ASA provides a wide array of services. Obviously, many of those are geared towards highlighting the profit potential and industry relevance of Simmental, SimAngusTM and other Simmental-influenced cattle. That is easily done, as no other breed type has experienced the radical improvement and selection pressure undertaken by Simmental breeders over the last two and half decades. Facts bare this out. Not hype and platitudes.
However, we’ve reached a time when the same valuable services that directly benefit breeders of Simmental genetics can be equally applied to seedstock producers of other breed types. And, uniquely, these services can now be accessed by serious commercial operations that are looking to benefit from serious genetic evaluation, genomic knowledge, lower-cost data collection services, and useful tools that directly identify successes and areas for improvement. This approach is the backbone of a collaborative effort by the name of International Genetic Solutions (IGS).
IGS has industry partners that are all committed more to the success of the commercial cow/calf operator than they are to perpetuating “the way it has always been.” Progressive, data-hungry commercial outfits and seedstock producers who are done with the drama and stagnate nature of their own breed association can reach out to discuss their alternatives. They can also visit IGS online.
How have technology improvements advanced this effort?
A modern, relevant breed association has one core mission—to provide the most predictable and reliable genetic awareness possible for the commercial producer. If anything gets in the way of that focus, the association—and ultimately, its membership—is in serious trouble of obsolescence. As such, the technology used needs to further this mission. ASA and IGS are responsible for the largest beef genetic evaluation on the planet. This evaluation provides directly comparable EPDs across all cattle within the evaluation. It gives a producer the ability to directly compare the weaning weight EPD of a bull in one association with a bull in another IGS association. No minutiae math is necessary to confidently compare those two bulls.
To do this well requires: 1) a membership committed to robust and thorough phenotypic and genotypic data reporting, 2) the most competent and comprehensive science team in the business, 3) a willingness to vet and implement the best new technology as it comes along, 4) the financial wherewithal to incentivize aggressive data collection and 5) the understanding that no organization can go it alone and thus the desire to collaborate with like-minded organizations with the same goal of bettering the situation of the commercial operator and their family. ASA, IGS and the IGS partners humbly embrace each of those five goals.
What traits make Simmental popular with today’s progressive beef producers?
Simmental has always been known for its ability to enhance red meat yield in terminal cattle. However, the last 25 years has seen a fundamental change in the Simmental population. Breeders moved the population in a remarkably short period of time to one of more industry relevance and connectivity. How far has Simmental come?
Superior Livestock Auctions, the largest single marketer of U.S. feeder calves, saw that SimAngus-sired calves brought more dollars per head than any calves in 2020. The Tri-County Steer Futurity in Iowa, a nationally respected carcass futurity, shows that packers paid more for Simmental and SimAngus-sired carcasses than any other breed type. Up to $34/carcass more. Our genetic evaluation proves these things as well. But, the recognition by industry dollars is a huge validation of the power of SimGenetics.
In addition, our data, along with data from the USDA Meat Animal Research and the American Angus Association, show that Simmental-influenced females are now significantly smaller and more moderate than their purebred Angus counterparts. This is not an observation of “good” or “bad,” but rather an observation that the commercial sector needs multiple genetic sources that can help build a low-maintenance, profitable cow herd, while continuing to answer the industry’s demand for terminal merit.
All of this assumes that cow-calf producers once again embrace the truth that a straight-bred commercial herd serves little to no purpose in the modern beef business. We need to embrace the fact that no single breed or breed type is the whole answer. Responsible crossbreeding and heterosis are key to profitability for all sectors. Hence, Simmental breeders recognize that seedstock cattle of different breed compositions allow options and flexibility to meet a commercial program’s needs. — ASA
