The value of Line One Herefords in Crossbreeding

THE VALUE OF LINE ONE HEREFORDS IN

CROSSBREEDING 3R LIVESTOCK

MAXIMUM HETEROSIS

THE GREATEST HYBRID VIGOUR

Whilst the benefits of cross breeding in commercial beef cattle production are well proven the unique advantages of Line One genetics make them an unrivalled choice.

For 85 Years the Line One breeding program has operated as a closed gene pool. This period of closure has resulted in a divergence of genetic similarity from the modern Hereford breed population. This divergence is now sufficient to generate Heterosis, or hybrid vigour, when joining pure non-line one Hereford cows to Line One bulls.

Herefords have long been considered as the arguably the most complimentary of breeds for cross breeding programs. During the past 1020 years Hereford genetics have experienced a surge in the USA as continually more commercial cows are bred to Hereford bulls then ever before. Today Baldie & Tigerstripe females command premiums well above their straight bred rivals and demand for Hereford bulls is rising rapidly.

The American Hereford Association has conducted many cross breeding research trials and proven the impact of Hereford genetics in all stages of the production cycle.

The 2,000 Bull Project was conducted by USMARC (United States Meat Animal Research Centre) in 2007 to 'study relationships between genomic variation and economically important traits in 16 prominent breeds'.

The above diagram proportionately illustrates the genetic diversity of cattle breeds. Long regarded as a exceptional cross breeding option Hereford (HH) is well diversified from Angus (AN) and Brahman (BR). This 'distance' returns in increased heterosis when joined ie, maximum direct & maternal benefit.

What the 2,000 Bull Project proved beyond this however was that Line One Herefords (HL) are further diversified than Hereford resulting in a level of heterosis that is only matched by Brahman cattle. This study therefore proves the superior genetic advantage of Line One genetics in cross breeding programs involving cattle of any breed including non-line one Hereford cows.

With a long term focus on the commercially relevant economic traits that drive profitable beef production Line One Hereford genetics are regarded as the highest performing, most profitable genetics in the world today. In line with research findings a cross bred cows (including Line One x Hereford) will have 3.7% higher calving rate, 38% greater longevity, 17% more calves and wean 25% more kilograms of beef in her lifetime. Whether your program is cross bred or straight bred Hereford, Line One genetics are proven to deliver the maximum heterosis advantage.

American Hereford Association Cross Breeding Research For the past 10-15 years the American Hereford Association has centred much of its efforts on promoting the benefits of Hereford cattle in cross breeding programs. The 2,000 Bull Project proved the genetic diversity of Hereford genetics and these benefits have been proven by the AHA projects, the most comprehensive of which were conducted on Harris & Circle A Ranches.

Harris Ranch, California The Harris Ranch is a large scale Angus commercial herd located in California. In this trial Hereford bulls were introduced alongside Angus bulls into the Black Angus cow herd. The Angus cow herd had only been exclusively Angus for 10 years and some presence of Hereford & Gelbvieh genetics were detected by DNA therefore the Heterosis was not maximised.

Throughout the course of the multi year trial the following results were achieved; Direct Heterosis - Baldie calves achieved 1.9% Increase in survival to weaning, 3.9% greater weaning weight, 3.8% greater yearling weight, 2.2% higher feed conversion = a $30 per head advantage.

Maternal Heterosis - Baldie Cows achieved 3.7% higher calving rate, 38% greater longevity, 17% more calves over a lifetime and 25% more kilograms weaned.

Circle A Ranch, Missouri Circle A Ranch is a large, well regarded Angus ranch in the USA. Following on from the research findings of the 2,000 Bull Project Circle A made the decision to inject Hereford genetics into their commercial breeding program. The results again proved higher weaning weights, large muscle areas and increased feed efficiency. Economic modelling of the impact of heterosis was undertaken by the University of Missouri and proved the Baldie female produced an economic advantage of $514 across her lifetime.

Circle A offered baldie females in their commercial female sale and on average these bred heifers achieved a premium of $110 per head.

THE FINAL WORD L1 HEREFORD GENETICS GENERATE MAXIMUM HYBRID VIGOUR