2013 Spring Frontline Beef Producer

FACES OF THE

INDUSTRY

by Ben SPITZER IBBA MARKETING PROGRAMS DIRECTOR

Jake Cowen of Williamson Ranch

C

hallenges are an inevitable part of any business, but when it is the challenges that drive you to be successful, the intricate and ever-changing parts of a stocker business become opportunities, and those challenges create success.

This is what drives Jake Cowen and the Williamson Ranch.

Williamson Ranch is a family operation. Jake’s great grandfather bought the Florida ranch in 1936.

His grandparents, mother and aunts rely on Jake and his father,

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Jim, to manage the operations in several locations. Currently the ranch operates on owned and leased properties from Florida to New Mexico, going as far north as the Osage country of Oklahoma and the Flint Hills of Kansas to optimize production goals.

“We sure couldn’t do this without the family and the support,” Cowen said. “I’m just an employee. Granny, Papa and mom and her sisters have a lot of faith in us, and that’s worth a lot more than you think.”

A graduate of the University of Florida with an Animal Science Degree, Jake has been driven to gain knowledge. After his education in Gainesville, he interned with the R.A. Brown Ranch in Throckmorton, Texas. After his internship, Cowen moved into a management role at the family’s operation near Benjamin, Texas.

“I graduated from college, walked across the stage, and I was gone before daylight. I haven’t left here since,” Cowen said. “The opportunities being out here are

FACES OF THE

INDUSTRY tremendous.”

Cowen feels right at home on the Texas location. He has become very active in industry associations and was one of three representatives for the Texas and Southwestern Cattleraisers Association (TSCRA) on the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) Young Cattlemen’s Conference Tour this past summer. He also serves on the Texas Cattle Feeders Association (TCFA) Research Committee and the TSCRA Animal Health Committee.

The Williamson Ranch operation

manages quite a few head of cattle every year, turning inventory at least twice in twelve months’ time. Calves are mainly bought straight off of ranches or out of two livestock markets in South Florida. Approximately 90 percent of the calves they handle originate in Florida, and the remaining are purchased in Texas. Cowen likes the

quality and health of the calves from that area of the country and tries to stock the ranch at an optimum stocking rate.

“It’s all based off rain,” Cowen said.

“We try to target 250 to 300 pounds per acre on wheat pasture. After we get rain and into the spring, we can bump up to 500 pounds. The top (continued on page 24)

With a minimum turnover of twice per year, Cowen buys a lot of cattle. But long standing relationships allow Cowen to buy cattle over the phone. “I don’t feel like I have to go down there and look at the cattle or be there to sort on them when buying cattle from regular customers.”

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 23

FACES OF THE

INDUSTRY (continued from page 23) end would be 1000 pounds in a good year. Last time I saw that happen was 2010. Prior to that, it had been ’07.

So, hopefully that means 2013/14 is the next wet year because clearly we missed it in ’12.”

The family has been at the main operation near Benjamin for seven years. It is a productive piece of ground that allows for plenty of flexibility. Cowen remembered a local rancher’s thoughts about the condition of the ranch when they were considering purchasing the ranch.

“He said, ‘Where it’s rough, it’s sure enough rough. Where it’s good, it’s sure enough good’,” Cowen recalled.

The family had their cow-calf operation near Okeechobee, Fla., at the time but has transitioned the operation since then. Now they mainly use the Okeechobee ranch to “straighten out” purchased calves.

There are vast differences in the environment and conditions between the Florida and Texas ranches. When it comes to comparing ranching in Florida to Texas, Cowen said the difference is huge.

“You can’t tell someone about it.

They have to come experience it.

You want to talk about one heck of a learning curve,” Cowen said. “I now have a greater appreciation for rain and water in general. I moved from a Florida county with an annual rainfall of 59 inches to a Texas county with 19 inches. Now we are in a severe drought, drinking water and grazing are both really short.”

Cowen still tries to make it back to Florida several times a year to visit the ranches where he purchases cattle.

24 FRONTLINE Beef Producer

He has long standing relationships with Florida ranches and appreciates the quality of the cattle but more importantly the quality people in the ranching community. When it comes to buying, however, he can do that from wherever the day takes him.

“I trade across a telephone,” Cowen said. “I don’t feel like I have to go down there and look at the cattle or be there to sort on them when buying cattle from regular customers.”

When it comes to buying calves and marketing yearlings, Williamson Ranch takes a different approach than most.

“One of the things that sets us apart is I try to never stop buying cattle, and I try to have cattle to market twice a month,” Cowen said. “What that does, and this is something that I’ve learned from dad, it provides a hedge for us. We hit every market, the good and the bad. When you’re selling cattle in a bad market, you’re buying calves in a buyer’s market.

That’s one thing that really helps.”

Cowen believes the beef industry is in extremely dynamic times and has the experience to back it up.

From an economics standpoint, Cowen said it is pretty simple. He said pounds drive the industry, regardless of what phase it is. “For us, that’s the name of the game.”

“This industry is changing in a hurry,” Cowen said. “On the stocker side of things, two years ago cattle coming in you were paying $450 to $500 a head on average. This summer we bought several loads of cattle that averaged over $700 per head. These price increases have the potential to create some real cash

flow issues.”

