About Us
Braunvieh and Braunvieh/Angus Hybrids can be seen grazing the rolling hills of McBee Cattle Company in Fayette, Mo. Ron and Teri McBee own and operate 2100 acres of fescue pasture and have been in some form of the beef production business since 1974. Around 1990 we were looking for a breed of cattle that would increase milk production in our cows. We found it in Braunvieh and began breeding 200 commercial cows to Braunvieh bulls and also purchased a group of 1/2 blood bred females. After one calf crop we were very aware of the maternal attributes of the Braunvieh female.
We were able to work out a partnership arrangement with Ron Franken of Linn, Mo., who had purchased Braunvieh genetics in the early 1980’s. By developing and marketing Franken Farm’s calves in partnership after weaning, we were able to increase our numbers of top quality, good birth weight, high performing fullblood Braunvieh genetics.
After being pleasantly surprised that this new breed had alot more going for them than merely maternal traits, we became a seedstock producer again and the rest can be documented.
Rotational Grazing For Efficiency
Present day, our operation consists of 200 commercial cows, mostly Braunvieh/Angus hybrids and Braunvieh Influenced females. The seedstock herd is made up of 400 Fullblood, Purebred and McBeef Builder Hybrid females. Both the seedstock and commercial herds are managed in real-world conditions that are similar to our customers’ operations allowing for a more accurate comparison of how our bulls and heifers will perform on your place.
All of the pasture on the ranch is part of an intensive rotational grazing system in use year round. Our experience with Controlled Grazing in the 1980’s, Intensive Grazing in the early 1990’s, Management Intensive Grazing in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s and lately Mob Grazing gave us the foresight to put the main portion of the ranch into a 80-paddock system. Installing 7 miles of underground pipeline, 60 plus rubber tire water tanks and around 30 miles of electric fence including 500 plus gates with a central lane through the middle of the ranch making handling the cowherds a pretty efficient operation.
Our grazing system allows us to keep the cattle on a higher plane of nutrition while growing more grass and stockpiling fescue for winter grazing. In a normal year, around half of our cowherd receives no hay in the winter, none. This system enables us to more accurately forage test and measure our Braunvieh and Hybrid cattle in a real world environment of producing on forage.
Because of our specific philosophies on grass management and the production of beef cattle as well as the fact that we have alot of pastures to look at, we welcome visitors and like to give tours anytime.