Date: Nov 07 2019
Black Ink & Consumer ConnectionWe swapped stories about meeting our significant others, of vacation blunders and parenting priorities. There were some great storytellers in our ranks. The food was outstanding, but the company surpassed it.
Date: Oct 17 2019
Black InkYou can’t work with what you don’t have. It’s an obstacle I stumble on regularly, putting too many things on a mile-long to-do list, certain I’ll just figure out how to get it all done. I offer up time and resources I don’t have, to try and fit all the priorities.
Date: Sep 16 2019
Black InkIn her travels across the country, Miranda visits many ranches that have been in the same family for a century or at least several decades. Hear what prior generations of cattlemen have passed on to the current stewards.
Date: Aug 28 2019
Black Ink & Consumer Connection & Stockmanship & SustainabilityWe can’t bet the farm on technological updates, but we can invest in doing the right thing, in technology that tracks and proves we are doing the right thing. It may not pay off in premiums today, but maybe in terms of securing a successful beef business for tomorrow.
Date: Aug 05 2019
Black Ink & Consumer ConnectionWe often say cattlemen are part scientist, part businessman, with a dose of meteorologist and mechanic thrown in. You’re rooted in science, but when great and immediate need comes along, don’t forget there’s an awful lot of your job that is still an exercise in art.
Date: Jul 10 2019
Black Ink & Breeding & Consumer Connection & Sire Selection & Sustainability & Targeting the BrandI’ve always been fascinated with history. From the Founding Fathers in grade school to the battles of World War II, the stories of those who came before us and the great feats they accomplished continue to intrigue me. There’s a lot of history out on the range, too, as I’ve learned from ranchers whose operations have stood the test of time.
Date: May 06 2019
Black Ink & StockmanshipMy kitchen island is full of stacks: summer camp and summer ball forms to fill out. 4-H projects to register and swimming lessons to book. A month ago, we planned a short family camping trip.
Date: Apr 16 2019
Black Ink & Premium PotentialWhy do we call substantial disasters “perfect” storms? It feels like an oxymoron. The title perfect storm seems a more fitting descriptor for the rain that comes just in time to break a drought, or the swirling clouds that bring rain but never materialize into a devastating cyclone. The drama still unfolds, but disaster doesn’t follow.
Date: Apr 09 2019
Black Ink & Cattle MarketsIs this a good time to expand your cow herd, now that the U.S. beef cattle industry is deep into a fourth year of its rebuilding phase? The consensus has a short answer: no.
They say we’ve already added more than enough cows to produce the volume of beef consumers can afford to buy. Adding to your herd now only aggravates the pending oversupply and sets you up to endure several years of unprofitable calf prices.
Date: Apr 01 2019
Black InkAfter the holidays, things will slow down. Nah, maybe after calving, branding and breeding. But then, summer comes and there’s all that hay to make when the sun is shining, fences to build and cedars to eliminate (or insert your own region-specific fair-weather task).
