74

INDUSTRY ACCEPTANCE AND USEFUINESS OF EXOTIC BtiEEDS OF L;TVESTOCK*

R . A. FIELD University of Wyoming

Over the past few years many new exotic breeds of c a t t l e have been introduced in to the United States . These breeds, along with several breeds developed i n t h i s country, a r e becoming increasingly popular. In addition, dairy breeds a re being crossed w i t h beef c a t t l e .

I n contrast t o the many exotic breeds of c a t t l e , very few sheep breeds can be considered exot ic . The best known i s the Finnish Landrace. Hog producers have been reasonably content w i t h t he present breeding stock. Nevertheless, the poten t ia l f o r increased l i t t e r s i z e and f o r improved carcass traits has created a limited amount of in t e re s t i n exotic breeds of swine.

I n t h i s report , producer and packer impressions on some of the exotic breeds of l ivestock w i l l be discussed. l imited experience with Finnish Landrace sheep and no experience w i t h exotic breeds of swine. Therefore, t h e i r coments a re limited t o the exotic cross-bred c a t t l e which they have slaughtered.

Packers have had very

Cat t le

Producer acceptance of many exotic breeds of c a t t l e has been very good. Sale pr ices of breeding stock are often in f ive o r six f igures . Some believe t h a t fad, fancy and publ ic i ty a re the major reasons f o r the high pr ices . Nevertheless, researchers (Allen 1974) give several reasons f o r the high pr ices . of data which showed t h a t Maine-Anjou, Brahman, Simmental and Limousin s i red calves fromHereford cows had heavier weaning weights and faster postweaning gains than stra tbred Hereford calves. The U.S. Meat Animal Research Center (1974 ’$” reported an average 200-day weight fo r t he 1973 calf crap from Angus o r Hereford dams bred t o d i f f e ren t s i r e s as follows: Brown Swiss, 452 lb . ; Red Po l l , 430 lb . ; and Angus-Hereford crosses, 424 l b . crops were as follows: Charolais, 505 lb . ; Simmental, 501 lb. ; Limousin, 465 lb.; South Devon, 478 lb.; Jersey, 452 lb., and Angus-Hereford crosses, 467 l b . I n another study the combined grazing and feedlot gains f o r Maine-Anjou s i red calves were the highest, followed by L i m m s i n , SJnnnental, Brown Swiss, Brahman and Hereford s i red calves (byacano - e t a1 -*, 1974).

Knox and Oakes (1974) published two years

Chiania, 471 lb.; Gelbvich, 460 lb . ; Maine-Anjou, 454 lb . ;

Adjusted weaning weights by breed of s i r e s f o r the 1970-71-72 calf

* Presented a t the 27th Annual Reciprocal Meat Conference of the American Meat Science Association, 1974

75

la rger , f a s t e r gaining c a t t l e have no advantage i n feed eff ic iency when fed t o t h e same compositional end point (Brungardt, 1972; Henderson, 1969; and Klosterman e t al., 1w). advantage only i f slaughtered on a weight constant basis. breeds of c a t t l e have been c r i t i c i z e d f o r being l e s s e f f i c i e n t i n t he cow herd, f o r f a i l i n g t o -de Choice a t a desirable weight and for being slow t o develop reproductively (Totusek, 1973). it appears t h a t rapid gains and high c u t a b i l i t i e s w i l l encourage increased numbers of exotics i n commercial herds.

Keavy exot ic c a t t l e have an Some exot ic

Nevertheless,

Packer acceptance of the exot ic breeds of c a t t l e was judged by a questionnaire ( f igure 1) which was sent t o t he head c a t t l e buyer of over 1000 c a t t l e slaughtering p lan ts l i s t e d i n the December 1973 "Directory of Meat and Poul t ry Inspection Program Establishments and Off ic ia l s ." Fromthis m i l i n g , 135 completed questionnaires were returned. The re turns came from 45 d i f f e ren t states and they were approximately evenly divided w i t h regard t o geographic area and s i z e of packing p lan t ( t ab le 1). The major reason f o r re turning incomplete questionnaires was lack of t he information requested. I n addition, several buyers who d id not re turn questionnaires indicated t o me t h a t they were in te res ted but had not k i l l e d enough l o t s of exotics t o have a va l id opinion. of t h i s feel ing, buyers were instructed t o consider every breed except Angus, Shorthorn, Hereford and Holstein as exotic ( f igure 1). t h i s categorization, Charolais were the most common exot ic cross slaughtered. A l l 135 packers l i s t e d Charolais crosses and some s t a t ed t h a t they made up 8 6 of the crossbred k i l l when the rec iproca l cross B r i t i s h breeds were eliminated. Charolais were of ten t h e only exotic breed cross l i s t e d . Simmentals were mentioned 32 times, Brangus 32, Brahman 21, Limousin 20, Santa Gertrudis 8 and Brown Swiss 7. Other breeds mentioned among the three most common exot ic breedcrosses purchased by t h e plant included: Red Polled, Beefmaster, Chiania, South Devon, Galloway, Pietmont and Murray Grey.

I n an t ic ipa t ion

Based on

Not only the most commOn but a l so the f avor i t e exot ic breed cross of packer buyers was t h e Charolais. ask packers t o list the B r i t i s h breed they would l i k e t o have the Charolais crossed w i t h Angus. carcass weighing 600 t o 700 pounds. buyers as t h e cross which they favored included Brangus, Sinrmental, Limousin, Brahman and Brown Swiss. Br i t i sh breed favored f o r crossing.

Although the questionnaire did not

Reasons given were t o produce a Choice Other breeds l i s t e d by packer

I n many cases, Angus was again the

The proportion of blood f r a m t h e exot ic breed which the packer considered i d e a l is shown i n t a b l e 1. Plants k i l l i n g over 1000 f inished c a t t l e per week of ten l i s t e d 1/4 blood from t h e exot ic breed as i d e a l while the majority of small plants k i l l i n g l e s s than 100 f inished c a t t l e per week f e l t that 1/2 blood from t h e exot ic breed was b e s t . p lan ts responding were of ten locker plant ope ra t ims which sold ungraded f reezer beef d i r e c t l y t o housewives. operators would not be as concerned about grade.

