Meat On The Move 1962

[Music] [Applause] [Music] Sky stretching as far as the eye can see and under that Sky a Sea of Grass sweeping to the mountains and on Beyond these are the grazing lands the range lands of this country nearly 900 million Acres of them over a third of the United States devoted for generations to the raising of [Music] livestock that's a lot of land and a lot of grass but it takes a lot to raise the a meat supply for a whole nation and it takes time [Music] too time for grazing the grass through the warm months and for eating it as hay down near the ranch buildings when the snow sets [Music] in to most people th and grass probably don't seem too important but on the Range and pasture lands they are here th and grass at their own pace which the livestock follow as they graze along slowly consuming the Sea of Grass to produce a harvest of meat to the herdsman camped out the pace is as familiar as the voices around him so too for the cowboy but finally a day come comes when the pace of the range is over the decision has been made to sell and the livestock are on the Move in numbers that reflect the crew vastness of the grasslands every year about 22 million lambs and 34 million cattle move out some are already at Market weight while others require further feeding most cattle leave the range today as calves in urlings and they're shipped to centers that specialize in feeding them to add further weight and quality a big commercial feed yard may handle 75 to 100,000 head of cattle a year and it is a highly scientific B Factory providing high energy rations balanced with proteins vitamins and minerals on this diet Cales and yearlings can gain 3 lb a day or better and soon reach Market weight around 1,000 lb such specialized feeder operations are not only efficient they also produce meat of more uniform quality and better finish which is in growing demand today this increasing demand for better finished beef has also LED individual Farms to specialize in livestock feeding often growing their own grain adding supplements and feeding a few to several hundred head a year specialization in feeding has brought a need for scientifically mixed feeds and new Mills to supply them for livestock today consume over 133 million tons of grain a year such Mills provide mixed feeds by the sack load and by the truckload if feed by the truckload means anything it means hogs for they are raised almost entirely on grain nearly 100 million of them a year Furnishing almost 40% of the nation's meat Supply here too the trend is towards scientific feeding on a large scale and producing a laner meat type hog production is generally concentrated in the big corn raising areas of the country Lambs can be brought to top finish on grass alone but even here commercial feeding is used to bring them to Market weight more quickly whatever the livestock the day comes when the producer decides to sell he may sell directly to a buyer for a meat packing company or he may sell to a packing company buying station where prices are posted daily one advantage of the buying station is that the producer can sell his livestock nearby thus minimizing weight loss and shipping long distances he can also respond quickly to Market changes he knows too that the prices offered here are in line with what the Packer is getting for the type of meat the producer has to sell another local Outlet where the producer knows he will find ready buyers is the livestock auction Market they go outside 75 roll in boy we got a good bunch of hogs coming in here a lot of hogs this morning a lot of real good Hogs one over let's go here boys come on in here boys let's go open up bring them in all right boys there are over 2400 auction markets in the country and they handle about a third of all livestock sold but the producer still has other choices choices that are sometimes difficult to make demand for well to 1100b steers and 900 lb heers prices generally work strong to 50 cents higher George that heer market sounds pretty good maybe we should sort up a load of heers and have them on the market tomorrow well it might be okay the farmers are in the field planting corn now and they're not thinking of sending any cattle in what do you think I call our commission man and ask him what he thinks about it that'd probably be okay thus the marketing choice is made on each of the three million farms and ranches that produce Livestock in this country there are many factors which determine that choice Farm papers and newsletters the radio Department of agrens and his own experience and preference all suggested the producer which is the best place sell if he chooses one of the country's Central Livestock markets it may be Sue City or Indianapolis Ogden or St Paul Kansas City Omaha or one of over 50 other such markets every day around the clock railroad cars and trucks roll up to the unloading docks of this great Terminal Market the trucks may carry a couple of animals a couple dozen or they may be huge double deckers that can hold 200 Lambs or 40 steers majestically the big trailers move [Music] [Applause] [Music] in at the Docks each shipment is checked in