News Update
February 12, 2015
Command Your Angus Future
Many have enjoyed success in the Angus business, especially in the last few years. Yet many may also feel a greater need to guide their operations and help lead others into a well-planned future that encompasses the entire beef supply chain.
That’s why the American Angus Association created Beef Leaders Institute (BLI) for its 25- to 45-year-old members eight years ago. Participants at the June 22-26 BLI will gain a great understanding of how to use Association resources and strengthen their leadership and planning skills to help ensure future success.
“This is an impactful way to bring Angus breeders together to learn about their larger role in the beef cattle industry,” says Jaclyn Upperman, Association director of events and education. “We hope they leave the conference with a better understanding of how quality genetics improve the marketplace.”
The program is designed to make that happen, bringing Angus producers together in Saint Joseph, Mo., for informative sessions, followed by a three-day tour across several industry segments. That includes more than a day in the Wooster, Ohio, area with the Certified Angus Beef® (CAB®) brand for some hands-on learning about how the member-owned brand adds value to Angus cattle.
Along the way, BLI participants will tour a feedlot, beef harvesting and packing facility, fabricator, retailer and other industry segments, starting with and pertaining to the American Angus Association.
Scores of Angus producers have found great value in the experience since 2008.
Dale Vitt, Fairview, Mont., who participated last year, says BLI stands out for the educational opportunity “to see other segments of the industry we don’t normally get to see.” He says one result is a fact-based assurance for customers that “the beef industry does put out a safe product, and I can be a better advocate.”
The Association provides transportation, lodging, meals and materials during BLI. Attendees will be responsible for round-trip transportation between their home and either Kansas City or Saint Joseph, Mo.
To apply, click here or contact the American Angus Association at 816-383-5100. Information can also be found on www.angus.org.
NCBA to Host Bull Selection Webinar
National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) has announced the next in its continuing series of educational webinars. The upcoming session, scheduled for Feb. 19, 2015, at 6:00 p.m. MST, focuses on understanding bull selection tools and the use of selection indexes. This timely topic is useful to anyone looking to add a bull to their herd this spring utilizing the latest genome-based selection tools.
Panelists for the webinar include Dan Moser, president of Angus Genetics Inc., and director of performance programs for the American Angus Association; Jack Ward, COO and director of breed improvement for the American Hereford Association; and Wade Shafer, CEO of the American Simmental Association.
These three industry-leading breed association experts have a background in the commercial and seedstock cattle industries, as well as a thorough understanding of the latest advancements in the use of genomically-enhanced expected progeny differences (GE-EPDs) and other progeny selection tools.
This free NCBA producer education webinar is open to all, but space is limited. Register today at www.beefusa.org/cattlemenswebinarseries.
For additional information, contact Josh White, executive director of producer education at jwhite@beef.org.
AGI Seeking Intern Candidates
Angus Genetics Inc. (AGI) is a wholly owned subsidiary of the American Angus Association. Our mission is to provide services to the beef industry with regard to the genetic evaluation of traits of economic importance.
AGI develops and promotes technology for use by the beef industry, including DNA technology, and has developed genomic-enhanced EPDs for the Angus breed that are updated on a weekly basis. AGI also conducts research, develops, and uses new science and technology to benefit all beef producers. In addition, AGI provides client-specific genetic evaluation services to various breed organizations in the United States and Canada.
Applicants of the AGI internship program should be college juniors or seniors, studying animal science, ag communications or a related field with an interest in genetics applied to beef cattle production and/or animal breeding. Graduate students will also be considered. Candidates should be detail-oriented, have strong communications skills and be able to work well with all types of personnel.
The duration of the internship is anticipated to be mid-May through mid-August, depending on the availability of the selected intern.
