Beefmasters Shine in the Sunshine State
By: Jeralyn Stephens, Beefmaster Breeders United Communications Coordinator
I will admit that I have only been to Florida once in my life and I was seven years old. Guess where I went? You’ve got that right, Disney World. This past week I learned that Florida is more than beaches and Disney World, it has an expansive cattle and agricultural industry.
I am fortunate to say I have now been all over the Sunshine State, even though it rained more than the sun shined, learning about Florida’s cattle industry and how it is a prime location for the Beefmaster breed. Last week Bill Pendergrass and I traveled around Florida, Tampa to Dade City to Okeechobee to Clewiston and back to Tampa. My task in Florida was to capture video and interviews of commercial cattlemen that are utilizing Beefmaster genetics in their commercial cattle herds. Some of the interviews will be featured in the upcoming Beefmaster episode on The American Rancher, which will premiere September 15, 2014 on RFD-TV.
Commercial cattleman John McCarthy of Dade City, Fla., is a big fan of the Beefmaster breed.
On my first day in Florida we traveled north of Tampa to visit with commercial cattleman John McCarthy of Dade City, Fla.
McCarthy utilizes Beefmaster females in his operation for the heterosis advantage and he says that “Beefmaster females are the key to his cattle operation.” McCarthy is also a citrus farmer and shared some educational information on orange trees and the bacterium causing disease that is currently plaguing the Florida orange tree industry referred to as “citrus greening”.
We continued our journey into Southern Florida and entered into cattle country that surrounds Lake Okeechobee to visit with Lykes Bros. Inc., Cattle Supervisor Travis Brown. The Lykes Ranch is located in Glades and Highlands Counties and spreads out on 337,000 acres on one of the largest contiguous pieces of land in the state. The property is home to integrated cow-calf, forestry, sugar cane and landscape operations. The Lykes Ranch is a progressive leader in Florida Agriculture and we got to see first-hand the impressive cattle the ranch has to offer. The Lykes Ranch utilizes Beefmaster bulls on their females.
Travis Brown of Lykes Bros., in Okeechobee, Fla., not only appreciates the docility of Beefmaster bulls but Brown says, “the genetic heterosis of their Beefmaster cross calves is unbeatable.”
Travis Brown of Lykes Bros., in Okeechobee, Fla., not only appreciates the docility of Beefmaster bulls but Brown says, “the genetic heterosis of their Beefmaster cross calves is unbeatable.” Brown has an extensive cattle background and loves what the Beefmaster breed has to offer to the Florida cattle industry.
Just South of the Lykes Ranch and on the South side of Lake Okeechobee is an impressive herd of the Beefmaster females and bulls that is owned by Jennie Lee Zipperer. Zipperer is a past BBU president and a Florida cattlewoman that is full of spirit. We visited with Zipperer, who is getting started in the Beefmaster business for the second time, and traveled throughout a part of Clewiston, Fla., referred to as Devil’s Garden. This a tough place to make a living on pasture but the hardiness of the Beefmaster breed makes it work and the cattle thrive in this “devilish” part of Florida.
Between rain showers we got to view an outstanding herd of females and bulls at Zipperer Beefmasters in Devil’s Garden, Fla. Owner Jennie Lee Zipperer is a past BBU president and pretty sharp Florida cattlewoman.
These three cattlemen and women are just a small representation of the cattle industry in the southern and central parts of Florida and how the Beefmaster breed is shining bright in the Sunshine State. The tide is turning toward the Beefmaster breed. Many ranchers in Florida are now turning to Beefmaster bulls to add hybrid vigor back into those black hided commercial females. From a planned crossbreeding standpoint, Beefmaster genetics on high percentage British cattle will rapidly address adaptability and add superior maternal heterosis better than any other breed. Our breed is in high demand in Florida and the biggest challenge is meeting this demand. The more good Beefmaster bulls we have available, the more buyers we will attract, the more they will spend on bulls. It is time that Beefmaster breeders start thinking big. Now is the time to expand your Beefmaster herd. We need our members to add females and increase their quality to meet this coming bull demand, not only in Florida but through out the United States and internationally.
I look forward to the day when Florida is known for beaches and Beefmasters!