Measuring Improvements in Performance of Steers and Heifers During Finishing Phases

Changes in steer and heifer finishing performance impact the relative competitiveness of the beef industry. This study examined improvements in the finishing performance of steers and heifers from January 1990 to December 1998. Data were obtained from monthly issues of the Focus on Feedlots newsletter. Steer and heifer performance were measured using ADG, feed efficiency, the rate of technological change, and the rate of change in total feeding cost. The rate of technological change measured shifts in the production frontier for steers and heifers. The rate of change in total feeding cost measured shifts in the cost frontier. ADG improved 0.99% per year for steers and 0.96% per year for heifers. Feed efficiency improved 0.60% per year for steers and 0.72% per year for heifers. The rate of technological change averaged 0.58% per year for steers and 1.01% per year for heifers. The positive rates of technological change indicated that the rate of change in BW gain was greater than the rate of change in feed fed. Total feeding cost for heifers increased by 0.63% per year. For steers, the rate of change in total feeding costs was positive, but insignificant. The higher rate of cost increase for heifers was the result of relatively large increases in BW gain for heifers during the study.