Article Highlight
Value-Added Premiums $50 Per Head, Data Show
Weaned calves are worth an average of about $50 per head more than their unweaned herd mates. That’s according to new data compiled from 393,600 calves sold through Superior Livestock Auction’s summer 2020 video sales.
The data analysis on vaccinated and weaned calves sold by Superior Livestock Auction (SLA) is an ongoing research project under the direction of Ken Odde, professor and former head of the Department of Animal Sciences at Kansas State University. To date, the project has collected data on over 25 million head of cattle.
IGS BULL SESSION RECORDINGS
Watch the July session recording here.
Watch the June session recording here
STAYABILITY EPD. DOES IT WORK?
Daughters sired by bulls in the top 25 percent for stayability were over twice as likely to remain in the herd as six-year-old cows and averaged almost two more calves in their lifetime compared to daughters sired by bulls in the bottom 25 percent for stayability EPDs.
The financial success of cow-calf operations depend on a cow’s ability to remain in the herd long enough to recoup the cost of heifer development and cow maintenance. In order to achieve this, a heifer needs to calve as a 2-year-old and produce a calf each subsequent year. Stayability EPD was developed to predict this reproductive success (or failure) and is defined as a cow’s ability to remain in the herd to a specific endpoint, with the assumption that open cows are culled. The typical endpoint is defined at six years of age. Stayability has an economic influence on a cow herd through female reproduction, increased calves per cow, and increased calf performance given mature cows on average wean heavier calves. Continue reading.
A global collaboration of major beef breed associations seeks to empower commercial cattlemen with genetic insight and more powerful tools for better breeding decisions.
Modern-day ranching requires more information to produce better animals, and International Genetic Solutions is propelling the effort across multiple breeds. The aim is to provide more accurate selection tools that allow for head-to-head comparisons and maximum profitability — regardless of breed. “Tying all of that information together adds a lot of value to commercial and seedstock producers because it provides a set of EPDs that are comparable across breeds without doing a bunch of extra math to figure out how they compare,” says Bob Weaber, Kansas State University Extension Specialist. Continue reading.
Working Ranch Half Time SHOW
Does collecting data on the commercial cowherd really pay off? One rancher has been doing it for over 30 years!!! Come on along crew!!
"We put our data into the IGS database, so yes, we have genomically enhanced EPDs on every animal in the herd".
"I have better genetics. How do I get someone to pay me a premium for my calves?"
Find out what John Grande has to say on the Working Ranch Half Time Show.
Data Driven Value
FPC Demonstration
Chip Kemp Featured on Superior Sunrise
IGS PARTNERS WITH NEOGEN GENOMICS
Data Sharing for the Good of an Industry
Matt Spangler of the University of Nebraska says the future of the beef business will depend on information sharing.
About IGS
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History
In 2010, the American Simmental Association and the Red Angus Association of America coalesced aroun ...
IGS Multi-breed Genetic Evaluation Powered by BOLT
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Nobody Shares Like IGS
Through pooling information, the International Genetic Solutions offers better selection tools to seedstock breeders and the beef industry. By Jackie Atkins, Ph.D Early in life, we are taught to share. Share with our siblings, share with our classmates, share with our neighbors. The fact that we have to learn this behavior is telling — it’s not instinctive. It’s human nature to protect what is “ours” and become territorial to ensure we have what we need to survive and thrive; however, we have seen how we all can do better by working together, sharing resources, and maybe most importantly, sharing ideas. This philosophy of comradery and collaboration is at the heart of Internationa ...
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- IGS Carcass EPD Updates
- BEEF BREED ORGANIZATIONS UNITE TO STRENGTHEN INDUSTRY
- Updates to Growth Trait Predictions
- IGS PARTNERS WITH NEOGEN
- Check Out What We Have Done So Far
- IGS and the Pursuit of Better Cattle
- IGS Releases Multi-breed Genetic Evaluation powered by BOLT
- FAQs: IGS Multi-breed Genetic Evaluation powered by BOLT
Feeder Profit Calculator (FPC)
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Stayability EPD. Does it Work?
By Drs. Randie Culbertson, ASA and IGS Lead Geneticist and Jackie Atkins, Director of Science and Education | Daughters sired by bulls in the top 25 percent for stayability were over twice as likely to remain in the herd as six-year-old cows and averaged almost two more calves in their lifetime compared to daughters sired by bulls in the bottom 25 percent for stayability EPDs. The financial success of cow-calf operations depend on a cow’s ability to remain in the herd long enough to recoup the cost of heifer development and cow maintenance. In order to achieve this, a heifer ne ...
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- IGS Feeder Profit Calculator ™ Highlights Profit, Reduces Risk
- IMI Global and International Genetic Solutions (IGS) Partner to Offer New Service to Beef Producers
- Watch the IGS Feeder Profit Calculator Webinar Sessions
- Pathway to Profit Step inside the IGS Feeder Profit Calculator™
- International Genetic Solutions Feeder Profit Calculator
IGS Around the Web
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Improving beef calf value through use of the IGS Feeder Profit Calculator
Phil Durst, MSU Extension - April 7, 2021 | Now there is a tool that can objectively determine value, not only helping producers understand what buyers are willing to pay for, but also how to improve calf value. With the new calf crop on the ground, a cow-calf producer often looks over them with pride, thinking about their potential to be great beef animals. Indeed, these new calves are the beginning of the product that the producer will sell and the promise of the profits to come. Pride and hope are mixed in the sight of calves following their mothers across the pasture. Do feedlot operators share the same level of hope and expectation that the cow-calf farmer has? Each person ...
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- Association News: To thrive, breed associations must cooperate
- NEOGEN Launches Enhanced Igenity® Beef Genomic Profile
- Why Red Angus is Part of International Genetic Solutions
- International Genetic Solutions Welcomes Newest Partner
- Management Perspectives: Use of Beef Semen Growing in Dairy Operations
- ASA's Wade Shafer Discusses IGS on FARM TALK SEGMENT 5 - Agri News 890
- Management Perspectives: No hype: EPDs work
- The IGS Feeder Profit Calculator (FPC)
- Upping the Accuracy With Single-step Genetic Evaluation
- Recent Developments in Genetic Testing and Genomic Testing
- Bob Weaber from KState and Larry Kuehn from US MARC