pool of talented veteran extension faculty, along with a trade show with 22 booths with representatives who provided information about products and services for cattle producers. The event concluded with wonderful grilled steak lunch prepared by the Jackson County Cattlemen’s Association’s famous “Cooking Crew,” and the Jackson County Extension Staff.

Many of the participants at the event were interested in copies of the presentations that were provided, so this article provides access to the information that was shared at the conference. The focus of the 2025 conference was “Profitable Cow Herd Management.” (Use the blue text links to view each presentation). If you have further questions, be sure to contact your local county extension agricultural agent, so we can get the best information to help you manage your cattle herd well.

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2025 Cattle Market Outlook

Hannah Baker, UF/IFAS Cattle & Forage Economics Specialized Agent, shared a summary of recent data from multiple reports that show the US Cattle Herd was still shrinking at the end of 2024, and the positive impact that will likely have on cattle prices in 2025 and 2026. She also shared data from reports on input costs expected for 2025. While the size of the US Beef Cow Herd will cause reduced supply and higher prices, Hannah encouraged ranchers to still keep a close eye on managing input costs. The slide selected above from her presentation, shows the CattleFax projects for average cattle prices across the U.S. in 2025, as well as USDA’s projections in the chart to the right. The cattle market price forecast is very positive for 2025 and 2026.

1- Baker Cattle Market Outlook

Key Management Strategies for the Beef Cow Herd

Dr. Rick Rasby, Nebraska Cow/Calf Extension Specialist, was the keynote speaker that shared a variety of recommendations for beef cow-calf herd managers. He suggested working with a veterinarian to help ranchers manage the health and reproduction of their herds. Herd bulls are also key part of the herd’s performance. Nutrition is a key factor for herd reproductive performance with body condition scoring serving as a key tool to utilize prior to calving. He also touched on the importance of forage testing to aid in supplementation requirements of the herd. His final point was stressing the importance of hybrid vigor or heterosis from crossbred cows for reproduction, calf survival, and cow longevity.

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2 – Rasby Cow Herd Management

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Forage Management for the Cow Herd

Dr. Joe Vendramini, UF/IFAS Forage Specialist, lead a lively discussion about a variety of forage grasses that can be used for pastures in Florida. The goal is to rely on forage as much of the year as possible. His primary argument was, “Why not bahiagrass?” This is the primary forage used on Florida ranches for good reason. He also compared bahia to other forage grass options, and how they can complement the primary pastures.

3 – Vendramini Forages for the Cow Herd

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Culling Strategies for the Mature Cow Herd

Dr. Todd Thrift, UF/IFAS Cow-Calf Specialist, lead a very lively discussion of the challenges of deciding which cows to cull from your herd each year. He discussed all of the key issues that should be considered, such as open cows, old cows, bad behavior, poor calf performance, and general health issues, like bad feet and bad udders. But, this is not a simple process when these cows are so valuable, as well as the high costs of purchasing or raising replacements. He also shared the type of cows he would cull automatically, and others he might keep on probation.

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4- Thrift cow culling considerations

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Cull Cow Marketing

Kalyn Waters, UF/IFAS Extension Holmes County, made the final presentation on marketing strategies for cows culled from the herd. The goal of her presentation was to share ideas on methods to maximize the salvage value from cull cows that typically represent 20% of the annual income from a beef herd. She shared the differences in the three carcass grades from cull cows, and the management required to move cows from the canner & cutter grade to utility by adding 100 pounds in 90 days. This not only raises the value but typically also moves into a season with higher cow prices. There is even some opportunity to sell the younger culls as bred replacements to further increase their value.

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5- Waters Cull Cow Marketing

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In addition to the presentations, there was a Trade Show of 22 businesses and organizations that provide goods and services to support cattle production in the Tri-State Region. The following were a few photos from the Trade Show.

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Special thanks to the sponsors that made this meeting possible. I have contact information for every one of the representatives in the Trade Show, so let me know if you would like to make contact with any of the following organization representatives.

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I would also like to thank the Jackson County Cattlemen’s “Cooking Crew” for marinating and grilling the steaks for lunch, and the UF/IFAS Extension Staff that prepared the sides and deserts and served the crowd in less than 20 minutes.

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Mark your calendar and make plans to attend the 41st annual Beef Cattle Conference & Trade Show. We will review your suggestions on this year’s exit surveys and build another strong lineup of speakers and sponsors for next year’s event.

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Doug Mayo

Jackson County Extension Director, Livestock & Forage Agent, Lead Editor for Panhandle Ag e-News
demayo@ufl.edu - 850-482-9620
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