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Issue 81 | The Australian Wagyu Update, September 2022
BE BOLD, BRAVE AND BLAZE A TRAIL
WAGYUEDGE ATTRACTS RECORD AUDIENCE TO 2022 CONFERENCE
'Do not go where their path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.’ Wise words spoken by the great philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson and for renowned Wagyu breeder Ken Kurosawatsu, the personification of the Wagyu sector.
The trailblazers, innovators and experts of both the domestic and globalWagyu sector converged on Melbourne in April for the AustralianWagyu Association WagyuEdge Conference and Tour. Seventeen worldclass industry experts, Kurosawatsu included, shared their knowledgeon everything from the Westholme Wagyu Flavour Wheel, to objectivecarcase measurement, and international perspectives on the future of theindustry.Bringing together 450 delegates from across the globe, the highlyanticipatedevent on the Wagyu calendar provides a valuable opportunityto bring together all components of the Wagyu sector in a learningand networking environment. With a common goal to advance theindustry across Australia, Wagyu breeders and supply chain stakeholdersalso revelled in the success of the globally recognised sector with acelebration of over 30 luxury Wagyu brands at the Wagyu Branded BeefCompetition Gala Dinner, and watched as the strongest Elite WagyuSale yet eclipsed records, totalling $2.7 million.Australian Wagyu Association’s Conference and CompetitionsCommittee chairman, Glen Wright, said the event attracted the largestnumber of delegates in its history, with the energy and vibrancy ofdiscussion enjoyed by all.
The standout speaker for me this year was (new Hall of Fame inductee) PeterHughes. What a dead-set legend. If that doesn’t motivate everyone to go home, dig a bit deeper and go a bit harder, I’m not sure you were listening or awake to the future of the Wagyu business. Obviously, fantastic weather conditions across the country, albeit a bit wet in some places, and record demand, which is leading to record Wagyu prices, is driving a lot of excitement about the future of the world’s luxury beef and this is evident in the investment people are making with new records being broken in genetics sales. Overall, from the feedback we have received, the conference has been the best we have hosted, and our aim is to continue to listen and improve the format, the information provided from our speakers, and the networking experience each and every delegate can expect from our conferences in the future. I can not wait for 2023.
Glen Wright, AWA Board Director and Competitions Committee chairman
DR KENNETH OLSEN Professor/Extension Beef Specialist, Department of Animal Science, SDSU Extension, West River Extension Center
There’s many scenarios when big and beautiful may be desirable - renovations, wardrobes, bank accounts spring to mind - but when it comes to heifers, Dr Kenneth Olsen cautions the two attributes may not be the principal aim when considering breeding for larger carcases in Wagyu cattle.
Born and raised on a Montana cattle ranch, Dr Olsen is based in Rapid City, South Dakota where he provides extension education programs for beef producers and conducts research on beef production systems.
His research ranges from the effects of different grazing management practices on cattle nutrition to how beef production practices influence animal performance and carcase characteristics.
While cow numbers in the US have dropped in the last 50 years, beef production in terms of meat produced has risen in the past two decades. How? By producing bigger carcases. Cows have increased from approximately 540 kilograms in 1990 to approximately 634 kilograms today.
Drawing parallels with the Australian Wagyu Association data, Dr Olsen surmises a stronger focus on marbling scores and eating quality, rather than maximising the kilograms of carcase weight, has seen cow size across the Australian Wagyu sector grow at a significantly slower rate than our US counterparts. But it is still increasing, and Dr Olsen poses the question - do we want it to?
With an increase in cow size comes an increase in energy and nutrition needs to fulfil their genetic potential. If this comes from supplement feeding, economic pressures arise as feed costs are incurred.
DR KENNETH OLSEN Professor/Extension Beef Specialist, Department of Animal Science, SDSU Extension, West River Extension Center
As part of the strong lineup of international and Australian speakers, US-based Dr Kenneth Olsen, and Dr David Nation, Managing Director of Dairy Australia, both shared their perspectives on facing the challenges of tomorrow for the Wagyu sector. Ken Kurosawatsu, breeder at Wagyu Sekai, provided an insight into the international Wagyu sector, while Associate Professor and flavour and food scientist Dr Heather Smyth shared current research into Wagyu and the commercial application of her research and development.
