Beef industry analyzing Tyson announcement

Those involved in the cattle and beef industries are still trying to digest yesterday’s announcement from Tyson that it will suspend buying cattle fed the beta-agonist growth promotant Zilmax. Purdue Extension beef specialist Ron Lemenager says it’s difficult to say if there is science behind Tyson’s announcement. “Zilmax has been a product that we have been using in the industry to increase efficiency of gain and efficiency of carcass weights for a fairly long period to time,” Lemenager says, “and for this problem to now all of a sudden just pop up seems a little bit interesting to me.” Lemenager tells Brownfield there are both short and long term implications for cattle producers. “The long-term implication is really the reduction in feed efficiency and carcass weight, and efficient lean gain, that come with taking that product out of the marketplace for producers that are marketing through Tyson.” Lemenager says within the next couple of weeks we will start to see what strategy individual feedlots supplying cattle put in place. That could include, he says, discontinuing the use of Zilmax or switching to a different packing company. Lemenager adds this is not a food safety issue – but an animal well-being issue and that, he says, needs to be addressed when it occurs. He’s just not sure Zilmax is the cause of the problem. Brownfield