Crossbreeding with Fleckvieh a recipe for grass-fed success

Taralga Springs Beef began using Fleckvieh bulls across a herd of 400 Angus females in 2006 with a view to producing both yearling cattle for slaughter and replacement breeders. Bulls were sourced from both Wirrabilla and Newlands studs. The combination worked so well that, 10 years later, there hasn’t been a reason to alter the recipe.

From its base on the Southern Tablelands of NSW, Taralga Springs Beef (TSB) supplied premium bodies of beef directly to butchers in Sydney from 2006.

Critical to the success of the TSB product was that the beef came from cattle that were conceived, born, raised and finished on the property – guaranteeing provenance. Another foundation of the TSB product was that the cattle were raised and finished on pasture. With the need to raise and finish cattle, exclusively on pasture, and confined to a single cold-climate property, the hurdle was set high for the Fleckvieh-Angus cross. For one thing, the cattle needed to be early finishing. When breeding, growing, and finishing cattle within a single operation, there is immense pressure on the system to have cattle ready to turn off as early as 13-months of age and certainly no later than 18 months. There is simply no room for slow-growing or slow-finishing cattle to be clogging up the system.

The goal was to achieve carcass weights in the 240-290 kilogram range, with good all-over fat cover and intramuscular fat (IMF). The Fleckvieh-Angus cross could achieve these metrics in the allotted time without grain or Hormone Growth Promotants.

One of the more interesting observations that can be made from the eight years of MSA data collected and analysed by TSB relates to IMF. Given the importance of IMF to the eating quality of beef, particular attention was paid to the relationship between Fleckvieh content and IMF measurements at slaughter.

In short, there was no relationship. That is, there was no reliable difference in the IMF of a body of TSB beef

whether it came from 100% Angus or 50:50 Angus-Fleckvieh. The TSB experience has been that the age of the animal and the quality of the season were related to IMF in the end product, not the proportion of Fleckvieh in the cross. In this way, the Fleckvieh genetics provided all of the benefits of hybrid vigor without compromising the ability of the Angus breed to put IMF into a carcass.

Another important feature of the TSB cattle is their quiet nature. In addition to the obvious safety aspect of working with quiet cattle, the ability to handle and transport cattle without them becoming stressed is critical to delivering a premium product to the chiller. In the 10 years TSB has been breeding and processing Angus-Fleckvieh yearlings there have been a grand total of two dark-cutters (both from the rare occasion heifers were processed).

The replacement Fleckvieh-cross females produced by TSBs breeding program are reliably good mothers. Typically being larger-framed than their full-blood Angus counterparts, assistance is rarely required for the cows when calving. Arguably more importantly, the Fleckvieh-cross mothers are better milkers than their straight Angus sisters, providing the calves with all the nutrition required to be transformed into 300+kg weaners. And they are hardy too, as evidenced by their ability to thrive in the tough cold-climate winters.

In summary, for the past decade TSB has managed to breed, grow and finish yearling cattle in a pasture-based premium beef production system.

Introducing Fleckvieh genetics to the Angus female herd has allowed target weights and carcass quality to be achieved, purely off grass.

NEWLANDS FLECKVIEH

Sourced from South Africa Bred for Australia

��y and Sylvia �ar�n 1908 Rhyanna Road, Taralga, NSW, 2580

For all your animal's needs domestic & livestock

Dubbo Pet & Stock Feeds is known for providing quality stock food and supplements in Dubbo and surrounding areas. We are locally owned and operated business known for our professional, friendly and reliable services which are second to none. We ensure high quality standards on stock feeds and supplements. • Animal feeds • Custom blends • Dairy feed • Fodder • Horse feed • Pasture seeds • Pig feed • Stock yards • Water & feed troughs and more! 14 Jannali Rd, Dubbo NSW 2830

(02) 6884 2798

Products & Equipment for: Sheep, Cattle, Dogs, Goats, Horses, Pigs & Alpacas NLIS & Management Tags Earmarking Pliers, Combs & Cutters for Shearing & Clipping Safety Boots Specialising in Electric Fencing Supplies 34B Victoria Street, Dubbo NSW 2830 Ph: 0429 872 751 or 0428 872 751 SHOP ONLINE www.aussierural.com.au

Son of Sibelle Dirty Harry 25Z at 4 months of age, December 2016 Top Performing Cattle

FOR A COMMERCIAL OPERATION IS OUR FOCUS

Wirrabilla Fleckvieh & Angus focuses on producing top performing cattle for a commercial operation. We emphasise breeding bulls that will give the purchaser an ideal vealer calf that has the ability to perform above average both off grass and in the feedlot. We target high 200 and 400 day growth and good fat cover. of terrific sons by the great Bar 5 SA Burner 825R, the Grand Champion bull at Royal Toronto in 2006, in our bull line-up.

The success of our approach is evidenced by the top performance of our cattle in feedlot and carcase trials. In 2014 we benchmarked our steers for feedlot and carcase performance in the Beef Spectacular Feedback Trial – the largest feedback competition of its kind in eastern Australia. A Wirrabilla Fleckvieh/Angus cross steer achieved the highest point score out of 600 steers entered in the Trial. The result combined full marks for feedlot performance, with outstanding carcase performance, including excellent marbling and yield.

Sourcing the best genetics is a big part of continually improving what we do at Wirrabilla. We currently have a very even line

Bar 5 SA Burner 825R

The exciting new sire at Wirrabilla this year is Sibelle Dirty Harry 25Z, a Canadian sire whose progeny have been topping sales in North America. His calves are standouts – moderate birth weight, very soft, thick and deep. They are worth seeing. All the benefits of Fleckvieh genetics – growth, muscle and milk, with a moderate birth weight!