News Update

February 28, 2017

Finding Flavor, Incentivizing More

Life is not always heads or tails, black and white or pass-fail.

When it comes to beef, certain traits, like tenderness, are easier to quantify than others.

“Beef flavor is very complex. It’s not one attribute, but many, many flavor notes,” said Bridget Wasser, executive director of meat science for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA). “There are a lot of things that can go right and there are a lot of things that can potentially go wrong.”

Each consumer views it differently.

“We have to make sure we find a way to give it to everyone, all the time, and so consistency of the product comes into play,” Wasser said, during her Cattlemen’s College presentation earlier this month.

She told 2017 Cattle Industry Convention and NCBA Trade Show attendees the beef community has made marked improvements in tenderness over the past few decades, “so the good news is that it allows us to focus on some of these other eating attributes.”

— Adapted from a release by Miranda Reiman, Certified Angus Beef LLC.

Bull Management is a Key to Successful Breeding Seasons

Bull management before and during breeding season can improve producers’ chances for reproductive success, said a Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service expert.

Jason Banta, AgriLife Extension beef cattle specialist, Overton, said it’s important to make sure bulls are ready and in good condition heading into breeding season.

A body condition score of 5-6 is recommended before breeding season starts, he said.

“If they are too fat or too thin it can impact fertility,” he said.

Bulls also need to be on an appropriate vaccination program and treated for internal and external parasites, Banta said.

Four to eight weeks before breeding, consider having a veterinarian perform a breeding soundness exam on bulls, Banta said. The exam will determine if a bull is a satisfactory potential breeder. A semen sample will be collected to assess sperm motility and whether sperm morphology is good or shows defects.

Continue reading in the AgriLife news release online.

— Adapted from a release by Adam Russell, Texas AgriLife Communications.

Georgia to Host BIF Annual Meeting and Research Symposium

Registration is now open for the 2017 Beef Improvement Federation (BIF) Annual Meeting and Research Symposium. This year’s event will be May 31 to June 3 at the Athens Classic Center in Athens, Ga.

Early registration deadline is May 1. Attendees can save $100 by pre-registering. Online and pdf registration options are available at www.beefimprovement.org.

This year’s BIF symposium features two and a half days of educational programming and a full day of tours. The first morning’s general session — “The Current Value and Future Promise of Genomics for Beef Improvement” — will feature Keith Bertrand and Daniela Lourenco, University of Georgia; Tom Lawlor, Holstein Association USA; Matt Spangler, University of Nebraska; and Alison Van Eenennaam, University of California – Davis.

For more information, visit the Angus Journal Virtual Library calendar of upcoming events.

— Adapted from a release by the Beef Improvement Federation.

Chase Fritz Named NAAB Data Manager

The National Association of Animal Breeders (NAAB) is pleased to announce that Chase Fritz has been selected to fill the position of data manager for NAAB and began fulfilling his duties on Feb. 20, 2017.

Fritz will work with NAAB staff and industry stakeholders to coordinate and manage the Dairy and Beef Cross Reference database along with the associated reports and communications. He will also be responsible for data integrity and will interact with industry stakeholders including all aspects of the process from the point of data entry through the distribution of genetic evaluation information.

Fritz has industry experience with ABS Global where he worked as a lab technician and was involved in the implementation of their global database. Additionally, Fritz recently worked at the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory as a microbiologist and worked with their LIMS database.

For more information, view the NAAB news release online.

— Adapted from a release by the National Association of Animal Breeders.

Communications and Ag Education Leader
Honored as Distinguished Alumna

Kristina Boone, communications and agricultural education professor and department head for the Kansas State University (K-State) College of Agriculture, was among six distinguished alumni honored Monday, Feb. 20, by Texas Tech University’s College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources.

The Distinguished Alumni & Outstanding Young Alumni Awards were presented at Texas Tech’s McKenzie-Merket Alumni Center in Lubbock, Texas.

The awards honor Texas Tech graduates who have made significant contributions to society and whose accomplishments and careers have brought distinction to the college and to the professions associated with agriculture and natural resources.

Boone graduated cum laude from Texas Tech in 1986 with a bachelor’s of science degree in agricultural communication.

— Adapted from a release by Kris Boone, K-State Research & Extension News.

— Compiled by Paige Nelson, field editor, Angus Media.