The smaller

It is log ica l that these small

1. What are the 3 most common exotic breed crosses purchased by your plant? and Holsteins as exotic breeds). Which exotic breed cross do you favor? What proportion of blood f r o m t h e exotic breed do you consider ideal?

Please campare the acceptab i l i ty of the exotic breed cross steers which you l i s t e d i n N o . 1 t o Angus, Shorthorn and Hereford s t ee r s .

(Consider a l l breeds except Angus, Shorthorns, Herefords

2.

3. Should production of exotic breed crosses be encouraged? Yes No- 4.

Make one check under each factor The exotic Reta i l Purveyor Dressing Qual i ty Yield breeds are: accept. accept. $J grade grade Conformation Superior

Equal t o

In fe r io r

-- - -- - Sl ight ly b e t t e r -- - -- Sl ight ly in fe r io r - -- -- -- -

-- -- - 5 . Please compare the acceptabi l i ty of the exotic breed cross s t ee r s

which vou l i s t e d i n No. 1 t o Holstein s t ee r s .

The exotic Make one check under each factor

Reta i l Purveyor Dressing Qual i ty Yield breeds are: accept accept. % grade grade Conformation Superior Slightly b e t t e r Equal t o S l igh t ly in fe r io r l n f e r i o r

_ I _ - - __.- - - -- - -- -- -- -- -- 6 . How many finished c a t t l e does your plant normally kill per week?

How many of t he finished c a t t l e normally k i l l ed per week a re exotic breed crosses? (Circle one). bought f o r ( l e s s , the same as, more) per pound than Angus, Shorthorn and Hereford s teers . Do you believe t h a t exotic breed cross s t e e r carcasses should be broken i n the plant i n preference t o Angus, Shorthorn and Hereford s t ee r s when carcasses frm both groups a re avai lable f o r breaking. (Yes- No-)

W i l l t here be an increased demand i n the future f o r heavy carcasses (approx . 800 l b .) t h a t a r e young and are equivalent in qual i ty t o the present USDA good grade? (Yes No-). If your answer t o No. 9 i s yes, p l s s e indicate what you think the majority of 800 lb. carcasses, which f a i l t o grade Choice, w i l l be used fo r in the fhture. Processed meat- Sold as carcass beef- Fabricated and sold t o r e t a i l e r s o r purveyors- Other (please specify) Check the carcass weight range which pur plant handles the most o f . Less than 6 0 lb., 600-700 lb., over TOO l b . Please make comments about t he exotic breeds of c a t t l e .

7 . I n general, f inished exotic breed cross s t e e r s a r e

8 .

9 .

10.

(Check one).

11.

12.

FIGURE 1

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TABLE 1. PROPORTION OF BLQOD FROM EXOTIC BREEDS WHICH PACKERS CONSIDERED IDEAL

N o . of Proportion of blood from exot ics Variable r ep l i e s 1/8a 1/4 3/8 1/2

k 4 4 4 K i l l of plant/wk

Over 1000 38 13 .i 47 *3 23 *7 15 09 100 t o ggg 42 7 e 1 33 93 14.3 45.3 Under 100 42 0 28.6 14.3 57 -1

Area of country South 26 11 -5 30.8 15.4 42.3

Midwest 43 12.2 31 -7 14.6 41.5 West 26 0 42.3 15.4 42.3

E a s t 22 0 35 90 20 .o 45 .o

a Percent of packers replying who l i s t e d 1/8 blood from exot ics as t h e i d e a l amount.

78

Trends fo r proportion of exotic country were lacking. Nevertheless, plants indicated t h a t the proportion enough t o eliminate the hump.

blood preferred by area of the some Southern and Midwestern of Brahman blood should be low

The percent of f inished c a t t l e kiLled per week which a re exotic crossbreds i s l i s t e d i n tab le 2. Small plants estimated that approxi- mately 2% of t h e i r k i l l was exotic crossbreds while only 12.8% of the k i l l from the la rger plants f e l l in t h i s category. packers k i l l ed a smaller percentage of the exotics than other areas of the country.

Midwest and Western

When asked if production of exotic crosses should be encouraged,

However, those who said no made it clear t h a t

The majority of the packers paid the same pr ice per pound

115 packers said yes and 16 said no. favored crossbreeding. exotic c a t t l e were too large, graded too law and hence were worth less per pound. for finished exotic crossbreds as they did f o r the Br i t i sh breeds ( t ab le 3 ) . l e s s per pound f o r finished exotic crossbred c a t t l e . and Midwestern plants paid l e s s f o r exotic crosses while only 6,9$ of the Western plants responding paid l e s s .

The great majority of the rep l ies

Nevertheless, 35.7% of the plants k i l l i n g over 1000 per week paid 25% of the Southern

Plants were asked i f they believed t h a t exotic crossbred s t ee r carcasses should be broken in the plant i n preference t o Angus, Short- horn and Hereford s t ee r s when carcasses from both grmps were available f o r breaking. yes-no answers were about the same when they were broken darn by s i ze of plant and area of t h e country. proportion of affirmative answers i s related t o the high cu tab i l i t y of exotic cross carcasses. A representative of a large breaking plant recent ly s ta ted t h a t t h e i r plant could not afford t o fabr ica te yield grade 4 or 5 carcasses. had a limited demand f o r primals and subprimals from finished exotic breeds of c a t t l e which f a i l ed t o grade Choice.

87 plants said yes and 47 said no. The proportion of

It is probable that the higher

I n addition, some packers indicated that they

Plants were asked, " w i l l there be an increased demand fo r heavy carcasses (approx. 800 l b .) that are young and equivalent i n qual i ty t o the present USDA Good grade ." Many of those who sa id no f e l t t h a t 800 l b . w a s t oo heavy f o r any time i n the forseeable future . Others made caust ic comments about the obsolete grading system. c a t t l e which a re of t h e same age and weight and have been fed f o r t h e same period of time a re equal i n pa l a t ab i l i t y . t h i s view when one r e fe r s t o the volumes of published l i t e r a t u r e on the low relat ionships between marbling and pa la t ab i l i t y (Bluner, 1963; Field e t a l . , 1966).

