Genetics

Tools available to help producers pick a high-performance sire + Videos

Beef Central, 06/07/2019

JUST as you can’t judge a book by its cover, neither can a beef producer judge a bull by looks alone.

When two sires look similar (they’re both from the same breed, both have the same weight and both are structurally sound), how does one tell which will produce the most fertile daughters or progeny with the best marbling?

The truth is, nobody can tell, by looks alone.

But that’s why producers have access to breeding values.

They allow stakeholders to see ‘under the hood’ and know, with a high degree of confidence, a sire’s genetic potential in their herd. It takes the guesswork out of picking a high-performing sire.

MLA has produced a series of short ‘pick the performer’ videos to demonstrate that looks, on their own, don’t tell the full story. Rather, a fuller and clearer picture can be built by incorporating breeding values into bull buying.

The ‘pick the performer’ videos are part of MLA’s new genetics hub (genetics.mla.com.au) which provides a one-stop-shop of tools and resources, aimed at demystifying genetics and breeding values.

Click the links below to access the ‘Pick the Performer’ video relevant to your region.

What have other tropical cattle producers gained from genetics?

In the video below, meet tropical cattle producer Russell Lethbridge. He shares his journey with breeding values and how they’ve accelerated the performance of his herd.

Russell and his wife Donna manage Werrington Cattle Co, a commercial tropical cattle operation, based north of Hughenden in North Queensland.

“Without using genetics to improve production results, the family business would have been put under extreme pressure to even exist,” Russell Lethbridge 

What have other temperate cattle producers gained from genetics?

Meet temperate cattle producer Andrew Carruthers. In the video below he shares his journey with breeding values and how they’ve accelerated the performance of his herd.

Andrew runs a commercial temperate cattle and prime lamb operation in NSW.

“The performance of our kg/ha has been outstanding. It’s a combination of genetics and also understanding our country and the way we manage our livestock,” he said.

 

Source: MLA

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Comments

  1. Paul D. Butler, 20/08/2019

    Sorry but you CAN select the right bulls to improve profitability……..IF you understand true profitability and know what to look for……………….

    http://profitableranching.com

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