Progressive Beef Producers know how to add value and how to take advantage of new technologies. Roger Koberstein of Koberstein Farms at Holyoke, CO is one of these producers. The operation consists of a commercial cow-calf Angus enterprise, cropland, and beef feedlot. In recent years, Koberstein has adapted Electronic Identification programs (EID) to not only serve as an animal health and monitoring system, but to improve management and to have more data creating more value and selling attributes.
Nutrition will affect animal health and beef quality. As mentioned above, Roger is a good adapter to new technology and recently incorporated CRYSTALYX® Brand Supplements into the operation. “We had been using a different supplement but made the switch to CRYSTALYX® during the winter of 2010-2011 because of the formulation and what it had to offer,” said Roger. CRYSTALYX® Breed UP® 28 with BioMos® was fed to commercial cows in late gestation grazing cornstalks. “After a month of feeding the product, we were probably in the worst winter weather conditions we had all season; we did see the difference it (CRYSTALYX®) made at calving. Body Condition score did not drop in cows, we had no scours at calving, and this was all achieved with no supplemental hay,” said Roger.
Feeding the Breed Up® 28 continued through the 2011 spring breeding season as it’s designed to be fed. The results were pleasing. The AI conception rates were the best ever seen and first service conception rates were over 80%. “We credit our management, but know that good nutrition helped too,” says Roger.
Today Koberstein Farms are also successfully marketing retail cuts of All Natural Angus beef via the internet at www.coloradonaturalbestbeef.com. Many repeat customers and new prospects that want to learn more about how their beef is produced can visit the website and purchase Koberstein products. Various nutritional health aspects of beef are highlighted on the website in addition to the many production practices Koberstein Farms implements.
Koberstein Farms has used Hubbard Feeds nutrition programs in the feedlot. In the future, more cutting edge technology will likely be adapted. Most recently the operation has began using the newest CRYSTALYX® product, Omega-lyx™ (a high fat product with high omega-3 fatty acid content) with replacement heifers.