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HEIFER AND COW are for a slight increase in beef The Midwest Cattleman · October 6, 2022 · P10
continued from page 3 production during 2022 above
2021 which is a shift from the ASIAN LONGHORNED TICK DISCOVERED IN
cow slaughter in this region is projection at the start of the NORTHERN MISSOURI
about 30 percent higher year- year of a three percent decline. By Brian Consiglio
to-date in 2022 than in 2021. Higher beef production from
That is more than 150,000 heifers is a key driver.
head higher than a year ago While increased cow and
in this region. These are very heifer slaughter totals are
high levels of cow slaughter contributing to higher beef
and even surpass the high production this year, the lon-
slaughter totals seen during ger-run implications are tight-
the 2011 drought. er supplies. The higher slaugh-
Heifer slaughter during Au- ter totals imply fewer cows
gust is estimated about 10 per- and fewer replacement heifers
cent above August 2021. There to produce calves. The current
was one additional business WASDE projection for 2023
day in August 2022 which ac- beef production would be about
counts for some of the increase. six percent below the current
Meanwhile, steer slaughter 2022 projection. Price expec-
was less than one percent tations are reflecting these
above August 2021. Heifer tighter supplies. Live cattle fu- The Longhorned tick causes ther heightens the need for
dressed weights are up one tures prices for 2023 contract the loss of millions of dollars in Missouri cattle ranchers to
pound compared to last year months are currently trading agricultural revenue to cattle make informed decisions re-
while steer weights are even between $155 to $161 while producers worldwide, and it is garding quarantining protocols
with a year ago. Feeder Cattle futures prices now in northern Missouri. when introducing new cattle
The increase in heifer for 2023 contract months are Originally found in eastern into their herds in an effort to
slaughter and dressed weights trading between $185 and Russia and the Australasian protect the health of their live-
are contributing to higher beef $200 per cwt. It appears likely region, this tick was first found stock, which has significant
production totals than were that there will be some attrac- in the United States in 2017 in economic implications.
previously expected. The pro- tive pricing opportunities for New Jersey. It has since reached “Studying the prevalence of
jections in the latest World Ag- cattle producers. the Mid-Atlantic, New England invasive ticks in different geo-
ricultural Supply and Demand and Midwestern regions of the graphical regions can help vet-
Estimates (WASDE) report U.S., and now has been discov- erinarians and farmers take
ered in northern Missouri for proactive, preventative steps
the first time by researchers at that may ultimately protect
the University of Missouri. the health of livestock, which
Last year, the Longhorned has huge economic implica-
tick was found in the southern tions,” said Rosalie Ierardi, an
part of the state. This latest dis- anatomic pathologist at the
covery indicates an addition- MU College of Veterinary Med-
al economic burden to cattle icine who recently discovered
producers due to ticks; as the two Longhorned ticks in Linn
Longhorned tick infestation County, Missouri, while con-
could lead to significant loss in ducting anaplasmosis surveil-
weight gain for cattle, similar lance research.
to an already widely prevalent Ierardi collaborated on the
disease called anaplasmosis; project with Ram Raghavan, a
but so far, the threat from this professor in the MU College of
species of tick to cattle — and Veterinary Medicine and MU
people and their pets — in Mis- School of Health Professions.
souri remains low. However, re- Raghavan, who has been track-
searchers emphasize that the ing the spread of various spe-
discovery of the Longhorned cies of ticks in the U.S. for 15
tick in the state increases the years, predicted the potential
need for more vigilance to- geographic distribution of the
wards ticks in general. Longhorned tick back in 2019.
While most ticks reproduce So far, the tick appears to be
traditionally, female Long- establishing in the areas that
horned ticks can lay thousands he had predicted in that study.
of eggs without the help of a He said there not only appears
male, which makes it easier to be an increase in the abun-
for them to quickly establish dance of all ticks in the Midwest
in new areas. Infestation of the in the past decade, but also an
Longhorned tick can lead to increase in the pathogens and
possible transmission of bovine diseases they transmit to cat-
theileriosis, a disease that kills tle, humans, and pets.
red blood cells in cattle. “Warmer temperatures in
While there have currently the Midwest seem to be creat-
not been any confirmed cases ing perfect conditions for ticks
of bovine theileriosis in Mis- and the pathogens they carry
souri cattle, this discovery fur- continued on page 12
