Beef Up Your Memorial Day Meals

Fire up your grills this Memorial Day weekend! These Teriyaki Steak Skewers are perfect for a backyard barbecue with family and friends.

Teriyaki Steak Skewers

Marinade time: 15 minutes to 2 hours

Total recipe time: 30 to 35 minutes

Makes 4 servings

Serving size: 3 skewers per serving

Ingredients

• 1 pound boneless beef top sirloin steak, cut 1 inch thick
• 1 package (5.2 to 6.8 ounces) fried rice blend, prepared according to package directions (optional)
• Thinly sliced green onions

Marinade

• 1/2 cup dry sherry
• 1/3 cup reduced-sodium or regular soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger

Instructions

1. Combine marinade ingredients in medium bowl. Cover and refrigerate 1/4 cup marinade. Cut beef steak crosswise into 1/4-inch thick strips. Add beef to remaining marinade in bowl; toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate 15 minutes to 2 hours, turning occasionally.
2. Soak twelve 6-inch bamboo skewers in water 10 minutes; drain. Remove beef from marinade; discard marinade. Thread beef, weaving back and forth, onto each skewer.
3. Place skewers on grid over medium, ash-covered coals. Grill, covered, 5 to 7 minutes (over medium heat on preheated gas grill, 6 to 8 minutes), turning occasionally and brushing with reserved 1/4 cup marinade.
4. Serve skewers with rice, if desired. Garnish with onions.

Nutritional Information

Nutrition information per serving: 198 calories; 5 g fat (2 g saturated fat; 2 g monounsaturated fat); 70 mg cholesterol; 638 mg sodium; 8 g carbohydrate; 0 g fiber; 27 g protein; 10.3 mg niacin; 0.6 mg vitamin B6; 1.5 mcg vitamin B12; 1.7 mg iron; 30.6 mcg selenium; 4.9 mg zinc; 99.4 mg choline.

This recipe is an excellent source of protein, niacin, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, selenium and zinc; and a good source of choline.

Moms Ask Farmers about Organic, Biotech and Farming

When searching online for information about food, farmers and farming, a consumer can quickly find many contradictory and negative messages about farming. Valerie Johnson, mom of three from Elgin, Ill., was confused by the research she had done, but set out for the spring Field Moms farm tour with Illinois Farm Families last weekend to learn more. She met soybean and corn farmers Paul and Donna Jeschke who talked with the urban and suburban moms about their questions and explained what happens on the farm. 

In her post-tour blog post Valerie writes, “I learned that the same people who I thought a few hours before were out to get our family and myself, are really people like you and I who are trying to make the best use of our country’s land using science and technology. Although, I still don’t believe that GMOs are completely safe for us, I now do understand why farmers choose GMO seed over non-GMO seed. I also understand more about pesticides, crop nutrients and organic foods.” See more from the Field Moms on www.WatchUsGrow.org.
Illinois Farm Families is a coalition supported by the Illinois Corn Marketing Board, Illinois Beef Association, Illinois Pork Producers Association, Illinois Soybean Association, and Illinois Farm Bureau. The coalition is hoping to train more people in a communications model that is designed to support conversations between farmers and consumers. To learn more about Illinois Farm Families activities and how you can be involved, visit their website at www.WatchUsGrow.org.

Keeping Pasture Plentiful

Pasture management is worth the extra effort

This is the time of year we look forward to all winter. For those of us with grazing animals, it means the end of feeding hay. 

While our short growing season makes tilling the soil and planting our annual crops quite urgent, there is another important crop that sometimes receives less attention than it really deserves. Often taken for granted, pasture is an important agricultural resource that many livestock farmers depend on for summer feed.

Roger Staff, Natural Resources Conservation Service (NCRS) grass land specialist, said a well-managed pasture can in fact provide excellent feed to growing livestock with little supplementation. But what is well-managed pasture? A modern view that has developed is that pasture should be seen as a perennial crop that deserves the same care and management as other crops on the farm. Pasture management can be complicated. Few other farming activities involve growing a crop, growing livestock and harvesting the crop all at the same time. Maintaining balance requires close observation and dedicated management. As with all crops, many factors must be planned for to grow and maintain a consistent, high-quality pasture.

Choosing the right grass 
Good management starts with choosing a well-adapted grass for your area. Staff said there are no “silver bullets” when selecting forages, but producers should have an idea of what forage varieties were originally established in the pasture and implement varieties that complement those present forages. 

“The key is to keep the forage in a vegetative state for continued growth and producers should also take grazing heights into account,” Staff said.