58 plants said yes and 77 said no.

There is a strong fee l ing among some packers t h a t

It i s hard t o re fu te

The great majority of the plants who f e l t t h a t there would be a demand f o r 800 lb. Good grade carcasses said t h a t they would be fabricated and sold t o r e t a i l e r s or purveyors. other cuts from Good grade carcasses a re being flaked and shaped or

An increasing number of chucks and

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TABLE 2. PERCENT OF FINISHED CATTLE KILLED PER WEEK WHICH ARE EXOTIC CROSSBREDS

Variable No. of r ep l i e s

-

Exotics k i l leda

$J

Over 1000 40 12.8 100 t o 999 43 19.1 Under 100 45 20.6

Kill of plant/wk

Area of country South E a s t Midwest West

27 21.0 la 23 93 41 16.7 28 13 *7

a Expressed as a percent of f inished c a t t l e k i l l e d .

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TABLE 3 . PRICE PAID FOR EXOTIC CROSSBRED STEERS WHE2l COMPARED TO ANGUS, SHOFXHORN AND HEREFORD STEERS

Price/ lb . compared No. of t o Br i t i sh breeds

Variable rep l ies Lessa The s m e More

K i l l of plant/wk Over 1000 42 35 97 52.4 11 .g 100 t o 999 44 20.4 52 *3 27 03 Under 100 49 12.2 55 01 32 *7

Area of country South 3 1 25 .a 61.3 12.9

50 .o East 22 la .2 31.8 Midwest 43 25 .o 50 .o 25 .o

20.7 West 29 6 *9 72.4

a Percent of packers replying who paid less f o r exotic crossbred s t ee r s .

81

packaged a s boil-in-a-bag beef. In addition, many of the boneless round and s i r l o i n cuts from these carcasses a re being Jaccarded. Seven of the 58 affirmative rep l ies f e l t t h a t heavy Good grade carcasses could be used i n processed meat and nine said t h a t they could be sold as carcass beef . meat ingredient in engineered foods was not mentioned. the carcasses which the plant handled the most of did not influence the proportion of yes-no answers t o the questions on t h e future of 800 l b . Good grade carcasses. differed markedly from the mean when they were segregated according t o weight of carcass which the plant handled. Packers who f e l t t h a t there would be a future f o r heavy beef of the Good grade a r e in agreement w i t h r e t a i l e r s who see an increase i n convenience and processed beef (Tuma, 1970). these items and that TOO t o 800 l b . carcasses w i l l be used. r e t a i l e r s believe that the present weight range f o r block beef w i l l continue.

The poss ib i l i t y of using heavy exotic breed carcasses as t he The weight of

I n addition none of t he other answers t o questions

They f e e l t h a t in the future qual i ty w i l l be less important f o r Nevertheless,

Packers were asked t o compare the = t a i l acceptance, purveyor acceptance, dressing percent, qua l i ty grade, yield grade and conformation of exotic crossbred s t ee r s which they had slaughtered t o the same charac te r i s t ics of Angus, Shorthorn and Hereford s t ee r s ( t ab le 4 ) . Packers f e l t that r e t a i l and purveyor acceptance f o r t he exotic cross s t ee r s w a s s l i g h t l y b e t t e r than acceptance f o r the Br i t i sh breeds. Comments made it c lear t h a t the higher ra t ings were related t o the higher cu tab i l i t y of the exotic cross carcasses. In Tuma's (1970) report , r e t a i l e r s f e l t cu t ab i l i t y had the grea tes t influence on p r o f i t po ten t i a l and t h a t it was of primary concern when comparing qua l i ty and cu tab i l i t y . carcasses was superior t o the Br i t i sh breeds. Numerous researchers (Urick, 1972; Ziegler e t al., 1971; Patterson, e t al., 1973; Fredeen e t al., 1972; Newman and Martin, 1971; Luckett e t - a1 ,*I 1974) have confirmed that Charolais, Brahman, Simmental, Brangus and Limousin cross cazcasses which the plants based t h e i r answers on m e higher i n cu tab i l i t y t h a n the Br i t i sh breeds. It is reasonable t o believe t h a t many of the new breeds which a re s imilar t o t h e Charolais, Simmental and Limousin i n weight, shape and f a t cover (Warwick, 1973; U S . Meat Animal Research Center, 1974; Adam e t al., 1974) w i l l be as readi ly accepted when they become a v a i h b l e .

Most packers agreed that the yield grade of exotic cross

Dressing percent of exotic crosses slaughtered by the 135 plants responding was rated s l i g h t l y higher when compared t o t h a t of t he Br i t i sh breeds. Patterson e t -- a l . (1973) and U .S . Meat Animal Research Center (1974) found the Limousin-Angus, Charolais-Angus, Charolais- Hereford, Simmental-Angus and/or South Devon-Angus cross s t ee r s ranked s l i g h t l y higher i n dressing percent than other breeds studied. Damon e t a l . (1960) s t a t ed t h a t Brahman and Brahman cross s t ee r s were charac- te r ized by higher cold dressing percents than the other breeds they studied.

--

TABLE 4. AVERAGE V A U E S OF PACKERS WHO SCORED THE ACCEPTABILITY OF EXOTIC CROSSBRED STEERS WHEN COMPARED TO ANGUS, SHORTHORN AND HEREFORD STEERSa

Attribute judged No. of Reta i l Purveyor Dressing Qual i ty Yield

Variable repl ies acceptabi l i ty acceptabi l i ty k grade grade Conformation

Kill of plant/wk Over 1000 40 2.4 2.6 2 -5 4.2 1.2 2 09 100 t o 999 43 2.1 2.2 2.2 3 08 1.2 2.4 Under 100 45 1.8 2 .o 2.4 3 06 1.6 2.4

Area of country 03 2.6 2.1 4 .O 1.4 2.4 Iu South 27 2 -5 East 18 1.6 1.8 2.4 3 06 1.3 2.4 Midwest 41 2.1 2.2 2.3 4 .O 1.4 2 - 5 West 28 2.1 2 03 2.6 3 06 1.4 2 *5

a 1 = the exotic cross s teers a re superior t o Angus, Shorthorn and Hereford s teers ; 3 = equal to; 5 = i n fe r io r .

