Nebraska Feedyard Recognized for Excellence

Beller Feedlot earned Certified Angus Beef Feedyard Commitment to Excellence award for continued success in cattle feeding.

by By Lindsay Graber Runft

September 29, 2026

Motivation starts the feed truck before sunrise, keeps going through adversity and drives pursuit of the next goal.
It has more than fueled daily routines for Terry Beller. It’s helped his family and crew build the multigenerational Beller Feedlot into one known for customer service and high-quality beef.

Founded in the 1950s by his parents, Jim and Mary Catherine, the enterprise grew steadily from their wedding gift on through the generations. Today, Terry oversees a 6,200-head-capacity feedlot guided by the quality focus that shaped its creation.

The family’s long dedication to supplying the brand was recognized this September as Beller Feedlot received the 2026 Feedyard Commitment to Excellence Award at the Certified Angus Beef (CAB) Annual Conference in Marco Island, Florida.

One Pen at a Time
The founders decided to fatten the steer and heifer gifts, sell them and buy more with the proceeds. That first generation of Beller Feedlot ownership repeated this process until they reached 400 head in the 1960s. Their first expansion in the 1970s aimed for a 1,500-head capacity.

As it grew, so did Terry and his brother Rick’s interest in cattle feeding. At their dad’s retirement and their own transition into management, numbers grew to 4,500 head and gradually increased since then. The last major expansion, a confinement barn, added 1,200 head of capacity.

Some expansion stages were like growing pains, that first addition of six pens not leaving enough capital to stock at more than half full for the first three years.

Rick passed away in 2004, but Terry carried on.

“My shoulders were pretty heavy for awhile,” he says. And though his dad and brother would be proud of the business today, Terry says none of it would be possible without the rest of the family and supporting crew.

The next generation, sons Riley and Wesley Beller, feature in daily operations. Riley feeds and checks cattle, along with hauling distillers and other corn byproducts for their grain farming enterprise. Wesley pitches in everywhere, helping feed and process cattle and with maintenance, especially cleaning pens. That favorite duty is testament to the feedlot’s commitment to animal health and performance.

“Strong work ethic” is a core description for their father. Not just his drive, but attention to detail and peace of mind from knowing nothing was left undone at the end of the day.

“Work hard, no shortcuts, do the right thing and go the extra mile,” Wesley sums up.

The Beller Blueprint

The Beller Feedlot team sources high-quality Angus feeder cattle, provides top-tier care, feeds for optimal performance, and builds strong customer ties.

“We’ve got some great relationships that go back 35 and 40 years,” Terry says. “And they don’t look elsewhere.”

Most customer sources are known for Angus calves with performance and feed efficiency, carcass merit and docility. With a goal to produce as many CAB and Certified Angus Beef ^® Prime carcasses as possible, Terry pores over packer carcass data.

In the early 2000s, Beller Feedlot became CAB licensed through a now-shuttered Feedlot Licensing Program, gaining increased access to carcass data from packers.

“It was the best move I ever did,” Terry says.

At the time, getting carcass data back from packers was no easy feat. But Terry pressed on and worked with the CAB team. His vision for better genetics and increased profitability—seeing cattle grading data and sharing it with customers and sources—was an integral piece.

Then and now, relationships make it work, Terry says. “They look at their carcass data and say, ‘That cow’s got to go. We’ve got to switch bulls. We’ve got to make some changes—we want Terry Beller to be happy with every calf that goes on that load.’”

The Bellers know ability to grade starts with high-quality Angus genetics at the ranch, and dependent on daily management. Combining top-tier care and nutrition, they’ve found their sweet spot in achieving CAB and its Prime level.

Low-stress handling, stringent fly protocol, shades and twice-daily pen checks on foot underpin Beller animal care. And they still rely on a professional nutritionist to dial in feed rations.

A String of Successes

The Bellers aren’t new to awards, in 2003 earning CAB Feedlot Partner of the Year for those with less than 15,000-head capacity. They are one of only two CAB Gold Award winners among more than the 70 then-licensed yards. Motivated by customer success, they regularly entered CAB’s quarterly AngusSource Carcass Contest from 2008 to 2011.

It’s never been about awards for Terry, but rather knowing he and the crew operate at the level he expects: animals are well fed and cared for, that everyone knows he’s happy with how things look at the sunset night check. Success is in the reports from packer partners that show CAB and Prime goals reached.

Today, Beller Feedlot markets nearly all cattle to Cargill or Greater Omaha. Carcass data from the past year highlights the feedyard’s continued motivation and drive to achieve quality-rich outcomes.

Since July 2025, carcass data from Cargill on 4,300 head shows 24.8% Prime and 40.2% CAB. Another data set, comprising 13 lots of NHTC natural program cattle sold to Greater Omaha, shows only one group below 40% Prime, the highest at 77% Prime.

For Terry, the benchmark is a carcass sheet reading 100% CAB or Prime with no outs.

Looking ahead, he has another goal in mind: improving feed efficiency.

“Our ultimate dream is to convert four or five pounds of feed to one pound of beef, versus seven pounds to a pound of beef,” he says.

For many, the numbers Beller Feedlot posts every day would be reason enough to celebrate. For Terry, they are simply the next benchmark to build upon. Whatever the goal, the approach remains unchanged: do the job right, take care of the cattle and keep looking for ways to improve. That philosophy fueled decades of success and will continue to shape the feedyard’s future.

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