He recommends grazing cool season grasses at eight to 10 inches with a minimum of three to four inches. For native warm season grasses, such as big bluestem, indiangrass, and switchgrass, graze at 18 to 20 inches with a minimum of eight to 10 inches.

“If a producer wants to re-seed a pasture, I recommend a mixture of 70 to 75 percent cool season grasses with a 25 to 30 percent warm season component,” he said. “Divide between perennial and warm season grasses and then rotate annuals into the system.”

Strengthen the roots 
Doing a soil test and adjusting fertilizers for ideal soil fertility are equally important steps in good management. Managing the grass so you have a good root system is also an important strategy. 

“How long has it been since you’ve had a soil test? That’s the first question I ask producers,” Staff said. “We don’t often think about it, but what we do on top of the ground is going to affect what is underneath the ground. If we have a continuous grazing system and graze that grass really close to the soil surface, we’re going to make the plant’s root system smaller – with a smaller root system the plant is going to be more susceptible to drought stress.”

Controlling weeds is major challenge in any situation, but especially when forages start to get thin. Strengthening the roots for the forage can go hand in hand with controlling weeds, since they compete for moisture in nutrients. Staff said adding phosphorus to the pasture in the fall will help strengthen plants roots going into winter.

Establish a sacrifice pasture 
According to Staff, pastures need rest and care and using a sacrifice pasture can help with that. 

“If you already have a sacrifice pasture I applaud you. If not, you might want to consider setting one aside,” Staff said. “Instead of grazing every pasture, set aside a sacrifice pasture where hay is fed to minimize severe drought damage.”

He encourages producers to have a 30-day rest cycle with managed grazing and said if you grazed the grass short last year you probably need an even longer rest period.

Dinner in a Pinch!

What's for dinner tonight? Good question! Luckily there are a ton of great beef recipes that take 30 minutes or less to prepare. Check out the "30 Minutes or Less Recipe Search" for lots of quick meal ideas. 

Executive Outlook - Reid Blossom Discusses May Beef Month and IBA Programs

IBA Executive Vice President Reid Blossom discusses May Beef Month, the importance of youth livestock events, and IBA summer programs with Steve Bridge, Neuhoff Media agriculture director.

Listen here: http://podcast.sportsradio1450.com/wfmba2/3995204.mp3

Senate Agriculture Committee Completes Farm Bill Markup

With the Senate Agriculture Committee markup of the 2013 Farm Bill completed today, farmers and ranchers now look toward the House Agriculture Committee markup of its version of the bill, scheduled for May 15, as Congress moves one step closer toward passing a full 2013 Farm Bill, which would set American agriculture policy for the next five years. 

National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) President Scott George, a beef and dairy producer from Cody, Wyo., said his organization is pleased with the outcome of the Senate markup, adding that having cattle producers’ top farm bill priorities included in the legislation is paramount to ensuring the viability and sustainability of the beef industry.

“This version of the farm bill incorporates the priorities which NCBA and our membership fought hard for last year. There is not a livestock title, the conservation programs are maintained and the research title is sustained,” said George. “These priorities address the needs of cattle producers while limiting invasive federal oversight and ensure that farmers and ranchers can continue to produce a wholesome, safe and affordable food supply.”

The bill passed by the committee this afternoon did not include the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) / United Egg Producers (UEP) language. After announcing two weeks ago that it planned to include language in the draft farm bill legislation that would codify an agreement between HSUS and UEP to seek federally mandated production practices for the egg industry, the Senate Agriculture Committee made the decision last week that the proposal would not be included in their markup of the farm bill.

“Including the HSUS/UEP legislation in the farm bill would have created a potential slippery slope to allow the federal government to mandate on-farm production practices for all sectors of the agriculture. Cattlemen and women have worked closely with the committee and leadership over these past years and we are very pleased the Senate used commonsense judgment and decided to not include this proposal in the bill,” said George. “We support this legislation that has come out of committee today and will continue working with both the Senate and House Agriculture Committees to ensure the passage of agriculture policy which will provide certainty to farmers and ranchers.”

Cattle Fax - Weekly Recap

The fed cattle market traded mostly $2 lower live and $3 to $5 lower dressed. The South traded mostly at $126 live. In the North, live sales occurred at $127, while the dressed trade was established primarily at $202 to $204.


Boxed beef was about $3 higher last week on seasonal demand. Choice moved higher than Selects, widening out that spread. Feeder cattle prices were uneven to lower on a very light test in most regions. The calf market was uneven by region as well. Slaughter cows were steady for the week - 90's trim prices continue to be soft on elevated cow kill.

Corn was lower last week as planting fears have somewhat been lessened and the USDA report was very neutral.

Check out today's Chart of the Day. For recent market news and analysis, visit CattleFax.com.