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News Update

January 30, 2013

Igenity and AGI Announce Enhanced
Value to Breed-specific DNA Profile

Igenity®, a Neogen Corp. Co., and Angus Genetics Inc. (AGI) announce a significant cost reduction to the Igenity Profile for Angus, a leading DNA profile for registered-Angus cattle producers in the industry.

The Igenity Profile for Angus is now available to American Angus Association (AAA) members and clients at a new rate of $47 per test. Additionally, AGI, a subsidiary of AAA, is offering members the opportunity to combine the Igenity Profile for Angus with SNP-based parentage at a new price of $59.

“Due to increases in laboratory efficiencies, advances in genomic technology, and upcoming new products, Neogen is pleased to provide additional economic value to American Angus Association members,” says Jason Lilly, vice president of corporate development for Neogen. “This price adjustment provides Angus seedstock breeders with a cost-effective, high-value alternative for genomic prediction plus parentage.”

AGI and Neogen have collaborated in the development and implementation of genomic technology for the benefit of Angus breeders.

Genomic-enhanced expected progeny differences (GE EPDs), generated by AGI, were launched for Angus cattle in September 2009 incorporating the first Igenity Profile results.

“From the first version of the comprehensive Igenity Profile, to the upgrade to the Igenity Profile for Angus launched in January 2010, as well as the industry-leading adoption of SNP parentage for breed registration in 2010, AGI and Igenity have partnered in the development of novel technology for the benefit of the Angus breed,” says Bill Bowman, AGI president and Association chief operating officer. “With this recent announcement, AGI, through its relationship with Neogen, GeneSeek, and Igenity, is able to deliver the proven power of the Igenity Profile for Angus, with or without SNP parentage, at a tremendous value.”

During the past five years, it has been exciting to work with AGI in the delivery of genomic technologies, explains Lilly. “The recent price adjustment for the widely-adopted Igenity Profile for Angus represents our commitment to provide the best products — and value — to AGI customers. Today, Angus members have even more reason to harness the power of the Igenity Profile to advance their breeding objectives. Looking forward, we are also excited to be working with AGI on the development of new tools for Angus producers based on the GeneSeek® Genomic Profiler Bovine HDTM.”

U.S. Producers to Benefit from New Japan Beef Trade Rules

The United States and Japan officially sealed an agreement this week that will allow exports of U.S. beef from cattle less than 30 months of age to enter that Asian market starting Feb. 1. The agreement was a long time in the making and its positive influence on U.S. beef markets could mean more than an immediate increase in trade volume with Japan, according to the American

Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF).

The true bonus could be the fact that an influx of U.S. beef could lower consumer prices in Japan, and, as a result, lead to higher consumption levels in that nation, according to AFBF economist Veronica Nigh.

The announcement that Japan will begin to import U.S. beef from cattle 30 months of age and less will take effect on Friday (Feb. 1), Nigh said. The initial rules, imposed by Japan in 2005, permitted U.S. beef imports only from cattle up to 20 months old, after a total ban in 2003 that followed an outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).

“Japan’s imports of U.S. beef plunged by 60% to some 120,000 metric tons from 2001 to 2011,” Nigh said. “Australian beef producers were the main beneficiaries in an import market worth more than $2 billion.”

Now that could all change. Late last year, Japan’s food safety organization helped pave the way for this week’s announcement by reporting that the risk from importing beef from cattle aged 30 months or younger from the United States, Canada, France and the Netherlands would be negligible to human health. The Japanese government has since hosted a series of public consultations and bilateral talks on how the new safety requirements would be met in the supplying countries.

For more information and the full release, click here.

Grass Management for Livestock Will be Feb. 7 Webinar Topic

Managing livestock to be productive on grass with minimal inputs will be the focus of a Feb. 7 webinar hosted by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service.

“How grass grows will be explained in simple terms so producers can understand how growth can be optimized on every acre,” said presenter Jason Hohlt, USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) rangeland management specialist in Kingsville.

Hohlt works in a 20-county area south of San Antonio assisting field offices and private landowners as a technical specialist for livestock grazing and other land management issues. He also leads and coordinates outreach and education efforts for the Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative in South Texas.

During the webinar, he will present the principles of range management, which can help grass managers develop their grazing plan in any location under any weather pattern.

“Managers will learn how to be the last ranch in the drought and the first ranch out of the drought,” he said.