The intern’s primary focus will be on the MaternalPlus® program. MaternalPlus is a voluntary, inventory-based reporting program aimed at gathering reproductive trait data. The ultimate goal is to use the data gathered through this program to develop selection tools focused on reproduction and longevity. Activities associated with this internship will include (but are not limited to): the development of a breeder guide for the program; writing a “Tips and Tricks” column for the Angus Journal; development of a comprehensive FAQ for use on www.anguslogin.org and outreach and education opportunities with breeders; and cross-team interaction with marketing, communications and IS staff.
Submit applications — including cover letter, résumé and references — to Tonya Amen, genetic service director, at Angus Genetics Inc., 3201 Frederick Ave., Saint Joseph, MO 64506 or tamen@angus.org by March 15. For more information, contact AGI staff at 816-383-5100.
Western National Deadlines Approaching
Mark your calendars for April 15-19 for the 63rd annual Western National Angus Futurity (WNAF) and 42nd Western Regional Junior Angus Show. Events will be at the Reno Livestock Events Center. The Grand Sierra Resort and Casino will serve as the headquarters hotel.
Cattle must be checked in by noon Friday, April 17. Randy Daniel, Colbert, Ga., will judge the junior show Saturday. Jack Ward of Cameron, Mo., will evaluate the WNAF open classes Sunday. Other activities include the Western States queen competition, junior showmanship contest, educational program, junior social, WNAF Committee meeting, and both board and general membership meetings of the Western States Angus Association.
Please note that there are two separate entry processes for the show, one for the junior show and one for the open show:
- Entries for the junior show should be made through the National Junior Angus Association and may be submitted online at www.angus.org/njaa. Click on the “Shows” link for online entry forms. The absolute deadline for junior show entries is March 2.
- Entries for the open show (including juniors showing cattle in the open show) must be made through an online system at www.wnaf.org, a website created for the show. The open show deadline is midnight, March 15. Substitutions will not be allowed after March 22. For additional entry information, send inquiries to entryinfo@wnaf.org or call 509-750-2185.
Additional details are available on the website. For more information, contact Rod Wesselman, WNAF show manager, at PO Box 746, Moses Lake, WA 98837; info@wnaf.org; or 509-750-2185.
Water Limiting Factor to Corn Silage Quality
Minimizing yield losses while reducing groundwater usage is a continual goal for Texas A&M AgriLife Research scientists on the High Plains, where quantities of water from the Ogallala Aquifer are diminishing.
That was the goal of a 2014 study led by Wenwei Xu, AgriLife Research corn breeder in Lubbock, and Thomas Marek, AgriLife Research irrigation engineer in Amarillo, and contributed to by Texas Tech University graduate students Karl Brauer and Traci Bland, which showed the biggest factor in corn silage quality was water.
The objective of this study, supported by the USDA Ogallala Aquifer Program, is to determine if the brown midrib (BMR) trait affects water-use efficiency, as well as length of maturity and level of irrigation, Xu said.
Two BMR and four non-BMR corn hybrids with maturity of 100-110 days were grown under four different irrigation treatments in the northern Panhandle. Data were collected on the amount of irrigation, total plant biomass, moisture content at harvest, forage quality and other agronomic traits.
A separate grain trial was also conducted at Halfway, Texas, to compare water-use efficiency in hybrids with relative maturities of 100-110 days. Grain yield data were collected on six corn hybrids varying in maturity under four irrigation levels.
“In the Texas Panhandle, we’re on the southern end of the Ogallala Aquifer, and of course, the aquifer is drying up from south to north,” said Brauer during a presentation at the American Society of Agronomy-Crop Science Society of America-Soil Science Society of America international meeting in Long Beach, Calif.
Overall, the study showed that irrigating at 100% of evapotranspiration (ET) provided no yield or quality advantages over 75% ET irrigation, so essentially can be viewed as a “waste,” Brauer said.
In general, yields and quality both began crashing below irrigation levels of 75% ET, which is the measurement of total water utilized during crop development, he said.
“We determined we need to be irrigating at 75% of our past ET levels as estimated with the current model and finding hybrids that better tolerate stress,” Brauer said, adding this was from studies conducted by Xu and Marek over several years.
For more information, please view the full release here.
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