Animal Science
Industry
Chris Ellason
World Livestock and Poultry
billions of
animals:
Chickens:
14.1
Cattle & Buffalo:
1.5
Sheep:
1.1
Pigs:
0.9
Goats:
0.7
Horses & Mules:
0.08
Food Production in the US
billions of pounds
produced, 2000:
Milk:
Broilers:
Beef:
Pork:
Turkey:
Eggs:
168
30.8
25.4
18.6
5.3
4.7
Per Capita
Consumption Beef







1970
1996
1998
2000
2002
2005
2007
84.6 lbs
64.0 lbs
63.6 lbs
64.5 lbs
64.5 lbs
62.4 lbs
62.2 lbs
Per Capita
Consumption Pork







1970
1996
1998
2000
2002
2005
2007
56.0 lbs
45.2 lbs
48.2 lbs
47.8 lbs
48.2 lbs
46.5 lbs
47.3 lbs
Per Capita
Consumption Lamb







1970
1996
1998
2000
2002
2005
2007
2.9 lbs
0.8 lbs
0.9 lbs
0.8 lbs
0.9 lbs
0.8 lbs
0.8 lbs
Per Capita
Consumption
Broilers







1970
1996
1998
2000
2002
2005
2007
48.7 lbs
63.1 lbs
64.3 lbs
67.9 lbs
70.7 lbs
73.6 lbs
73.7 lbs
Per Capita
Consumption Fluid
Milk and Cream







1970
1996
1998
2000
2002
2005
2007
275.3 lbs
213.9 lbs
207.4 lbs
203.6 lbs
199.3 lbs
193.9 lbs
191.4 lbs
Per Capita Consumption
Cheese







1970
1996
1998
2000
2002
2005
2007
11.4 lbs
27.3 lbs
27.8 lbs
29.8 lbs
30.5 lbs
31.4 lbs
32.7 lbs
The Changing
Industry
Farm Population






1951
1961
1971
1981
1991
2001
14.2%
11.1%
4.6%
2.6%
1.8%
1.6%
Farm Size





1951
1971
1981
1991
2005
225 acres
384 acres
425 acres
467 acres
445 acres
When and How Farms
Have Changed
 Major shifts occurred in the 40’s and 50’s
 Farms became more specialized
 Increased efficiency as a result of
specialization
 In 1940 one farm could support 18.5
people
 Today one farm can support 135 people
Why US Farms are so
Productive




Our Economic System
Land and Climatic Conditions
Our Educational Systems
Specialized Agribusiness
Significant Agriculture
Legislation
 Morrill Act 1862
 Provide a portion of federal land in each state to
establish a college
 Land-Grant College Act 1862
 Established the “agricultural college” concept
 Hatch Act 1887
 Established research funding for Land-Grant
colleges (Experiment station)
 Smith - Lever Act 1914
 Financed the county agent extension system to get
research information to the people (Cooperative
Extension)
Sources of Agricultural
Information
 Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
 Established by the United Nations in 1945
 Collects, evaluates, and disseminates
information on world trends in food and
population
 Council for Agricultural Science and
Technology (CAST)
 Formed in 1972 to identify food-related
issues and interpret related scientific
research
Role of Animals





High Quality Protein Foodsource
Diet Palatability
Land Use and Conservation
Food Economy
Companion Animals
Concerns for Animal
Production:
 Can the earth’s land and water produce
enough food for the growing population?
 Should we feed animals as
intermediaries in the food chain?
 Why do humans “prefer” animal products
in their diet?
Beef Industry
 Seedstock Producers
 Commercial Cow-Calf Producers
 Yearling/Stocker Operator
Seedstock
 Purebred producers
 Concerned with genetics
 Concerned with appearance
 Body composition
 Color
 Show cattle
Cow-Calf Production
 Involves some 33 million head of beef cows
distributed throughout the country
 Most are concentrated in areas where
forage is abundant
 16 states have over 700,000 hd each
 75% of the US total
 Approx. 60% of the 850,000 beef cattle
operations have less than 50 hd per
operation
US Beef Cow Operations and
Inventory
Operations
Herd Size (No. Cows)
Percent of Total
Inventory
Percent of Total
1-49
78
28
50-99
12
19
100-499
9
38
500+
1
15
Stocker/Yearling Production
 Cattle are fed for growth prior to their
going into the feedlot for finishing
 Primary basis is to market available
forage and high-roughage feeds
 Grass, crop residue, wheat pasture, silage
 More desirable for early maturing cattle
 Larger framed, later maturing cattle are
more efficient and profitable if they go
directly into the feedlot
Stocker/Yearling
Production
Feedlot
Weaned
Cattle
Packer
Wintered or
Custom Lot
Summer
Grazing
Summer
Grazing
Wintered
Feedlot
 Cattle fed in small pens where feed is
brought to them on a daily basis
 Approx. 23 million feedlot cattle are fed in
various states
 Fed a high grain diet
 95% of feedlot cattle are fed in feedlots
with over 1000 head capacity
 A few have capacities over 100,000 head
Beef Industry




