Five Star Land & Cattle Receives Ambassador Award from Certified Angus Beef ®
September 2016
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On behalf of our family farmers and ranchers, we salute you and your team for your ongoing success with the Certified Angus Beef ® brand! We appreciate your passion and dedication to excellence and are excited to share the news about your award with your local and trade media. As you share the news with your team, please also share the enclosed photo with our congratulations and best wishes for a remarkable year ahead.
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September 9th, 2016 - Black Ink With Cab Blog Post
Besides a set of old scrapbooks that reveal a rich history in the Angus breed, Abbie Nelson’s table is tidy, well kept like the rest of the place.
“It’s not always this way,” she says of the family gathering spot, “especially not during breeding season. We AI all the cows and that’s always a big decision time.” Books sprawl across the table, dinner plates replaced by spreadsheets as precise detail goes into selecting Five Star Land and Livestock’s next cross, determining their own hybrid vigor, and so forth.
“We want to generate cattle that will go into our customer’s commercial operations and increase the value of their herds,” Abbie says simply. That includes making genetic breeding decisions that will put progeny in line to hit CAB marks. “We hope to do our part in increasing the level of brand acceptance.”
“It’s an added benefit to our customer,” she says of the focus on quality and the subsequent dollars it can bring at harvest. “We look for high accuracy carcass EPDs, then of course we DNA all of our bulls with the Zoetis 50K test.” They’ll ultrasound, too. When it comes to marbling, $W, $B EPDs, “way above average” sets the threshold.
An ideal cow has a minimum frame score of six. Quick to cull on problems with fertility, docility, “We like a big top with muscle expression, nice udders, good feet and legs,” Abbie says.
“I do like pretty cattle,” she says. Years of showing hold too dear to her heart to ignore phenotype. “I’m not going to just breed off of paper. I want a bull to be attractive.”
Specifically designed for the California customer, the Nelsons have both spring and fall herds, but are steadily transitioning to just the latter. Calving ease is particularly important for fall calvers as customers tend to use a yearling bull purchased in September and turned out with heifers in November.
If it seems like too much detail, it’s actually on the contrary. Five Star’s just another example of a registered operation that enjoys getting down to the nitty gritty and sticks with the Angus breed because of it.
“They’re my therapy,” Abbie says. “I love the decision making, the genetics, the indexes. ‘Is your eye as good as you thought it was,’ or ‘Is this mating backed up by pedigree and performance?’”
“I just love the ride,” she says as we gaze at the herd, the sun beginning to set.
Remember that good California light I was hoping to catch? I nearly missed it. But so be it when you start talking cattle.
Thanks for allowing me to tell your story,
Laura
PS – Ever wonder how Mark and Abbie Nelson have time for all the decisions that come into maintaining a successful purebred herd? That’s not all they do. Check out our most recent post to see how they wear the hat of “host,” too.
(resource: blackinkwithcab.com)
Besides a set of old scrapbooks that reveal a rich history in the Angus breed, Abbie Nelson’s table is tidy, well kept like the rest of the place.
“It’s not always this way,” she says of the family gathering spot, “especially not during breeding season. We AI all the cows and that’s always a big decision time.” Books sprawl across the table, dinner plates replaced by spreadsheets as precise detail goes into selecting Five Star Land and Livestock’s next cross, determining their own hybrid vigor, and so forth.
“We want to generate cattle that will go into our customer’s commercial operations and increase the value of their herds,” Abbie says simply. That includes making genetic breeding decisions that will put progeny in line to hit CAB marks. “We hope to do our part in increasing the level of brand acceptance.”
“It’s an added benefit to our customer,” she says of the focus on quality and the subsequent dollars it can bring at harvest. “We look for high accuracy carcass EPDs, then of course we DNA all of our bulls with the Zoetis 50K test.” They’ll ultrasound, too. When it comes to marbling, $W, $B EPDs, “way above average” sets the threshold.
An ideal cow has a minimum frame score of six. Quick to cull on problems with fertility, docility, “We like a big top with muscle expression, nice udders, good feet and legs,” Abbie says.
“I do like pretty cattle,” she says. Years of showing hold too dear to her heart to ignore phenotype. “I’m not going to just breed off of paper. I want a bull to be attractive.”
Specifically designed for the California customer, the Nelsons have both spring and fall herds, but are steadily transitioning to just the latter. Calving ease is particularly important for fall calvers as customers tend to use a yearling bull purchased in September and turned out with heifers in November.
If it seems like too much detail, it’s actually on the contrary. Five Star’s just another example of a registered operation that enjoys getting down to the nitty gritty and sticks with the Angus breed because of it.
“They’re my therapy,” Abbie says. “I love the decision making, the genetics, the indexes. ‘Is your eye as good as you thought it was,’ or ‘Is this mating backed up by pedigree and performance?’”
“I just love the ride,” she says as we gaze at the herd, the sun beginning to set.
Remember that good California light I was hoping to catch? I nearly missed it. But so be it when you start talking cattle.
