C A N A D I A N
H E R E F O R D
D I G E S T
feature story
Data in Demand The CHA’s New
All-Star Program
By Catherine A. Brown
A S S O CIAT E ED ITO R
approved by the CHA to use the All-Star Breeder’s logo/symbol in their respective advertising and promotional materials. These herds will also be listed in the August issue of the Hereford Digest, beginning with the 2013 Herd Reference issue. The All-Star program is inspired, in part, by the Gold TPR (Total Per for ma nce Re cord s ) of t he American Hereford Association (AHA), according to Chad Nicholas, chairman of the CHA’s Hereford Breed
Chad. It’s an accreditation system or a stamp of approval for those who make the effort to submit accurate performance records. The Hereford A ll-Star Breeder Program will be based on a scoring system as follows: 3-Star Breeder – reports three weights: BW, WW and YW
This is an incentive program designed by the CHA board of directors to recognize active Total Herd Evaluation (THE) members in good standing – those who submit all weights and data for a specific trait, as well as calving ease reports, on registered animals.
4-Star Breeder – reports three weights: BW, WW and YW, plus one additional trait
This August marks the initiation of the Canadian Hereford A ssociat ion’s (CHA’s) Hereford All-Star Breeder program. This is an incent ive prog ram designed by the CHA board of directors to recognize active Total Herd Evaluation (THE) members in good standing – those who submit all weights and data for a specific trait, as well as calving ease reports, on registered animals. Collection of this
data is important for the generation of accurate EPDs (Expected Progeny Differences) which are relied upon by the wider industry. The more data, the more accurate the database, giving more value to Hereford genetics. The program demands complete compliance reporting on all traits detailed in each of three levels outlined below. There must be a minimum submission rate of 20 per cent of ultrasound data on the calf crop being reported, if the breeder uses ultrasound as one of the reported traits. C o mp l i a nt b r e e d e r s w i l l b e 30
Improvement (HBI) committee. But it is based on criteria deemed most important to Canadian breeders. The AHA’s program was established in 2005 to recog nize breeders participating in the Association’s Whole Herd TPR. The CHA’s All-Star program was announced this August. June 1st, 2013 is the deadline for compliance reports with the PACE deadline. The August 2013 issue of the Digest will feature a list of All-Star breeders. “It’s a recognition program for breeders who report the data that everyone needs and uses,” says
5-Star Breeder – reports three weights: BW, WW and YW, plus two additional traits.
Additional traits can include scrotal circumference, cow weights at weaning and ultrasound data. Compliance Reports issued to THE members will be available online in the coming weeks, to allow users to run these reports any time to ensure that they are compliant. Compliance Reports are sent out whenever a member sends in performance data with something