Alternatively, in a pasture-based system, the ability of a cow to consume enough grass to keep up with nutrient requirements needs to be deliberated. How do we navigate these considerations in increasing cow size as we select for larger carcases in Wagyu cattle?
“You're going to have to improve management if you're going to provide more feed on an economic basis,” Dr Olsen explains.
“You're going to want to be aware of what this does to stocking rates as they get bigger. You're going to want to measure the nutritional status of the cows by weighing them or body condition scoring.
“You need to either improve your grazing management to make more forage available. You need to improve your pastures.
“Perhaps you need to be strategic in supplementing additional feed to the cattle so you get the most bang for the buck. Maybe you need to change the cow's requirements by adjusting when she calves and when you can dry her off by weaning the calf and therefore, you want to manage cow size.
“Cull the ones that don't fit because they can't get pregnant or they can't produce a decent calf. And don't keep your biggest, most beautiful heifers. They're big and beautiful. It means they'll make wonderful feeders, but probably not a cow that fits your resources.”
DR DAVID NATION Managing Director, Dairy Australia
After investing time, money and effort ingenetic improvement for 30 years withno significant result, the Australian dairyindustry came to a crossroads in the early2000s - to continue, or concede that enoughis enough? Fortunately, it took the formerroute. An enduring persistence coupled withan incredible advancement in technologiessince 2010, in a way that’s unheard of in the100-year history of breeding, has seen theindustry make remarkable advancements incow improvement; from new traits to newfeatures, functions, and ways of operating.There’s now more than 200,000 animalsin the reference population for the dairyindustry. A hair sample from a dairy cowgives an estimation of a Balanced Indexwith 80 percent accuracy. The industryis working with an 88 percent accuracypredicting production from a DNA test, and70 percent accuracy for fertility.
With any animal, anywhere in the world with a DNA test able to get an Australian Breeding Value of these accuracy levels, Dr Nation reflects on the enormity of the advancements.
“When I started in the genetics industry,our capacity to improve genetics was 300young bulls purchased every year, semencollected and distributed, and we'd wait fortheir progeny to come through, and provetheir merit through their progeny - a six toseven year adventure, with 300 bulls at atime,” he says.
“Now we routinely screen with genomics, 5500 animals, young males, every year from anywhere in the world.”
Eighty percent of the genetics utilised by the Australian dairy industry are imported from overseas. It’s a huge global engine intent on screening bulls, finding the best genetics, and bringing them home.
While the dairy industry as a whole has created the platform, the commercial sector is driving the industry forwards. The national industry benchmark parameter for getting cows in calf is 110 for fertility, meaning 10 percent more cows in calf in six weeks. With the commercial sector putting that amount of pressure on young animals coming to Australia, the economic benefits are far-reaching.
As the results continue to grow, so too does the overlap between the Wagyu sector and the dairy industry. Young females are being genomically tested so economic decisions can be made based on their genetic merit.
Selectively using sexed semen and elite genetics on the best young stock and rearing dairy replacements from those frees up the rest of the herd to think about how the two industries partner.
“This is real, this is happening, we are seeing it and it is a genuine scenario, where 60 percent of a farmer's future calves will be expected to be dairy beef and have a viable part in the beef sector going forwards,” Dr Nation says.
“Our future only gets closer together and the sustainability of both our industries all happen together simultaneously.”
KEN KUROSAWATSU Breeder, Wagyu Sekai
KEN KUROSAWATSU Breeder, Wagyu Sekai
Wagyu Sekai has a cult following. When a renowned Toronto steakhouse receives a new shipment, the chef has a call list to run through. One patron has been known to board his jet in New York and fly in just for a taste. The man behind this phenomenon? Ken Kurosawatsu.
Kurosawatsu owns Wagyu Sekai, a 100-acre farm in Ontario, Canada. The family farm was originally focused on Holsteins, but when Japan began temporarily lifting its export ban in the early 1990s, Kurosawatsu went there to work for Mannet Co. Ltd, the company that first exported fullblood Wagyu.
