Search

four students smile at the camera holding large manila envelopes next to the man who presented them with the scholarships

SD Master Pork Producers Association awards scholarships to 4 SDSU students

March 08, 2024

Four South Dakota State University students have received $1,000 scholarships from the South Dakota Master Pork Producers Association.

A newborn calf with its mother in a snowy field

Beef Cow Nutrition During Calving and Early Lactation

Calving season has started or will be starting in the near future for most producers. Nutritional management of the cow herd is more important during the periods of late pregnancy and early lactation than any other.

Two headwater prairie streams in Butte County.

Ranching and Prairie Streams: What Healthy Riparian Areas Mean for Your Ranch

Prairie streams and their associated riparian areas can provide numerous ecosystem services to a ranching operation.

USDA Choice ribeye steaks on display at a grocery store.

USDA Beef Quality Grades: What do they mean?

A large portion of beef sold at retail is accompanied by a USDA quality grade label. Learn how quality grades are determined, what they mean, and how they can be used to select the perfect cut for your purposes.

an image showing beef cuts

Buying Beef at the Grocery Store

The tremendous number of choices available to beef consumers offers a cut for any meal, but can also leave the most confident consumer puzzled as to the proper cut that should be purchased. Use this guide to help you select the ideal beef cut for your occasion.

Cattle at a concrete feed bunk at the SDSU Southeast Research Farm.

Case Study: Effect of Adding More Concrete to Open Pens

Mud caused by excessive precipitation dramatically reduces cattle performance. Pouring additional concrete and working on improving pen surfaces are approaches that can improve poor-weather performance in an open yard.

Rancher viewing data on a laptop on the seat of his truck.

Online Tools To Help With Rangeland Drought Planning

Learn about some free online tools that producers can use to assess drought conditions, evaluate forage resources, and manage herds through periods of abnormally dry weather.

Group of pigs in a wean-to-finish facility.

Light Versus Heavy Barrow Fecal Microbiome at Finishing

Understanding the differences in the microbiome between light and heavy market hogs may provide insights into optimizing growth performance, feed efficiency, and sustainability of the swine industry.

image of a video screen of cattle in a pen

Calving Barn Video Technology: Keeping Cattlemen Warm During Calving Season

Labor is one of the most valuable resources on the ranch, and producers often try to utilize their time wisely to decrease hours spent on a project. Producers can potentially decease time spent in certain areas of the ranch with the use of modern video technology thus allowing them to multitask.

Meat processor taking a photo of a carcass to send for remote grading.

USDA Remote Grading Pilot Program: Increasing Marketing Options at Small Plants

The USDA Agricultural Marketing Service recently launched a pilot program for Remote USDA Beef Carcass Grading, allowing qualifying processors to electronically submit photos of carcasses to be presented for grading.