TABU 5 . AVERAGE VALUES OF PACKERS WHO SCORED THE ACCEPTABILITY OF EXOTIC CROSSBRED STEERS WHBN COMPARED To HOLSTEIN STEERS'

Attribute judged No. of Reta i l Purveyor Dressing Quality Yield

Variable rep l ies acceptabiUty acceptabi l i ty 46 grade grade Conformation

K i l l of plant/wk Over 1000 40 100 t o 999 43 Under 100 45

Area of country South 27 E a s t la Midwest 41 West 28

1.9 1.9 1 . 3 1.8 2 09 1.5 1.5 1.6 1.4 1.9 2 .o 1.5 1.4 1 *5 1.3 1.6 1.6 1.4

co w 1.6 1.6 1.6 2 .o 2.1 1.5 1.6 1.5 1.3 1.8 1.8 1.5

1 = 5 1 07 1.4 1.6 1.9 1.5 1.4 1.5 1.2 1.8 2.1 1.4

a 1 = the exotic cross s teers a re superior t o Holstein s teers ; 3 = equal to; 5 = i n fe r io r .

84

Packers scored qual i ty grade of exotic cross steers Lower than Br i t i sh breed s t ee r s ( tab le 4 ) . and Midwestern plants scored qua l i ty grade lowest. These lower scores corresponded t o the lower pr ices paid by the larger plants and by the Southern and Midwestern regions ( tab le 3 ) . which have a higher proportion of Goods among them are t o be expected. 7C$ of the r e t a i l e r s preferred average Choice o r higher c a t t l e i f they could obtain them with the cu tab i l i t y they specified (rUma, 1970). Some differences i n qual i ty grade among the exotics may e x i s t . e t L- a l . (1974) have reported t h a t the f i n a l qual i ty grade f o r Charolais, Limousin and Maine-Anjou cross carcasses w a s not s ign i f icant ly d i f fe ren t but Simmental crossbreds were superior i n qual i ty grade. A l l these breed crosses qua l i ty graded s l i g h t l y lower than carcasses s i r ed by Hereford, Angus, Brown Swiss or Lincoln Red b u l l s . Data from t h e U .S. Meat A n i m a l Research Center (1974) a l so shows s l i g h t l y lower carcass qua l i ty grades for crossbred s t ee r s from exotic s i r e s when compared t o s t ee r s from Hereford-Angus cross sires. Nevertheless, no differences i n tenderness o r f lavor between the B r i t i s h and exotic breed crosses a re apparent ( A m e t a l . , 1974; U .S . Meat Animal Research Center, 1974).

Plants k i l l i ng over 1000/wk and Southern

Lower pr ices f o r c a t t l e

Adams

The exception i s that most tenderness s tudies show Brahman and Brahman cross s t ee r s t o be tougher than other breeds ( h c k e t t - e t ,*, a1 1974; Carpenter e t a l . , 1964; and Ra3nsey e t -- a l . , 1963).

Packers gave exotic cross s t ee r s t h e highest ra t ing f o r yield grade ( t ab le 4 ) . Much research is avai lable t o confirm t h a t yield grade of the exotic crosses i s f a r superior t o t h a t of the Br i t i sh breeds (Warwick, 1973; U.S. Meat AnFmal Research Center, 1974; Luckett - e t ,*, a 1 1974; Adams e t a1 ., 1974).

Average scores f o r plants who compared the acceptabi l i ty of exotic crossbred s teers t o Holstein s teers i s shown i n t ab le 5 . British-exotic crossbred s t ee r s were rated superior t o Holstein s t ee r s for every a t t r i b u t e judged with the exception of yield grade. y ie ld grade as s i ze of plant decreased. Replies frm plants k i l l i n g over 1000/wk rated Holstein and exotic cross s t ee r s equal on yield grade but the smaller locker plant operators f e l t t h a t t h e yield grade of exotic crosses was higher than it was f o r Holsteins. who do not qua l i ty grade carcasses, may slaughter exotic cross s teers with l e s s f i n i s h than packers who a re looking f o r Choice grade carcasses.

Scores changed f o r

Locker plants,

Heavier exotic breeds of c a t t l e or t h e i r crosses w i l l qual i fy f o r higher grades i f fed t o heavier weights than is normal f o r t he Br i t i sh breeds. A t a given weight o r age, animals of la rger mature s i ze w i l l a l so gain more rapidly on l e s s feed than anirrrals of smaller mature s i z e (Kidwell and McCormick, 1956), can be slaughtered and fabricated more e f f i c i e n t l y than l i g h t e r ones. Therefore, it would seem that the beef industry could move toward the heavier weight carcasses produced by the exotic breeds of c a t t l e . mve, i f it takes place w i l l be slow. blood should be incorporated in to the beef herds t o improve cu tab i l i t y but they caution against doing t h i s a t the expense of s i ze o r grade.

Per un i t labor, heavier carcasses

T h i s Packer buyers believe exotic

Packer buyers were asked t o make comments about the exotic breeds of c a t t l e . Almost a l l of t h e 135 rep l ies commented. Comments l i s t e d below are representative of those that were made.

COMMENTS WEXd BFGED G U S MENTIONED

1.

2.

3 .

4.

5 .

6 .

7.

8 .

9 .

10.

11.

12.

Retai lers object t o the conformtion and qua l i ty of Brahman cross 600 t o 700 weight carcasses.

The Charolais and the Charolais crosses a re the only crossbred c a t t l e i n OUT area. We prefer them t o s t r a igh t bred c a t t l e .

O u r Charolais are improving in qual i ty .

We have had bad experiences with Hereford x exotic crosses but we l i k e the Angus crosses.