Kurosawatsu learned from the renowned Kenichi Ono, known in Japan as the ‘Professor of Wagyu’. Armed with a wealth of knowledge on the importance of maternal bloodlines, Kurosawatsu returned to Canada to apply these lessons on home turf.
His father had purchased four pregnant Wagyu cows in 1994 - among 200 head of cattle that had recently been exported from Japan - the last time it would happen as Japan banned live cattle export soon after.
Wagyu Sekai invested early into animals in Australia and the United States to complement its core breeding programs. Today, it has 230 head between the three countries.
Finished beef products are sold directly to customers at the farm on Saturdays, allowing Wagyu Sekai to establish a strong relationship with clientele, while also improving its genetic base.
As a smaller operation, Wagyu Sekai operates on an animalto-animal feeding method, similar to the Japanese system. Monitoring intake, conditioning and growth ensures a critical analysis of their animal's structure and temperament for a strong breeding program. Long loins, width through the rear and chest, and a springier rib make the cut.
“Any animals that are undesirable - it doesn't matter how good your pedigree is or how high your genomic numbers are - you are being beefed,” Kurosawatsu says.
“We're critical on maternal bloodlines. It's easier to breed a better animal from a better cow.
It doesn't take a genius to figure that out. But to be able to identify those better cows is the key. And that's what everybody's doing right now, trying to find a better cow.
And where to now for Wagyu Sekai? It’s focusing on what Kurosawatsu refers to as ‘return breeding’, known as Modashi Kohai in Japan, which brings blood back to the maternal side. The practice ensures the blood is preserved not just for use today or tomorrow, but for well into the future.
“As far as I know at this point in time, we have what we have to work with, with Wagyu. And as breeders I think it's important to be able to use these breeding methods to be able to have some sort of diversity,” Kurosawatsu says.
“Don't just look at EBVs; look at phenotypes, look at your breeding, look at your maternal bloodlines, breed the blood. Do all sorts of things. Be creative in what you do, because that is what's going to make this breed even bigger.”
ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR HEATHER SMYTH Principal Research Fellow, QAAFI, The University of Queensland
Most of us would be hard pressed to come up with 800 singular, descriptive words on any one food. But for a cooked piece of beef, that’s how many flavour volatiles it carries alone.
A food and flavour scientist with 20 years experience withpremium food and beverages, Associate Professor Heather Smythunderstands the relationship between a food’s provenance story,its composition, and the sensory experience of enjoying a meal.
From craft beer, wine and coffee, to seafood, dairy, andhorticultural products, there’s not many foods Smyth’s superiorpalette hasn’t worked with, but a recent project had her team of12 expert taste tasters really stand to attention – the WestholmeWagyu Flavour Wheel.
Commissioned by AACo, the world's first flavour wheel for beefis a sensory lexicon to describe the flavours and textures of theWestholme branded Wagyu.
From her Brisbane lab, Dr Smyth cooked different cuts withvarying marbling scores - no oil, no salt - just beef. Her team oftaste testers noted flavour, texture, aroma and mouth feel.
It’s been touted as an invaluable tool for the restaurant trade toenhance a high-end dining experience. Whether it's planningmenus, flavour combinations, sauces and side dishes, oraccompanying wines, the flavour wheel enables chefs to educatebeef lovers on the finer details of their meal.
A comprehensive list of product descriptions for the differentcuts and marbling grades also helps AACo in its marketing andpackage branding, with scope to further develop the languagepool in the future.
“One of the great benefits for that company is to have a baselineunderstanding of what the quality parameters are in their beef,”Dr Smyth explains.
“When they are trying new diets or a new regime, they actuallyhave a standard to compare to, to say, have we changed theflavour? Have we impacted the great quality that we have in anyway? Are we improving it? Are we moving away?”
It’s a process Dr Smyth believes will continue to become moresophisticated over time, with Wagyu breeders motivated to selectanimals for specific parts of the flavour spectrum.
She hopes other premium food producers will take note ofAACo's investment in sensory science to be able to objectivelymeasure Wagyu’s sensory properties and diversity.
“Consumers already think that our Australian product isamazing. Let's get on board and try and describe what our pointof distinctiveness is in Australia, and communicate that to therest of the world.”
