Dry conditions are hurting Minnesota's cattle farms first

Minnesota's yellowing grass and drier-than-normal weather may soon force cattle farmers to make tough decisions about how to feed their herds.

While the state's big row crops — soybeans, corn and sugar beets — need significant rainfall soon to stop the deterioration, there is still time to see conditions improve before harvest in the fall. Not so for pasture-dependent cattle in many parts of the state.

"While we are in a wait-and-see period for row crops, we are past the wait-and-see period for anybody who's worried about hay and pasture," said Joe Armstrong, a cattle veterinarian extension educator with the University of Minnesota. "Decisions have to be made before you run out of grass."

That includes weaning calves early to lower the energy needs of cows, hauling in water to replenish their go-to watering holes that are dried up and selling cattle early to reduce herd size.

All of Minnesota is abnormally dry with a majority of the state already being declared in a moderate or severe drought by the U.S. Drought Monitor at the University of Nebraska.

Close to half of Minnesota's pasture and range land is in very poor or poor condition, according to Monday's crop report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. By contrast, just 11% of the state's corn and soybean crops are in very poor or poor condition.

Only 14% of the state's pastures are in good condition and none were deemed excellent for the week ending Sunday, the USDA said.

"At this point, if we get rain, it may help regrowth a little bit, but we've lost so much that even a decent amount of rain is just not going to benefit the crop this year," said Armstrong, who helps beef-cattle and dairy farmers think through the nutritional needs of their herds.

Pasture grass has been seeding out at 6- to 8-inches tall in some parts of the state, he said.

"We normally would want to see 18 inches of height before that would happen. So basically it is seeding out twice as quickly as it normally should," Armstrong said.

Jared Luhman, who raises Red Angus with his family near Goodhue, said he's never experienced anything like this, and his dad told him this is the worst it's been since the drought of 1988.

Their pasture usually gets 60% of its grass growth in May and June before conditions dry out in July, Luhman said.

"But we are already dry in what is usually the wet season, so we don't know what that means for the rest of the year," he said.

The U's Armstrong says cattle farmers should already have a plan for reducing the strain on their herds.

"At some point, you're not worrying about losing money anymore, you're worried about losing the least amount of money. That's kind of where we are at right now," he said. "Early weaning, culling cows, those are really your big options."

Most cow herds can be kept intact if 10 to 25% of the herd is sold now, Armstrong said. Some farmers might have feed on hand that can help them get by until fall, but most don't — or if they do, it's not often profitable.

In a typical year, moving cattle from pasture grass to corn doubles the cost of feed. With corn prices so high this year, Armstrong said it may triple or even quadruple the cost.

Weaning calves off milk early can reduce the mother's grass intake by 25%. That might be a viable option for some calves three months or older but needs to be done with a nutritionist's careful guidance, he said.

The Luhmans use a rotational grazing system on their southeastern Minnesota farm that Jared believes makes the soil soak up water better, but there's still uncertainty if the rainfalls don't increase.

"It's not about the rain we get, it's about the rain we keep," Luhman said. "We've never been in this position, so we don't know when those hard decisions will need to be made."

Up in Hibbing, Jason Helstrom raises grass-fed beef and despite rainfalls being far below average, he's still holding out hope. But, he said he's in a slightly better position than many farmers around the state and in the Dakotas.

"I was just in at the feed mill and the talk around the counter is, 'They say the rain's coming,' then they all roll their eyes — you know, just a little pessimistic," Helstrom said. "They aren't looking real favorably toward it."