Feeders
Packers
Retailers
Consumers
Dairy Industry
 Larger Farms Dominate
 9% of Dairies produce over 1/2 total milk
 70% of the US dairy herd is concentrated in
large dairies of over 100 cows
 These dairies represent just 20% of all US
dairies
 Movement of dairies
 Specialization of Farms
 Feeding systems
Horse Industry
 1997 approximately 6.9 million horses in
US
 Used primarily as recreation or companion
animal




43% recreational activities
29% show
10% racing
Remainder used for rodeos and work
 In 1997, 200,000 Horses slaughter in US
 How many are slaughtered today?
Poultry Industry
 Dramatic changes in 60’s and 70’s
 Integration
 Corporate owned operations
 Control of all segments of the growing and
processing is by one company
Broiler Production
 Most are contract grown for a company
 ConAgra
 Tyson
 Pilgrims
 Operator owns houses, equipment and
furnishes labor
 Contractor furnishes, birds, feed, field
service, dressing and marketing
Broiler Production
 Payment is made in relation to a group of
producers assigned as a contemporary
group
 The better the operation does in relation
to its contemporaries the higher the
bonuses
Sheep and Goat Industry
 Versatile and efficient, especially in
developing countries
 Tend to be more well adapted to arid
tropical climates than cattle
 Often grazed in tandem with cattle
because they utilize different forage
sources
Sheep and Goat Industry
 Goats tend to be more efficient browsers
 Sheep prefer short grasses and some
broadleaf weeds and other plants
 World sheep numbers in 1999 were the
highest on record
 Primarily in China, Australia, India, Iran
and New Zealand
Sheep and Goat Industry
 Purebred breeders
 Commercial market lamb producers
 Commercial feedlots
Swine Industry
 Beginning to go the direction of the
poultry industry
 Corporate contracted growing
 China is far and away the leader in swine
numbers
 As in dairy industry farm number is
declining while production increases
Swine Industry
 Four major swine operations




Feeder pig production
Feeder pig finishing
Farrow to finish
Seedstock producer
Other Significant Animal
Industries




Aquaculture
Bison
Elk
Wildlife
Adaptation
 Adaptation – the sum of the adjustments that
occur in an organism that promotes its welfare
and survival in a specific environment
 Agricultural animals must have the ability to
adapt to both the natural and man made
environments
 The symbiotic relationship is key in
domestication of animals
5 Classes of Stresses





Climatic
Nutritional
Internal
Geographical
Social
3 Ways to Change or
React to Stressors
 Morphological or anatomical changes
 Physiological changes
 Behavioral changes
Biotechnology and New
Advancements







Bovine Somatotropin (bST)
Sexed Semen
Gene Splicing - DNA manipulation
Embryo Transfer, splitting, freezing
Bypass nutrients
Enzyme feeding
Taste alterations by feedstuffs
Animal Science
Disciplines







Nutrition
Reproductive Physiology
Animal Health
Environmental Physiology
Genetics
Environmental Sciences
Food Science and Technology
Jobs in Animal Science







College Professor
Veterinarian
Consulting Nutritionist
Meat Inspector
Feed Company Sales/Nutrition
Animal Health Sales/R&D
Allied Industry Sales/R&D
Jobs in Animal Science






Graduate School
Extension Service
Ag Teacher
USDA
State Chemist Departments
Natural Resources Management