Thanks for allowing me to tell your story,
Laura
PS – Ever wonder how Mark and Abbie Nelson have time for all the decisions that come into maintaining a successful purebred herd? That’s not all they do. Check out our most recent post to see how they wear the hat of “host,” too.
(resource: blackinkwithcab.com)
September 2nd, 2016 - Black Ink With Cab Blog Post
It’s almost too picturesque I thought as I stood in Mark and Abbie Nelson’s circular roundabout and stared. The tree canopy I had just driven through lead me there – to a place where Angus cattle grazing golden pastures meet rolling vineyards of zinfandel and petite sirah, the San Francisco coastline a mere 100 miles in the distance.
This can’t be real, I teased about the rest: the state flag dancing in the breeze, the big red barn, the grinning young cowboy with his loyal dog, Ike.
For pictures later, I would want the good light. But then again California always has the good light.
The Nelsons, while both native Californians, hailed from different parts of the Golden State only to end up in Wilton with a combined four kids in tow. Since the 1984 move and beginning of Five Star Land and Livestock they've lived plenty of real days.
The home along the Cosumnes River is their beautiful oasis but separate from California it will never be. Issues of dust or truck length, water rights or taxes – it seems it would be a relief to move to a more secluded spot, build fences high and lock the gates. Instead, Mark and Abbie stay in the middle of it all.
“We have a big job to do and that’s to gain the trust of the end consumer, to make sure they know we have a safe product,” Abbie says.
So with that notion began their open-gate policy – rather gates were never built – and the result is an ever-increasing number of guests who visit, ask questions and leave with an understanding and a family tied to it.
“As a kid, it was pretty cool not always meeting somebody in a cowboy hat,” Ryan Nelson says. The duo’s fifth and youngest son runs commercial Angus with his family nearby while oldest sister, Andra, does the same across the border to Oregon. “You often get to see somebody in tennis shoes trying to learn about beef.”
“We've had Polish, Chinese, Japanese. We’ll have a Vietnamese group this month,” Abbie rattles off. To her it’s a no-brainer, an absolute necessity of the industry she loves. But for those who know this life, consumer transparency comes at a cost, at a minimum time from other responsibilities, one the Nelsons are willing to bare.
“Our family’s story and the Angus industry’s story are worth sharing with city people,” Abbie says. “Once we get them here their comments become ‘I didn’t know that!’ I didn’t understand this.’ They can do a complete 180 in an afternoon.”
And we’re all better for it.
Thanks for allowing me to tell your story,
Laura
PS – When the Nelson’s aren’t hosting eight graders or international groups, they run a registered Angus herd. Check back on Monday to see how they select genetics for their customer base and what they look for in an Angus cow.
Published September 2nd 2016
resource: http://www.blackinkwithcab.com/2016/09/02/yes-absolutely/
It’s almost too picturesque I thought as I stood in Mark and Abbie Nelson’s circular roundabout and stared. The tree canopy I had just driven through lead me there – to a place where Angus cattle grazing golden pastures meet rolling vineyards of zinfandel and petite sirah, the San Francisco coastline a mere 100 miles in the distance.
This can’t be real, I teased about the rest: the state flag dancing in the breeze, the big red barn, the grinning young cowboy with his loyal dog, Ike.
For pictures later, I would want the good light. But then again California always has the good light.
The Nelsons, while both native Californians, hailed from different parts of the Golden State only to end up in Wilton with a combined four kids in tow. Since the 1984 move and beginning of Five Star Land and Livestock they've lived plenty of real days.
The home along the Cosumnes River is their beautiful oasis but separate from California it will never be. Issues of dust or truck length, water rights or taxes – it seems it would be a relief to move to a more secluded spot, build fences high and lock the gates. Instead, Mark and Abbie stay in the middle of it all.
“We have a big job to do and that’s to gain the trust of the end consumer, to make sure they know we have a safe product,” Abbie says.
So with that notion began their open-gate policy – rather gates were never built – and the result is an ever-increasing number of guests who visit, ask questions and leave with an understanding and a family tied to it.
“As a kid, it was pretty cool not always meeting somebody in a cowboy hat,” Ryan Nelson says. The duo’s fifth and youngest son runs commercial Angus with his family nearby while oldest sister, Andra, does the same across the border to Oregon. “You often get to see somebody in tennis shoes trying to learn about beef.”
“We've had Polish, Chinese, Japanese. We’ll have a Vietnamese group this month,” Abbie rattles off. To her it’s a no-brainer, an absolute necessity of the industry she loves. But for those who know this life, consumer transparency comes at a cost, at a minimum time from other responsibilities, one the Nelsons are willing to bare.
“Our family’s story and the Angus industry’s story are worth sharing with city people,” Abbie says. “Once we get them here their comments become ‘I didn’t know that!’ I didn’t understand this.’ They can do a complete 180 in an afternoon.”
And we’re all better for it.
Thanks for allowing me to tell your story,
Laura
PS – When the Nelson’s aren’t hosting eight graders or international groups, they run a registered Angus herd. Check back on Monday to see how they select genetics for their customer base and what they look for in an Angus cow.
Published September 2nd 2016
resource: http://www.blackinkwithcab.com/2016/09/02/yes-absolutely/