The Charolais and Limousin crosses a r e f a r superior t o other c a t t l e if they have Angus blood i n them. They do need t o be handled d i f f e ren t ly i f they a re t o be finished a t a desirable weight.

The amount of Brahman blood should be low enough t o eliminate the hump

Without crossing Angus, a longer feeding period i s required t o acquire marbling. The Charolais times Angus cross has proven the most acceptable.

Our market seeras t o prefer t he Angus carcass o r any crossbred closely resembling it.

We l i k e the Holstein times Angus cross fo r high yield grades.

The Charolais and the Brangus a re the only exotic breeds that I would show any i n t e r e s t i n . be sent back t o Europe.

The r e s t of the exotic breeds should

My only experience with the exotics has been with the Charolais. I avoid them as much as possible.

Consumer denrand indicates that a genetic change is needed and i s over due. become excessively wasty. appraisal t he following: crossed with Herefords; The Hereford times Simmentalwhen crossed with Angus is acceptable and superior t o t h e Limousin when crossed with Angus. a r e acceptable as USDA Choice breakers. Brangus a r e very acceptable; *roved Red Galloways crossed w i t h Herefords are similar t o s t r a igh t Herefords

The market s t ruc ture w i l l be aided when c a t t l e no longer I o f fe r f o r your consideration and

Devon and M . Anjou lack marbling when

Charolais crosses i n excess of ll00 l b . l i v e w e i g h t

86

13

14.

1 5 9

16.

17

18.

1-9

20.

21.

22.

23

24.

25

26.

27

28.

We favor "Oakie" c a t t l e or smooth Brahman crossbreds. We've had good luck with t e s t l o t s of So. Devons.

We prefer Beefmasters over Charolais and w h a t Simmental and Limousin w e have seen, we aren ' t very impressed with.

Brown Swiss a re being overlooked i n t h e brood cow herd.

Other than Charolais or Brahman we have not k i l l ed enough of t he exotics t o give a va l id opinion. they a re comparable o r superior t o Charolais.

What we have seen indicates t h a t

We a r e having great re ta i l acceptance of full fed Holsteins t h a t a r e young.

Under current U.S.D.A. grade standards the exotics except f o r some Simmental times Angus crosses need improving. Any lowering of the grade standards would change the picture . Angus crosses we de f in i t e ly l i k e . We have cu tab i l i t y problems with straight Herefords and Shorthorns.

Holstein and Holstein

By using 1/4 t o 3/8 of some of the exotics we can increase vigor and feed eff ic iency without decreasing beef acceptance too much.

O f the 5000 w e k i l l per week very few (25) a re Charolais or any exot ic . They don't f i t our grading standards.

Brahman crosses have more bruises .

We wish the "ole timers" would get the purebred out of t h e i r system.

I am glad t o see the beef industry cross-breeding with excstics. "hey a re 10 years behind the hog industry.

The f e w Llmousin cross c a t t l e handled by t h i s plant have been comparable t o the r e a l good kind of Charolais-Angus crosses. have a br ight future i f t h e i r feed conversion is acceptable.

They

Charolais crosses make excellent carcasses when they a re placed on feed a t a young age.

We've had exceptionally good luck with feeding and processing Jersey cross c a t t l e in this area.

American c a t t l e breeders spent many years t o breed the Angus, Herefords and Shorthorns i n t o overfat , undesirable breeds. the exotics w i l l became the predominate breeds. that they w i l l not go t o the extreme i n the opposite direct ion.

Soon Here's hoping

The answers t o questions dealing with r e t a i l and purveyor acceptance, dress- percent, grade and conformation a re d i f fe ren t depending upon the exotic breed used f o r comparison. point b e t t e r than Brahmas crosses f o r each charac te r i s t ic .

We rate Charolais crosses one

COMMENTS \vDRE MANAGENEXT AND SIZE WERE MENTIONED

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We feed b u l l calves f o r slaughter. The crosses give b e t t e r feedlot performance and have leaner carcasses.

We won't get too far away from a 1050 t o 1.150 l b . s t e e r i n years t o come. Beef has been popular because it has been grain fed. Maybe we have gone too far in some of our s t e e r shows w i t h the big kind.

It i s hard t o get f i n i s h on these carcasses without extremely heavy carcasses.

The biggest problems with exotics a r e too much s i z e and too l i t t l e marbling. age and l i gh te r weight t o keep them from becoming too heavy before they reach the Choice grade.

Most of these breeds m u s t be s t a r t ed on feed at a younger

The exotic breeds a r e a l i t t l e harder t o handle a t slaughter time.

High qual i ty exotic breed c a t t l e must be used f o r crossing. color only is not enough.

The

The exotics a r e going t o s e t our beef industry back 10 years. Feeders can't afford them and packers don't have heavy enough equipment t o k i l l these two ton freaks. the exotics i n the boning room.

We w i l l be glad t o use

Exotics have too long of a feeding period t o ge t t o the choice grade. des i re i n the finished product.

The exotics cannot hope t o meet the overa l l standards we

The exotics can be used t o improve s i z e and y ie ld grade.

With time there will be an even greater demand f o r choice 500 t o 600 l b . carcasses. re la ted t o higher costs per l b . t o produce heavier carcasses.

The trend toward l i gh te r carcasses w i l l be

Breeders should concentrate on a few exotic crosses and improve them, ra ther t h a n play with a l l t he exotics. important but qua l i ty cannot be forgotten.

Size and scale a re

Steaks from the la rger c a t t l e a r e too large.

The trend toward more e f f i c i en t , f a s t e r gaining, larger , higher cu tab i l i t y c a t t l e is going t o require changes i n processing, fabr icat ing a t the plant l e v e l and nu t r i t i on and management changes a t the feeding leve l .

Exotics w i l l not finish a t weights su i tab le f o r the t r ade .

Most customers discount carcasses over 800 lb. due t o the f a c t t h a t they a re ord inar i ly overfat .