In addition to their stocker, wheat pasture operation, Williamson Ranch has a cow-calf operation on the ranch in Benjamin.

“We predominantly run yearlings, but we run cows on the country that isn’t conducive to running yearlings,” Cowen said. “We like quarter blood cows. That’s what we’re doing here. We put Angus bulls on them, red or black.” Cowen plans on using Brangus bulls through AI to keep replacement females that are adaptable and fit the rough country of the area.

The calves that result from the cow-calf operation are managed separately from the stockers. They may get commingled on grass but Cowen said they usually feed them separately and try to retain ownership on them. That way they get some carcass data back to make sure they are heading the right direction with their genetics. Cowen puts a lot of emphasis on using performance genetics and is always striving to make the next generation of cows better.

“We AI all our heifers. We’re pretty big on taking care of our heifers,” Cowen said. “I don’t spare the coin on heifer bulls. I don’t spare the coin on any bulls, really. I haven’t pulled a calf for two years. With the price of calves, you lose a pair, and you’ve paid for a heifer bull.”

They have been extremely successful the last several years on getting great conception rates, especially for the extremely rough country the cowherd grazes. Cowen said out of 77 cows they bred, 66 AI sired calves were produced, which is an 85 percent AI conception rate on

FACES OF THE

INDUSTRY one service.

With the end product in mind, Cowen puts a lot of pressure on the cows to bring a quality product to market.

“We’re pretty strict on our culling,” Cowen said. “If they don’t bring a calf to the pens, see ya’ later because as far as I’m concerned, she didn’t pay her bill. On the other side of that coin, if you’re going to cull like you need to, you’ve got to take care of your cows. They’re taking care of you; you’ve got to take care of them.

You can’t let them get down in body condition and expect them to breed back.”

The experiences and people that Cowen has come into contact with have shaped his overall management goals and the way he approaches daily challenges. He said the internship he had at R.A. Brown Ranch gave him a new perspective on several things.

The invaluable experience he had there could not be bought. In turn, he feels compelled to provide similar experiences to others.

“I think we’ve had nine interns so far,” Cowen said. “I got so much out of my internship. I went there for three months, stayed for nine. I felt like that was the best thing I could offer for anybody coming behind

me. It’s exposure to a different part of the industry. Most of our interns come from Florida. We had one from Kansas State. We have our first intern coming from ABAC (Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Ga.) in April.”

The management of the Williamson Ranch takes a group of talented people. Cowen’s father handles the cattle marketing and office work on all the Williamson ranches. He assists the crew at the Benjamin ranch when it comes time to process, sort and ship cattle. He also oversees the ranches’ grazing (continued on page 26)

Management of Williamson Ranch takes a group of talented people. At right, Cowen’s father, Jim, handles the cattle marketing and office work for all the Williamson Ranches as well as assists with work around the ranch in Benjamin. Joe Aylor, pictured below and with Cowen in the bottom-right picture is responsible for the cow/ calf operations in Benjamin as well as assisting with the stocker operations.

At left, Cowen doctors a sick yearling.

FRONTLINE Beef Producer 25

FACES OF THE

INDUSTRY (continued from page 25) interests in New Mexico.

“Dad, as far as I’m concerned, is the marketing guru,” Cowen said.

“We work together well. We try not to step on each other’s toes. If I have a question, the first thing I do is pick up a phone and say, ‘Hey, you have an opinion on this?’”

Cowen is quick to point out that it is a total team effort to get the work done.

“Another thing that is vital here is good help. They deserve lots of credit. They work hard. Those guys take care of me and the ranch. Every time I get the opportunity, I’m going to take care of them. I like guys that ride for the brand. If you don’t like this lifestyle, you can’t do this,

because it’s hard work. You’ve got to want it.”

Jed Gray from nearby Throckmorton, Texas, manages the day-to-day activities on the Florida ranch as well as overseeing delivery of purchased calves at ranches throughout Florida. Florida native Joe Aylor is responsible for the cowcalf operation in Benjamin as well as assisting with the stocker operations.

In the end, the Williamson Ranch prides themselves on dealing with quality people and being an operation that is respected in the industry.

“I don’t care if we top the market selling calves. I want to produce a desirable product,” Cowen said. “I want repeat customers who say, ‘We

bought your feeder yearlings; we want to keep buying them.’”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Ben Spitzer grew up in the cattle business with his family involvement going back several generations and has included both commercial cattle and registered cattle of several breeds. His family has been in the Brangus seedstock business since 1982.

Spitzer served as Communications/Member Services Director for the Red Angus Association of America (RAAA ) in Denton, TX. Prior to joining the staff at IBBA, he managed a registered Brangus operation in Georgia.

Ben was a founding member of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) Young Producers Council (YPC) and served as the YPC delegate to the NCBA Membership Committee. He served as Chair of YPC in 2010 and in an advisory role to YPC as Immediate Past Chair in 2011. He remains an active member of NCBA and Texas and Southwestern Cattleraisers Association (TSCRA).

As Marketing Programs Director, he oversees IBBA’s Commercial Marketing Programs as well as advertising and promotion of the Brangus breed.

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