and counted and then the animals are moved off to the pens of the commission firms to which they have been consigned where professional salesman will do the job of selling the livestock for the [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] producer this Terminal Market is big the biggest livestock hotel in the world its facilities are owned and operated by an independent private company which assigns pens to commission firms that use them hundreds of people staff this hotel attending to the needs of some 18,000 cattle 12,000 Hogs and several thousand Lambs that can be expected to check in on a busy day right you see Bill everything all right once livestock reached the pens the commission firm orders from the terminal the feed they need to put on their best appearance for the day's buyers in this hotel the service Serv is excellent trouble about reservations [Music] never at the livestock exchange information is posted on receipts of livestock and selling prices around the nation the Department of Agriculture furnishes this information to all markets so that both buyers and sellers will be fully informed as they set out to bargain with one another meanwhile buyers for one of the many meat packing companies that will be competing today are estimating what they can bid in the light of what the company is getting for meat and byproducts you've all seen the receipts Around The Terminal Markets this morning we've got a good Supply and we've got a good run of cattle here if we can buy cattle in line with our last week's cost I think when the day is over we'd ought to own a rely good number of cattle well how about these hotel and restaurant type steers new we've got a pretty fair supply of them on their receipts today I realize that Tommy however our costs were out of line on Hotel type cattle at the end of the week and unless we can bring our cost in line I think we should be light on that grade okay okay let's go to work keep me posted on the other side of the fence members of a commission firm Are deciding what they should get for livestock and they may have an entirely different idea of the market and what it can bring the producers they represent h on everything with exception maybe some plane cattle weighing over 1,300 what does Omaha say wall Omaha thinks they'll have no difficulty getting quarter higher on everything except maybe a few plain heavy cattle looks to me that with the information that we have locally as to receipts in the 12 markets compared to a year ago and the market information we have from these other points that we should expect fully a quarter higher here with buying and selling plans made bargaining begins Mr Johnson home race cattle I'd like sell these cattle 50 highing yesterday well Ray is every indication our beef trade is going to be steady uh we're going to try to buy cattle steady well this is a very desirable weight set of cattle I'll tell you what I'll do I'll Sprint with you sell them a what are you asking for these wal I'll take the same as yesterday well these cattle dump me last week W just didn't quite cut the mustard well I think that boys over at the plant must have made a mistake because any going to Happ doing just about the right job I get that from you fellas I think we'd ought to send you over grade them instead of sell them while you grading them and me buying them we'd make a ton at some of those cattle carry down in the rounds the price is all right Walt but I I'm afraid we're going to have to take four cattle out Four's too big a trim on this little cattle I'd lose my job I'd take four CLE I'll tell you what I'll do I'll sell you this St the cattle with two cattle out y look look at that thing there well they can't be all pretty you know they don't belong to some beauty contest but they're all for eating this is look at the dressing of them look at the condition of them these are a little bit on the clown order aren't you well you can call them that but they're dressy and they're good figuring cattle and they're dressy and the weights are just what you always told me you wanted there they are way 11 a/4 11 and A2 now don't tell me that is what you want cuz I know it is now here you are making fun of my cattle and I got just what you want I know you're trying to Bear down on me and trying to do something to make me sell them cheap or something like that but you're not going to get it done today hello n you there go ahead Tommy I just saw a load of light handy weight heers but they're going to cost us a quarter more what do you think all right if that's the best we can do let's go ahead on them and so a day's bargaining ends a sale is closed and the livestock are driven off to be weighed hard but friendly bargaining for just a few pennies but the pennies are important because that's just about all the meat Packer gets out of the whole transaction for the earnings of Meat Packers are among the lowest of any major industry about a cent on the dollar because the Packer's profit has virtually no effect on the price producers get for livestock or the price consumers pay for meat the competitive nature of the business creates this situation 