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The exotic fad

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use some 800 lb . Good grade carcasses i n our boxed

w i l l soon decrease because of poor reproduction, adaptabi l i ty t o range conditions, excessive s i ze and- lack of uniformity . The exotic crosses a re too la rge . We s e l l beef by the quarter fo r home freezers . The large quarters cost too much money.

QUALITY GRADE AKD Yl3LD GRADE COMMENTS

Exotic breed crosses should be encouraged f o r crossbreeding which is directed toward achieving a marketable carcass with regard t o conformation and qual i ty grade. Sa leabi l i ty of pure exotics has been a problem with r e t a i l ou t l e t s because of USDA grade standards and consumer demand in the plants marketing area.

We a re a small kosher plant (3000/wk. ) . breeds simply because they do not grade choice. the exotics has been very bad.

We buy very very few exotic Our experience w i t h

Exotics have less cut t ing waste. We must pursue t h i s i n light of the economy.

We should be changing the U.S.D.A. grade standards so t h a t there w i l l be a demand f o r heavy carcasses which are equivalent in quality t o the present U.S.D.A. Good grade.

We don't l i k e exotic crossbred c a t t l e because they w i l l not grade choice.

Exotics a re very important i n our industry both frm a feedlot production standpoint and a l so from the consumer standpoint. f o r lean meat).

(Desire

We need more high yield grade s t ee r s that a re reasonably tender. "he exotics seem t o f i l l t h i s need. We need a grading systemwhich eliminates the f ea r of "less than choice" that the consumer and the "bage seeking retailers" have.

"he exotics have been a boom t o our business which consists of s e l l i ng ungraded s ides d i r ec t ly t o the consumer. Consumer sa t i s fac t ion has been high.

We have answered your questions about grade and conformation according t o the present U.S.D.A. grade standards which a re obsolete.

The exotics a re i n demand by r e t a i l e r s due t o cu tab i l i t y .

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Generally w e f ind that the exotics a re leaner, be t t e r color of meat, l e s s kidney f a t , smaller bones and younger when mrketed . The exotic breeds have t o be fed longer t o make choice. t h i s i s the f a u l t of U .S .D .A. grading as these younger c a t t l e do not need the marbling t o be tender.

We believe

We have good acceptance of the exotic breed crosses where customers use U.S.D.A. Good.

We do not see enough exotic breeds t o answer your questions, but 800 lb. Good grade c a t t l e do not have a fu ture .

Grading i s the problem.

The exotics are beaut i fu l f o r f reezer beef.

We f e e l that t h i s i s a worth while project but unfortunately a t t h i s stage ve do not have su f f i c i en t experience or k i l l i n g data t o be helpf'ul t o you.

The exotics lack uniformity.

Exotics a re here t o s tay .

The exotics have a future i n crossbreeding.

I n the larger feedlots the exotics a re mixed in w i t h No. 1 and 2 okies. It 's hard t o ident i fy and evaluate the exotics.

A s t he population increases and meat becomes i n short supply the exotics w i l l be accepted by r e t a i l e r s .

I n a l l fa i rness t o the industry a s a whole, I do not think a comparative judgment can be made on most of t he exotics a t t h i s time. There simply have not been enough numbers calved, fed o r slaughtered in most of the breeds t o make an in t e l l i gen t comparison.

The Finnish Landrace breed of sheep i s now f a i r l y wide spread, though s t i l l i n l imited numbers i n t he U.S. t h a t t h i s breed transmits i t s pro l i f icacy of several lambs per litter t o other breeds when crossed (Donald e t al., 1968; I a s t e r & &., 1972; Meyer and Bradford, 1973; Dickerson e t al. , 1973; Bradford and Torell, 1973). prol i f icacy but many producers, especial ly those w i t h range flocks, hes i t a t e and decreased wool production.

There is ample evidence

Sheep producers know that the Finnish Landrace breed can improve

t o u t i l i z e t h i s exotic sheep breed because of i t s small s ize

According t o Bradford (1973) several experiments indicate t h a t Finn crossbred lambs a re a t l e a s t as heavy a t 4 t o 5 months of age as straightbred lanibs out of Suffolks, Targhees, Columbias or Rambouillets.

There is a 26 t o 33% advantage in t o t a l weight of Lamb weaned per Finn cross ewe (Donald smaller a t maturity. Finn cross lambs are a t some disadvantage i n the feedlot because the growLh ra t e of Finn cross lambs above 90 l b . is slower (H. A. Glimp, personal comunication). Wool production i s lower f o r the Finn crosses than it i s f o r the Western whitefaced ewe but Finn wool production i s comparable t o that of the mutton breeds (Bradford, 1973; Dhingra, 1974).

s., 1968) even though the Finn cross ewes are

Limited data on carcass charac te r i s t ics of' Finn cross lambs are Ether extract of ad l i b i t E 1/2 Finn-1/2 Targhee 110 l b . avai lable .

l i v e lambs was close t o the ether extract of s imilar weight Targhee lamb carcasses. f a t t e r than the other genotypes (Rattray g., 1973). Other data (Meyer and Bradford, 1971; Botkin and Cramer, 1974; H . A . Glimp, personal communication) indicate t h a t Finn cross lambs have more kidney f a t t han other breeds. Producers Council, Inc. (Field e t al., 1971) included one 96 l b . l o t of 1/4 Finn lambs from Western whitefaced ewes. grade of t he l o t was 3.6 which w a s higher t h a n yield grades of 3.2 t o 3.4 which were reported f o r other breeds of sheep on similar management.

However, 1/4 Finn-3/4 Targhee lamb carcasses were

Our report t o the American Sheep

The average yield

Finn cross sheep are being used i n some commercial operations, Y-0 Ranches i n Wheatland, Wyoming, is building toward a 40,000 ewe confinement operation and they are incorporating Finn blood. confinement operation in Western Kansas is ant ic ipated. The Pipestone Area Vocational School i n Pipestone, Minnesota, has also incorporated Finn blood in to t h e i r commercial lambs. Several other Midwestern farm f lock operators who have l i t t l e concern for wool production a re following s u i t e , Western range operators a re using Finn blood sparingly. They a re experimenting with very small bands f o r their own evaluation. large range operator near Cheyenne, Wyoming, used a few Finn cross bucks 4 years ago but they did not keep many of the ewe Lambs f o r breeding stock and they have not purchased any more Finn sheep. Their a t t i t ude , l i k e that of many range operators, is that they can improve prol i f icacy i n the t r ad i t i ona l breeds of sheep by select ion and a t the same time r e t a in the desirable traits of s i ze and wool production for which they have selected. While acceptance i n some commercial farm-flocks is good, there i s very l i t t l e evidence that the en t i r e sheep industry w i l l soon incorporate Finn blood.

