per head , spread out over the pen , Wulf says . Again , just a slight improvement in feed efficiency can make that less painful .
What about carcass premiums ? “ You look at cattle with a half-pound difference in feed efficiency , it ’ s probably a $ 75 per head difference ,” Wulf says . “ The likelihood of you picking up a $ 75 premium on an entire pen of cattle on a carcass grid , that ’ s tough .”
And you have to factor in how many YG 4s and 5s are in the pen , Jim says . “ You can indeed get into a scenario where you ’ ve increased carcass grade , but you haven ’ t gotten anywhere because your 4s and 5s have come up too much . And the discount on those cattle can be severe .”
Genetics FOR BOTH
“ As market signals have been passed through the pricing system for commercial cattle , seedstock producers have focused on improving marbling and accelerated that trait improvement over the past five years ,” says Dan Hunt of Oxford , Neb ., a cattle feeder , seedstock producer and president of the North American Limousin Foundation ( NALF ).
Genomic marker panel updates by International Genetic Solutions ( IGS ), a multi-breed genetics effort which Limousin is a part , along with updated US- MARC data , document the significant improvement in marbling characteristics for both Limousin and Lim-Flex cattle , Hunt adds .
“ Genomic testing , breeder focus and the heritability of carcass traits have enabled all of us as seedstock producers to make rapid genetic gain in carcass quality ,” he says . “ In fact , the marbling EPD value in our breed reflects an improvement of 0.25 to 0.35 for both Limousin and Lim-Flex , making them very comparable to other Continental breeds .”
Can you have feeder cattle that convert feed at better-than-average gain and still produce a Choice or better carcass ? The short answer is yes .
If you look at the U . S . Meat Animal Research Center ( USMARC ) data and data from Europe , where researchers have been collecting individual animal feeding data for years , Continental breeds have generally shown better carcass-adjusted feed conversion than British breeds , Jim says . “ And amongst the Continentals , Limousin cattle consistently show better feed efficiency , mainly because the dressing percentage is higher .”
In other words , while two breeds may be similar in terms of feed intake to live weight gain , those differences become wider when you analyze feed intake to carcass weight gain — and carcass weight is what most feeders get paid for on value-based grids .
“ So , we ’ ve taken a breed that as a whole is inherently more efficient , and we ’ re making even more improvements there ,” Wulf says . “ And we ’ re doing it in balance with paying attention to the carcass traits that drive value , and that ’ s quality grade . So , we have cattle now that convert pretty efficiently and they hang up a desirable carcass .”
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What ’ s more , Limousin and Lim-Flex cattle have been able to achieve this improvement while still maintaining a significant lead on ribeye and backfat EPDs . “ That gives us actual retail and cutability advantages ,” Hunt says .
So yes , Wulf says , the genetics exist to produce high grading carcasses and do it efficiently . And that ’ s a win-win , he says , because it lowers cost of production while meeting consumer expectations .
“ It ’ s always good if we pull cost of production out of the system . On top of that , if we get better resource utilization , it lowers our carbon footprint . Given the era we ’ re living in , where cattle are in the crosshairs of being part of climate change and we want to be part of the solution , that ’ s a good story to tell .”
“ Using a Continental breed such as Limousin or Lim-Flex on a British-based cow herd gives you the best of both worlds – the maximum combination of a balance between gain , feed efficiency and carcass quality .”
- Dr . Kee Jim