4 thousands of Meat Packers are competing to sell meat but they are also competing to buy livestock and the livestock producer will sell wherever he can get the best price thus when a pack buys he has to consider what he can get for every last part of an animal and so weighing the livestock becomes an important matter once a deal is closed for buyer and seller have been bargaining over pennies and accurate scales are needed to register such small margins the skilled hand of the way master and carefully inspected scales assure such [Music] accuracy [Music] once the livestock leave the scales they become finally the property of the buyer and move on to the Meat Plant in the Meat Plant beef is dressed and hung in the cooler for 12 to 48 Hours its temperature is gradually reduced to just a few degrees above freezing until it reaches a market the temperature must be maintained there though the meat will probably travel hundreds of miles before a consumer sees it throughout processing inspectors of the United States Department of Agriculture examine the carcasses for cleanliness and wholesomeness and their final stamp of approval on any meat assures the public that these standards have been maintained then the meat is graded for quality and carcasses that meet the Packer's own specifications receive his own brand applied with a roller stamp now the meat is selected and tag for shipment here the final grading takes place and the carcass is often ribbed between the 12th and 13th ribs so that the meat can be examined for Quality color and texture the is handled in a similar way except that the hide is usually left on until just before shipping to preserve its delicate color and flavor lamb is left whole but sometimes shipped in Primal Cuts shipping carcasses and Primal Cuts is a traditional part of the Meat Packer's job but in recent years with a quarter of the nation's meals consumed away from home preparing portion Cuts has become a part of his business too cuts for restaurants and railroads air lines and steamship companies unlike any other meat pork is sold almost entirely on the basis of cuts and separating them from the carcass is a highly skilled operation there are hams of course and spare ribs loins and bacon but in all there are actually over a 100 Cuts including chitterlings pig knuckles and ham Hawks for of all livestock Hogs have the highest yield in meat and meat prod about 70% as compared to some 60% for beef and 50% for lamb preparing all these Cuts is not a matter of skill alone for skill implies the proper tools to work with in the case of pork this means razor sharp blades curved and shaped to remove each specific cup it means cleanliness too as cut after cut is lifted from the dwindling [Applause] carcass many pork cuts are cured like bacon which is automatically infused with the curing solution curing also means smoke 18 to 24 hours over hardwood fires to bring out the real flavor of bacon and even longer for hands and still The Cutting continues as bacon is sliced and separated into one PB portions most operations in the meat packing business require a skillful hand for like people no two animals are really the same even so there are some operations that machines can perform efficiently modern machines provide an efficient way to make frankfurters since we eat them by the yard anyway over 150 million yards a year in fact and this assures uniform packing weight and length similarly High Precision Machinery in the meat packing industry yields table Ready Meats of uniform quality and doing this has become an important part of the Packer's business producing Smoked Meats and prepared meats and sausages of all shapes and sizes there are canned meats and Specialty Meats and meat dishes of many kinds and they're frozen dishes too in growing numbers all broadening the market for meat and just as important are the byproducts of the meat industry here research has discovered a wide variety of useful products that give added value to livestock lard and shortening find their way into bread Cakes and Pastries and animal oils are the basis of many cosmetics hides are carefully saved and sold to Tanners and animal fats find use in soaps and detergents animal fibers string musical instruments and provide Ever Changing adornment in the changeless form of wool which always looks good in the light of Tallow candles still other byproducts form the basis of many Industrial Products like adhesives that find increasing use in laminated structures more far-reaching still are the medical AIDS which byproducts provide but the Packers basic business is meat buying livestock all across the country and processing it is a big job but that job is easy compared to moving the meat and selling it this is where the race with time begins and where the tempo really picks up for perishability sets the pace in this industry and from this point on the meat must be sold and delivered within a few days getting the right quality and weights and types to meet specific demands of thousands of wholesale and retail outlets all over the country quickly is one of the great tasks of this industry a refrigerator car is