Another 20,000 ewe

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PIGS

U.S. h3gs a re equal or superior t o any exotic breed i n feed eff ic iency and growth r a t e . breeds we may be overlooking poss ib i l i t i e s f o r impraring maternal t r a i t s

However, some believe t h a t by ignoring the exotic

as well as carcass charac te r i s t ics . who believes that the Chinese breeds of swine are superior t o ours i n prol i f icacy. The Kinhwas averages 14 t o 1-5 pigs per l i t t e r as g i l t s . The Neikiang matures a t 88 days of age and the H w a i averages 57 days f o r f irst es t rus . Gerr i ts a l so states that several European breeds farrow s l i g h t l y la rger l i t t e r s than the U .S breeds.

Wilmore (1972) quoted Roger Gerr i ts

The only exotic breed used t o any extent i n t h i s country is the Belgium Pie t ra in . This breed gains slower and has smaller l i t t e r s than many U .S . breeds but they a re meatier (Lean -- e t a1 ., 1972). authors a lso reported t h a t the P ie t ra in has a higher dressing percentage and less bone and fat than the Landrace. Crossbred animals almost invariably f e l l between those charac te r i s t ics recorded f o r the two pure breeds. P ie t ra ins a re noted f o r t h e i r high incidence of PSE. They are being used i n experiments at the University of Minnesota t o study PSE ( C .E. Allen, personal comunication). t h a t the f a t of P ie t ra ins had higher concentrations of unsaturated f a t t y acids and lower concentrations of saturated f a t t y acids than large white pigs. P ie t ra ins , consequently, have r e l a t ive ly s o f t f a t .

These

Wood (1973) showed

W . T o Ahlschwede (personal comunication) s t a t e s t ha t one commercial pork producer i n Nebraska has a few Pie t ra in and Pietrain-Hampshire crossbred pigs. H e says that if the Pie t ra in has anything t o of fe r , it's freedom of f a t . f a t without ge t t ing PSE and PSS problems that are common in t h i s breed. Ahlschwede's opinion of the exotic P ie t ra in seems t o typ i fy t h a t of others . Overall, we simply do not have enough exotic breeds of hogs in t h i s country t o t e s t industry acceptance o r usefulness.

However, he questions that we can ge t freedom of

Adams, N . J., Z. L. Carpenter and G . C . Smith. 1974. Carcass composition and p a l a t a b i l i t y measures of crosses from imported breeds. Beef Cat t le Report in Texas. Texas A & M University, College S ta t ion ,

Allen, D . M . 1974. Genetic po ten t i a l of exotic breeds fo r growth and carcass t r a i t s . Proc. Recip. Meat Conf.

B l u e r , T .Ne 1963. Relationship of marbling t o p a l a t a b i l i t y of beef. J . h i m . Sc i . 22:771.

Botkin, M. P. and D . A . Cramer. 1974. Genetic improvement of carcass merit i n sheep. N.M. Agr. Exp. S t a . B u l .

Bradford, G . E . 1973. Increasing t h e lambing percentage. SID Range Symposium. Prof i tab le Range Sheep Production. Denver, Colorado. October 23-24.

Bradford, G . E . and D . T . Tore l l . 1973. Performanse of Finnish Landrace crossbred ewes. J . Anim. Sc i . 37:230. (Abstr .)

Brungardt, V . H . 1972. Eff ic iency and p r o f i t di f ferences of Angus, Charolais and Hereford c a t t l e varying i n s i z e and growth: e f f ic iency and t o t a l feed requirements during the feedlot phase t o reach choice grade. U . Wisc. Res. Rpt. R2398.

Feed

Carpenter, J . W . , A . Z. Palmer, W . G . Kirk, F. M . Peacock and M . Koger. Slaughter and carcass cha rac t e r i s t i c s of Brahman and Brahman- 1964.

Shorthorn s t ee r s . Univ . of Florida Agr . Exp. S ta . Tech. B u l . 680.

Damon, R . A., Jr., R . M . Crown, C . B. Singletary and S . E . McCraine. 1960. i n t h e Gulf Coast Region.

Carcass cha rac t e r i s t i c s of purebred and crossbred beef s t e e r s J. h i m . Sci . 19:820.

Dickersan, G . E , H. A Glimp and K. E . Gregory. 1973. Viabi l i ty , growth and reproduction of Finnish crosses . J. Anim. Sc i . 37:232. ( Abstr . )

Dhingra, M. M. 1974. Factors a f fec t ing production i n some purebred and crossbred ewes. Ph.D. Thesis, Univ. of Wyo., k ramie .

Donald, H . P., J. L. Read and W . S . Russell . 1968. A comparative t r i a l of crossbred ewes by Finnish Landrace and other s i r e s . Prod. 10:413.

Anim.

Field, R . A., G. E . N e b and C . 0 . Schoonover. 1966. Effects of age, marbling and sex on p a l a t a b i l i t y of beef . J. Anim. Sc i . 25:360.

Field, R . A., M. L. Riley, M. P. Botkin, E . K. Faulkner, B. F. Craddock and G , P. Roehrkasse. 1971. Survey and iden t i f i ca t ion of management systems which a re producing high c u t a b i l i t y choice and prime lambs. R p t , t o h e r . Sheep Producers Council, Denver, Colorado.

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Fredeen, H . T . , A . H. Martin, G. M , Weiss, S . B. Slen and L. J. Sumption. 1972. several breeds and breed crosses. Can. J, Anim, Sc i . 52:241.

