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Tag: registered Angus bulls

California duo wins CAB seedstock award

 

by Laura Nelson

David Medeiros and David Dal Porto – “the Davids”– have more than a few similarities. The native Californians share cattle philosophies and even a bull sale venue. Most recently, they shared the Certified Angus Beef LLC (CAB) 2011 Seedstock Commitment to Excellence Award at the brand’s annual conference in Sunriver, Ore., Sept. 20-22.

They each grew up showing cattle in the northern San Joaquin Valley, maintaining small cowherds. Those were put on hold when Medeiros headed to Cal Poly and Dal Porto to Chico State, where their paths continued to cross in livestock judging.

“They were real rebels… er, rivals back then,” Dal Porto’s wife Jeanene teases.

After college, their black herds seemed a bit rebellious. Rancho Casino and Dal Porto Livestock were among the few locals that focused on Angus. But they stuck with it, building those show herds up with functional, seedstock genetics.

“They both had a great customer base, but both realized at about the same time that they needed to do business differently,” Medeiros’ wife Carol says.

In the late ’70s, the men saw an opportunity that led to eventual collaboration: Commercial cattlemen were looking to Angus for balance and calving ease in replacement heifers.

“We wanted to offer a large number of bulls that had low birth-weight EPDs [expected progeny differences], and several generations of it,” Dal Porto says.

Nearly year-round forage availability means California cattlemen expect unassisted performance in the pasture, and that includes calving season.

“We believe you should never have to pull a calf,” Medeiros said. Stacked generations and strict culling deliver on that.

“We have a short breeding season, so if they don’t breed we cull them,” Dal Porto says. “There are no second chances.”

Cows from their bulls also have to calve unassisted and excel in udder quality, mothering ability and disposition.

End-product performance is a factor, too. “There are enough cattle out there that we can identify and stack generations that have the lower birth weight, wean a good-sized calf, and add some carcass to go along with it,” says Medeiros.

Their common maternal base established, the partners turn to serving diverse customers who need individual attention.

“We want to work with our customers, not just to make sure they get the right bull, but after that, too,” Dal Porto says.

Age-and-source verification (ASV), AngusSource® enrollment and compliance with non-hormone treated cattle (NHTC) protocol—those acronyms denote extra dollars for their customers.

Some, like John Ginochio of Walnut Creek, Calif., have taken the plunge into finishing cattle. Medeiros and Dal Porto often play the catalyst in developing relationships between feeder and customer, or even go in on partial ownership of calves at Beller Feedlot, Lindsay, Neb., which nominated them for the CAB award.

Ginochio uses data from Beller and CAB to improve his herd, and began building his reputation by noting his bull source 10 years ago.

“People know these aren’t just black cattle, and they aren’t just great Angus cattle,” he says.

Other Dal Porto Livestock and Rancho Casino customers have been “name branding” their calves at auction as well, often paired with another value-adding brand.

“There’s a reason people put ‘CAB-candidates’ next to our cattle,” Medeiros says. Dal Porto chimes in, “Everyone knows what that stands for, and people pay more for those.”

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Stacking the odds with AI

By Miranda Reiman

Cattlemen know genetic change is a slow process, especially when compared to other species.

That should be enough motivation to think about stacking genetics, says Aaron Arnett, Select Sires vice president. Bull selection is only half the equation.

“Even the best set of sires mated to a group of mongrelized cows will not produce calves that hit the high-quality targets with any consistency,” he says.

Missouri’s Show-Me Select® program provides a test case. After all, its main focus is on using timed artificial insemination (TAI) to produce predictable females. After more than a decade, that has translated into an elite reputation as the go-to source of top-notch replacement heifers.

When the right sires are chosen, the results are just as outstanding in the feedyard and on the rail.

The Show-Me steer mates are setting quality records, one recent load making the news with 86.8% Certified Angus Beef ® (CAB®) and CAB Prime acceptance.

“We’re helping producers put together these puzzle pieces,” says David Patterson, University of Missouri animal scientist who spearheaded the original program. “Timed AI is only the first step, because a wrong sire choice means they’re just breeding cows, not adding measureable value.”

In the university’s straightbred commercial Angus herd, they’re tracking that monetary incentive. When pasture-bred calves are breaking even, progeny of high-accuracy AI sires are making $60-per-head profit.

Patterson says that’s a result of pairing those value-added females with high-accuracy sires known for calving ease, marbling and carcass weight.

“Everybody knows inputs have increased remarkably, relative to selling commodity calves,” he says. “We have to figure out how to get more out of each calf crop we’re producing.”

Straightbreeding may be the easiest way to do that, but those practicing it need a specific target, Patterson says. Otherwise they may be giving up the heterosis benefits of crossbreeding without the tradeoff in high-quality beef premiums.

“Nothing is better for consistent, highly predictable outcomes than a cowherd with pedigrees stacked for a desired trait or combination of traits,” Arnett says. “When proven AI sires are mated in such a herd, the results will be impressive, worth retaining ownership and selling those calves on the grid.”

That’s more difficult to accomplish with crossbreeding, which Arnett still advocates in most cases.

Patterson points out one potential downfall, however, even with high-accuracy Angus calving-ease genetics on Continental-cross heifers: “Birth weight in the calves from those heifers becomes a complete wild card—for better or worse, heterosis begins at conception.”

If producers are looking to set an end-product goal, Patterson has one in mind.              

“The Certified Angus Beef program sold 775 million pounds of product this year and will need a billion pounds by the year 2020. That’s 3.5 million cattle; that’s an opportunity for those who can meet the demand,” he says.

Who’s who in Angus excellence?

Producer nominations wanted for national award

by Miranda Reiman

Most cattlemen are in business to make a profit. Many also think about how they fit into the total beef industry picture and can help grow beef demand.

But only a few build relationships and use teamwork to bring the best beef possible to consumers here and abroad. Of those elite producers, fewer still rise to national recognition from Certified Angus Beef LLC (CAB).

Each year, the company’s supply development team solicits nominations for two Annual Conference awards. These aim to honor producers for an enduring commitment to finding and multiplying superior Angus genetics that enhance carcass traits within their herds.

“We celebrate those moments when producers excel and show the way for others,” says Larry Corah, CAB vice president. “So every year, we recognize one commercial and one seedstock producer who use every means in striving toward the ideal, from genetic selection to coordinated management and marketing. These shining examples do things the right way, not always the least expensive, easiest or fastest.”

Since 1992, only 34 producers have received the aptly named Commitment to Excellence Award.

Eligible candidates must have a record of measuring genetic and management criteria, and acting upon the information to better drive the supply of Certified Angus Beef ® (CAB®) brand product. Additional consideration is given to producers who have been directly involved with CAB in its various programs and licensed feedlots over the years.

“We’re encouraging cattlemen to nominate those they work with, be it their genetic suppliers or their bull-buying customers,” Corah says.

Nominations, due May 1, can include detail on anything deemed relevant. They should contain the producer name and contact information, type and size of operation, number of years postweaning data has been gathered, years linked to nominator’s operation, and years involved with any specified CAB projects.

Winners will be selected and contacted, along with nominators, by June 1. CAB will produce feature stories about the individuals, who will receive an expense-paid trip to the company’s annual conference in Scottsdale, Ariz., Sept. 17 to 19.

To see a list of past winners and submit nominations, visit https://cabcattle.com/producers/awards.php, contact Marilyn Conley at 800-225-2333 or email MConley@certifiedangusbeef.com.