COLUMBUS, Ohio — Just as the national economy may rest on unstable ground, so too does today’s cattle economy. Yet experts in beef cattle production and marketing say there are excellent profit opportunities for cow-calf producers and cattle feeders.

“At the moment the cow-calf producers do appear to have some good times ahead of them,” said Kevin Dhuyvetter, extension farm management specialist at Kansas State University. “That’s driven by the fact that the demand has been quite strong.”

Dhuyvetter and five other beef industry experts from across the Midwest will address what some industry experts call “excellent profit opportunities” for cow-calf producers and cattle feeders during the 2012 Ohio Beef Cattle Schools. The schools kick off Jan. 26 and continue on the Thursdays of Feb. 9 and 16, as well as March 1.

Each session will be broadcast by many Ohio county extension offices via an Internet link, and will focus on optimizing efficient beef production in a rapidly changing business and consumer environment.

Williams County extension will be the host site for the 2012 Ohio Beef Cattle School series. This informative session includes the four independent meetings, each with its own topic related to the beef industry. Using live video conferencing technology, participants will be able to connect with individuals throughout the state as they listen to industry professionals discuss the current issues the beef industry is facing.

Dhuyvetter’s Jan. 26 topic “Economic Considerations in Beef Cattle Production” will lean on the economics of the beef business. “Demand for beef is on a rise because of the domestic demand, in part, but more importantly because of export demand,” Dhuyvetter said. “Yet, we have the lowest number of cows in the U.S. the past 50 years.

“That doesn’t equate to the lowest amount of beef in 10 years, because our technologies and efficiencies are so much better. We’ll stress that we do have small herd sizes in this country, letting people know that those who have large herds are in the driver’s seat.”

Dhuyvetter will concentrate on the nation’s cattle cycle and will remind his audience the trends hold for any state.

“The cattle cycle involves some good times and some bad times,” he said. “No matter where we’re at in the cycle, there tends to be more variability between producers than there is over time. For the next three to five years, things look good for the cow-calf producer. Those in the feed lot are aggressively bidding for that small supply of calves and things may not be as good for them.”

Dhuyvetter will explain what impact the drought of 2011 in Kansas, Texas and Oklahoma will have on the entire industry. He will also address what producers are bringing to the market, the right or wrong breeds to work with and the kind of premiums associated with various breeds that producers can expect. Dan Frobose, retired Ohio State University extension specialist, and Sam Roberts, facility manager of United Producers in Columbus, will take stage on Feb. 9. The pair will discuss targeted markets and marketing alternatives.

On Feb. 16, Les Anderson, University of Kentucky Beef extension specialist and John Grimes, OSU Beef Program coordinator, will discuss beef genetics, reproduction efficiencies and calving season alternatives.

On March 1, Nevil Speer, professor of animal science at Western Kentucky University, will provide a meat industry perspective in terms of an outlook on the choice and select spreads.

“Nothing is sacred as we explore trends in reproduction, genetics, feeds and feeding,” said Stan Smith, OSU extension program assistant and editor of the OSU extension Beef Team newsletter.

“We’ll explore targeted marketing and the opportunities afforded by backgrounding calves, versus finishing them in Ohio feedlots. The economics of beef cattle production have evolved from what they were even two or three years ago.”

Smith said a combination of market forces, both in terms of beef demand and input costs, have led producers to consider a number of marketing options outside the traditional beef marketing chain.

“It’s much more competitive,” he said. “We’re looking at smaller numbers of cattle, extremely high costs of feed and now for the first time in years, we’re looking at a much larger Choice-Select spread on fed cattle than we’ve seen in some time.

“We got used to a market spread that was $4-$6 per hundred and with the high cost of feed, producers weren’t necessarily encouraged to put on a little extra finish. Today, however, the market encourages producers to produce higher grading cattle with a Choice spread as high as $18 dollars per hundred in recent weeks.”

More than 18 county offices of OSU extension have registered to provide access to the Beef Schools via the Internet.

More detailed information is available online at http://go.osu.edu/BeefSchool

“We’re dealing with higher feed costs and fewer numbers of cattle than in recent decades, and now we’re seeing an economy that wants choice beef,” Smith said. “That is a good thing for the industry, but we have to make sure we can provide that product.”

Interested participants should contact the extension office in Williams to reserve a seat, at 419-636-5608. Participants may attend all of the sessions or pick and choose specific meetings.

Meetings run from 7-9 p.m.