closed and the car slowly moves off along a Spur to become part of a Mainline train but where is it headed for and who wants what it's got a truck pulls out from a packing plant with 15 tons of meat but who wants it a Salesman somewhere knows the answer every week over 15,000 refrigerator cars and trucks move meat from Packers to Consumers average trip 1,000 mil average haulage half a billion pounds of meat a week that's a lot of meat and it takes a lot of selling to sell it close to the vest bargaining like it was at the terminal market it's a little closer than you realize there half a dollar half a cent me Tom a half a half a dollar that's just trading dollars with you 50 cents is a well I'm trying to get a lot of sales are made right out of the cooler but in this fast moving business the telephone is often quicker for buyer and salesman well after all I mean all you all you're giving me is what what all I'm trying to do is get an order for Carlo to meet well I sure don't like the sound of your Market we have a lot of meat to move all right I'll put it in I don't think it'll do any business but we'll quote it anyhow who knows and feel that making shipment of this type only detrimental to our business stop I think we're going to have to be a little lower than we've been all right we'll talk to him about the pork loins and also about the pork livers too okay good enough I'd say the top of the market is seven you might not be able to get it but let's push for it well I don't know I didn't hear that the government had given over their grading to the tayack and Company but you know oh what are you what are you having them rolled US Standard or a tacking company brother here we go again all day long the salesmen are at it and all day long the phones are busy keeping the meat counters filled in nearly 20,000 cities and towns and Villages all across the country but the salesman isn't through when he hangs up the phone buyers and retailers are having their problems too just about as as many and as different from each other as there are meat count and these problems continually change the pattern of how meat is bought and sold and put on the road good morning Jean it's Mr Cooper that steak Shale we have is going all the tremendous bag I'm going to need some more lines can you help me out well I'm going to need 25 to 30 can you get those up to me in the morning fine and along with that I like 250s of pork two crates of chickens and some blown 15 Tons of meat on the road and the problem at every turn well I got hot weather here and I got a cancel five of those trucks yeah two more everybody's back from Labor Day and they all want meat couple of cars come in Friday got a good price on them uh well either St Paul or Omaha I believe and they may have one ofish yards listen Chris we've got a big strike on the southide and the Market's off can you cancel those three refrigerator cars and rot those others to our North Side stores catch up with them where oh fine but I've got to have an extra 10 boxes of ribs this week the barbecue season has really hit Joe we just can't use any more lamb in Miami the tourist season's just about over down here so it goes just about everything that happens affects the retailer and what he can sell WEA strikes holidays and different preferences all over the country and it changes every day how do you make sense out of it for a perishable commodity how do you make quick sense out of it for distribution quick communication is part of the answer reflecting immediately the changing demands and needs and expectations Across the Nation quick calculation is another part as these needs are processed and translated into specific shipping requirements for each packing plant what it should ship and where and how and when and so the roots of thousands of refrigerator cars and trucks make sense as they head out cross country toward the consumer but still the problems are not all solved I know it's not there yet as I wired your Warehouse that flash flood near Yuma required rerouting it'll be there first thing in the morning teletype to Pittsburgh rout cars 1016 1285 1192 byway ring well that Storm's got trucks Jack knifed all along there frankly most of them are going to be delayed I heard an hour ago he was slowed down in a dust storm but he's moving and meat does keep moving as the consumer knows for the consumer can walk into any Market in the country and the meat will be there in abundance and variety and this meat will be fresh wholesome and appetite izing an important source of high quality proteins she'll buy or not buy as she chooses and what she chooses turns the wheels of this industry it turns them all along the line from the range lands to the packing plants to the retailers it turns them fast and in competition to deliver what she wants when and where she wants it and so the trains and the trucks still move it's only a matter of time and high highways in a way it's like the way it was on the Range time and grass and a tempo of the two but now the pace is fast now it's time and highways and the tempo of these two and a customer somewhere at the other end of the [Music] line