Although the Merced County Fair ended back in July,
various awards pertaining to the summer event
continue to be awarded to local high school FFA and
4-H students. The latest award ceremony held in mid
November was the 2009 Beef Carcass Contest held at
the Merced County Cooperative Extension classroom.
The contest is an extension of the Merced County
Fair Market Steer Show where student market steer
projects are rated and assessed on the live
“rate-of-gain” and the post processing information
pertaining to the quality and yield of the carcass.
John
Sanchotena of Merced FFA won the “Rate-of-Gain”
portion of the contest. This contest centers around
recording the live weight of all the individual
Merced Fair market steers in March followed by
another weigh-in just prior to the start of the fair
in July. The number of pounds gained between the
weigh-ins is divided by the total number of days in
between the two weights. Sanchotena’s steer gained
an average of 3.15 lbs per day. From a market
standpoint, the more pounds a steer can gain per
day, the less time and money it takes to get the
steer to its market weight.
The
“Carcass” portion of the contest was awarded to
Brandon Machado of McSwain 4-H. This contest centers
around the industry’s standards for beef. The steers
were processed at the Los Banos Abattoir after the
fair and a USDA beef inspector evaluated each
carcass based on fat thickness, intramuscular fat,
and muscling in determining a quality and yield
grade. The results produced a dollar value on a grid
system in determining the overall carcass value.
The
“Overall” portion of the contest pertained to the
combination of the “rate-of-gain” and “carcass”
results. It recognizes the two most important traits
desired by the beef industry: (1) animals that can
gain weight efficiently and (2) animals that can
yield a high quality carcass. Hector Ayala of
Atwater FFA earned 1st place overall.
The
annual awards ceremony was sponsored by the
Merced-Mariposa Cattleman’s Association, Merced
County Fair, and American Ag Credit. Students earned
financial awards based on their placings as well as
a custom-made jacket by Diamond Stitch Embroidery to
the overall winner. The event also served as a
reminder to all participants about their role in
raising healthy, well-fed market steers that meet
the needs of the consumer.
Students who participated in the annual Beef Carcass
Contest (listed in order of overall finish) included
Hector Ayala, Shane Bell, John Sanchotena, Grant
Sardella, Brandon Tighe, Alexandra Cairncross,
Brandon Machado, Melissa Wells, Zachary Lewis,
Austin Silva, Amanda Buckley, Roen Johnson, Stormy
Aue, Kyle Silva, Colby Cozzitorto, Keziah Brigham,
Joanna Lopez, Brogin Wagner, Craig Benson, and
Colten Dutey.
Written By: Mekayla Coughran, Atwater FFA
December 2009