Hohlt also will discuss the nuts and bolts of “planned grazing,” where viewers can learn how simple, economical opportunities can be found to manage grazing on every property and that can lead

to healthy land and a healthy business, he said.

For more information and the full press release, click here.

UK Researchers Study the Effects of Grazing Wheat in Winter

Extending the grazing season is good for herd health and is cost effective, but it is difficult to do in the winter when very few grasses are growing. University of Kentucky (UK) College of Agriculture researchers are studying the effects of cattle grazing wheat that will later be harvested for grain.

“In the cattle business, we say any day grazing is a good day, and beef cattle wintering costs are so high,” said Roy Burris, UK extension beef specialist. “If cattle can graze the wheat, it will be good for the cattle and good for producers’ pocketbooks.”

Burris has seen producers of both commodities in other states graze cattle on wheat in the winter and believes Kentucky producers can do it. Kentucky producers have used wheat in their grazing systems as a feed source in the fall and early spring. He asked UK soil extension specialist Edwin Ritchey to help him conduct the study.

Ritchey and Burris conducted a preliminary trial during the winter of 2011-2012. Cattle grazed on 19 acres of wheat from Dec. 12 to March 16 at the UK Research and Education Center. The researchers also had a two-acre, tall fescue pasture adjacent to the wheat field so the cattle could be moved during the weekends and during wet weather to prevent compaction and yield damage. They removed cattle from the field in February to help maintain grain yields.

The results from the preliminary study were promising. The average daily gain of the 24 young beef heifers was nearly 1 pound per day. Using the current cattle prices, the researchers estimated they made $140 per acre. The wheat yield decreased by 7 bushels per acre compared to a non-grazed area, which is estimated to be a $50-per-acre loss. When these two numbers are considered, researchers estimate they made $90 per acre. They also did not feed any hay to these cattle.

For more information and the full release, click here.

Ohio State to Host Organic Animal Health Symposium March 18

Two Ohio State University programs will host an Organic Animal Health Symposium March 18 in Columbus.

The event’s focus will be on the health of livestock in organic farming systems. Included will be discussions of practices and of needs in future research and education.

Among the speakers will be university faculty and experts from the organic industry.

The event takes place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Blackwell Inn and Conference Center, 2110 Tuttle Park Place, on Ohio State’s campus in Columbus.

Admission is free and open to anyone interested in organic farming and livestock health, including scientists, Extension professionals, veterinary practitioners, farmers and consumers. Lunch is included. Advance registration is required by March 11 due to limited space.

Participants should register by clicking here.

The speakers will include:

For more information, contact Schuenemann at schuenemann.5@osu.edu or 614-292-6924; or Jeff Workman at workman.45@osu.edu or 614-292-9453.

Grass Finishing Fall Born Calves

Many grass finish beef operations utilize a spring calving season and market the finished animals coming off grass at 18-21 months of age. This system requires forages that are of excellent quality to obtain weight gain through the winter feeding period and the subsequent grazing season. Finishing beef cattle on grass that are born during the fall months allows cattle to grow slower, yield higher dressing percentages, achieve higher quality grades and receive a high percentage of total feed coming from grazing forages, as opposed to the mechanically harvested winter feed supply.

Feeding cattle to USDA Choice quality grade has been a standard of acceptability in the cattle feeding business. Increasing the age of cattle from 18 to 24 months of age at harvest increases the chance of cattle grading Choice if fed to the same fat endpoint. As cattle are fed to older ages, muscle accretion decreases and fat deposition increases. Feeding fall-born calves to 24 months of age has the potential of resulting in cattle reaching a higher fat endpoint and is positively correlated with cattle yielding higher dressing percentages.

Feeding cattle to 24 months on grass allows producers to grow them at a slower growth rate (1.75 pounds per day) on a slightly lower plane of nutrition as opposed to cattle harvested at 18 months (2.2 pounds per day). Feeding cattle for a longer time period does result in a longer-term investment on money and will add interest cost. Also, the winter feeding period of fall-born calves as yearlings will require about 10%-15% more stored feed than that of the spring-born calves. Feeding cattle to 24 months of age will require more total forage to be consumed as opposed to feeding cattle for 18 months; however, a higher percentage of the forage will come from grazing, rather than harvested feed for winter.

For more information and the full release, click here.

 

 
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