LIMOUSIN TODAY | Page 21

Q & A With the President Gary Fuchs Why did you choose the Limousin breed? My grandfather started breeding Limousin cattle in about 1970. He gave me the opportunity to start with the breed when I graduated from college. What are the challenges and opportunities facing Limousin today? What advice would you give to those getting into the Limousin breed? I would encourage a new breeder to study the market in their area to understand which part of our breed to become involved with. I would advise someone to purchase the best cattle they can afford with great awareness to the EPD profile of the animals. Our opportunity is that we are in an ideal position as a beef producing breed that can produce adequate carcass quality to meet consumer demands. Our challenge is to educate breeders about our opportunity and teach them to use produce and use information that can be developed through Genomically Enhanced EPD’s and other genetic testing. Gary’s final thoughts…. As breeders we need to keep looking to the future. We need to be aware of the markets and we must use the technology available to us so we can improve our breed. Whole herd registration, testing and data reporting are vital to the future of our breed as we compete in the beef industry. LIMOUSIN Today | 19