Black hided vs others
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A.J.
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Not here. Black always brings the most. Typically .10-.15 more than the next highest color.
Silver
Well-known member
Never was a premium for it here. When I was growing up they always sold for a lot less, now they sell like most everything else.
No. I see the gap in price widening. And not just in steers and heifers headed to the feed lots, but brood stock as well. Black replacement heifers, cows and bulls all sell for more than the off-colored ones do.
Travlr
Well-known member
I think there's some backlash within the larger community of producers. We see how the "premium" is really just an unjustified discount, and that there are downsides to black hides. In hot climates black hides can have inefficiencies/cost as much as they profit. We are beginning to realize how a single dominant breed can limit genetic diversity, especially when breeding to get black hides in other breeds also brings the flaws inherent in the dominant black breed. Bad udders, dink calves, and bad feet have to come from somewhere.
And order buyers and processors aren't stupid. They know red/white/whatever cattle are just as good as anything black. And they aren't in the business to lose money. They are also conscious of the present scam breeding where people are using black hides to sell inferior animals. Corriente crosses that won't grow to the mature size the feedlots require hide well when crossing the scales in a sale barn.
Even the public could be starting to understand the hype behind CAB, and waking up to how they are being taken at the checkout counter,
Son of Butch
Well-known member
No can't say that I have. How about you, are you seeing some in your area?
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Ky hills
Well-known member
Was at a few sales a couple months ago, and it looked like there wasn't as much of a discount on others as I've seen in the past. Some of the mixed colored groups of cattle sold about as much as all black groups and one group of very mixed in color heifers with hardly any black calves outsold a comparable size group of black heifers.
Still the single odd colors were a ways behind except for solid reds which seemed to be selling right a long with the black cattle. Even saw a few good Herefords that didn't get docked as much as usual,
To me it has to do with demand, if cattle are selling strong then they all are going to be selling better but if demand is slow then buyers are much more picky.
Still the single odd colors were a ways behind except for solid reds which seemed to be selling right a long with the black cattle. Even saw a few good Herefords that didn't get docked as much as usual,
To me it has to do with demand, if cattle are selling strong then they all are going to be selling better but if demand is slow then buyers are much more picky.
Stickney94
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That is the correct answer.
tex452
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Good calves of all colors were selling about the same this week.
All were bringing good money.
All were bringing good money.
SBMF 2015
Well-known member
Black still demands the top here, but the spread has definitely narrowed. Good smoke strs are only a nickel off lately compared to the usual $0.20
Quality is at a premium and the buyers are looking harder than ever to find a reason to discount them.
Quality is at a premium and the buyers are looking harder than ever to find a reason to discount them.
Dave
Well-known member
Good reds and greys have been selling right with blacks here for quite a while. I know last fall I helped haul in a couple hundred calves for B. The vast majority of them were Charolais cross calves. They were up and down for size and a even split steers and heifers. He topped the market that day in every sort. Quality sells here.
50/50Farms
Well-known member
Not around here. If you're seeing better prices for off colors in the black premium regions it's probably just because the market has gone gangbusters across the board. I mean, look at the results from the Mammoth Cave dairy auction the other day.
No matter where it is in the US, for the same quality steers (or heifers) black will always bring more, as long as Angus beef sells for more than "beef" at the supermarkets. No damned white or grey or red or purple steer has brought more than the same size and quality black steers. The exception might be if a hobby farmer wanted a calf or two to raise, and paid too much for an off colored one because they thought it was "pretty".
UDF
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Around here Black and Black Baldy cattle have always sold for more..
Silver
Well-known member
Selling for more does not guarantee more profit.
Ky hills
Well-known member
In response to your statement about damned white, grey or red steer, there's been a lot of Angus referred to as damned Angus too I'm guessing at a pretty substantial number due to their disposition when trying to work them.
I have a saying, I would rather work Herefords but when selling I'd rather sell black cattle.
Yes in most cases black cattle not necessarily always Angus do sell for more.
Like I mentioned in an earlier post, a couple months ago I watched a set of around 50, high 700 weight heifers that were very mixed in color. Majority Charolais, most of the others were red some solid, a few Herefords, a few blue roans, and even some that looked to be painted up longhorn crosses. Those heifers outsold by 2 or 3 cents a pound a similar sized group in size and number of head of all solid black heifers that I thought sure would end up selling for more.
Generally speaking a mixed group of calves with that many or more would be selling around .10 less than comparable black cattle. The difference must have been that buyers must have had orders for nonblack replacement quality groups of heifers. Certainly no hobby farmer around here is going to buy 50 head just cause they look pretty.
A big thing here lately has been buyers wanting cattle with no implants. I don't know if that was that much of a factor or not, generally speaking it would not make up the usual difference
I believe I remember seeing a few groups predominantly of CharolaisX with a few black calves selling right along with black calves. Typically they would be a few cents behind all black calves but usually here Charx calves don't get docked too bad at all. The ones that look like pure Charolais yes they sell about like Herefords but like I said at least for here with the market being as hot as it is right now, good quality groups are closing the gap. Singles are still a ways off depending on what they are.
Travlr
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Bernard
Well-known member
Blacks still bring a little more, regardless. That said, it's not unusual anymore to see the Faux blacks docked at the sale, especially when it's really obvious / ridiculous. One thing I HAVE seen in the Texas Panhandle is quite a few more herds of red cattle, mostly all red, but some running RA females with Hereford (usually polled) bulls. Certainly true for smaller outfits, but even some of the bigger herds you now see are all red. 15 years ago you'd have had a hard time finding 10 red cows in the whole country - and they were the occasional reds that resulted from hetero black parents.
With quality animals the spread is less but it is still there for us.
Dave
Well-known member
I worked for a rancher back in the 70's. He ran Angus and at that time everyone was running Herefords. I remember him saying that the buyers all look for a way to dock black calves. Times do change.