Feedlot and carcass performance of young bu l l s representing

Henderson, R . E . 1969. Comparative feedlot performance of da i ry and beef type s t ee r s . Proc . Cornel1 Nutr . Conf . 1969: 51.

1956. Kidwell, J. F. and J. A . McCormick. The influence of s i ze and J. Anim. Sci . l5:lOg. type on growth and development of c a t t l e .

Klosterman, E. W. , V . R . Cahi l l and C . F. Parker. 1968. A comparison of the Hereford and Charolais breeds and t h e i r crosses under two systems of management. Ohio A g r . R e s . and Dev. Center, Res. Bul. 1011.

b o x , J . W . and J. Y . Oakes . 1974. A comparison of crossbred Brahman, Limousin, Maine-Anjou, Simmental and straightbred Hereford calves. 14th Annual Livestock Producer's Day, La . S ta te Univ ., Baton Rouge. p . 106.

Laster, D . B., H . A . Glimp and G. E. Dickerson. 1972. Factors affect ing reproduction in ewe lambs. J. Anim. Sci . 35:79.

Lean, I . J., M . K. Curran, J. E. Duckworth and W . Holmes. 1972. Studies on Belgian P ie t ra in pigs. Anim. Prod. l5:l.

Loyacano, A. F., W . A . Nipper and J. E . Pont i f . 1974. Comparisons between Hereford and F1 Hereford crossbred calves. stock Producer's Day, L a . S ta te Univ., Baton Rouge, p. 112,

14th Annual Live

Luckett, R. L., T. D . Bidner, E . A. Icaza and J . W . Turner. 1974. Tenderness s tudies i n straightbred and crossbred s t e e r s . 14th Annual Livestock Producer's Day, La. S ta te Univ., Baton Rouge, p. 197.

Meyer, H H. and G. E . Bradford. 1971. Carcass evaluation of Finnsheep crossbreds . J . Anim. Sc i . 33 : 203. (Abstr . )

Meyer, H . H . and G . E. Bradford. 1973. Reproduction in Targhee and Finnish Landrace x Targhee ewes. J. h i m . Sci . 36:847.

Newman, J. A. and A . H . Mart in . 1971. Simmental-sired vs. Charolais- s i red c a t t l e for beef production. Can. D e p t . of Agr., Res. S ta . , Lacombe, Alberta. Second report April 1971.

Patterson, T. B., L. A. Smith and H. W . Grimes. of calves by Charolais and Hereford bul l s . S t a . B u l . 449.

1973. A comparison Auburn Univ. Agr. Exp.

Ramsey, C . B., J. W . Cole, B. H . Meyer and R. S . Temple. 1963. Effects of type and breed of Br i t i sh , Zebu and dairy c a t t l e on production, pa l a t ab i l i t y and composition. cooking losses as determined by laboratory and family panels. Anim. Sci . 22:lOOl.

11. Pa la t ab i l i t y differences and J.

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Rattray, P. V., W. N . Garret t , H. H . Meyer, G. E . Bradford, N . E . E a s t

J. Anim. Sc i . 372892. and N . Hinman. Finn-Targhee lambs.

1973. Body and carcass composition of Targhee and

Totusek, R . 1973. Beef c a t t l e type f o r maxirmun eff ic iency. In F. Baker (ea.). Great Plains Beef S p p . Univ. of Nebr. L incoc . p , C-1.

nUna, H . J. 19-70. A repor t on re ta i l beef purchasing trends . h i m . Sci . and Industry Dept. Kansas S ta t e Univ., Manhattan.

U.S. Meat Animal Research Center. 1974. Progress Report. G e r m plasm evaluation program. ARS, USDA, Clay Center, Nebraska.

Urick, J. J. 1972. Bulls vs . steers--growth and carcass performance. U .S . Range Livestock Exp. S ta ., Miles City, Beef c a t t l e Field Day.

Montana. p . 1.

Warwick, E . J. 1973. Future ro l e of Simmental, Limousin and other new

Univ. of breeds i n the United S ta tes beef production. I n M. Koger, T. C u n h a and A . Warnick (ed.) . Florida Press, Gainesville, Flor ida.

Crossbreeding Beef Cat t le Ser ies 2 .

Wilmore, R . 1972. Bigger l i t ters, b e t t e r carcasses through exotic hogs . Farm Journal, Feb . 1972. p . H - 6 .

Wood, J. D . 1973. The f a t t y acid composition of backfat from P ie t r a in h i m . Prod. 17281. and Large White pigs.

Ziegler, J. H., L . L. Wilson and D. S. Coble. 1971. Comparisons of cer ta in carcass t r a i t s of severa l breeds and crosses of c a t t l e . J. A n a . Sc i . 32:446.

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Mike Dikeman: These presentations, I think, were very in t e re s t ing . I ' d l i k e t o ask each speaker t 3 come up t 3 the stage, both the people e a r l i e r this morning and then a f t e r break, we w i l l en te r ta in s3me questions thstt y m might have.

Are there any questions from the conference members? I know we are pushing c b s e t o t h a t lunch time, but the l igh t ing s i tua t ion messed us up a l i t t l e b i t on time, so I thought we should take a l i t t l e b i t of time f o r questions. Ok, Bob.

B3b Kauffman: I would l i k e t o make a comment o r cmcern about Gene A l l e n ' s presentation. This i s a cr i t ic ism, Gene, so you ' l l know exactly where I stand on it.

Gene Allen: Not unusual, Bob.

Bob Kauffman: I t ' s concerning some of t h e data which you in t e r -

Would you l i k e t o say a l i t t l e b i t m3re about preted from Wisconsin. You've l e f t the impression t h a t hyperplasia continues post-natal ly . what you think about t ha t and j u s t what posi t ive proof you have that there i s hyperplasia i n post-natal s i tuat ions?

Gene Allen: I s t h i s i n f a t t h a t you are ta lk ing about? Ok. A s I indicated based upon the evidence we have, we believe tha t t h i s i s one of t he p o s s i b i l i t i e s . N ~ w , one of the things we'd l i k e t o do i s t o do sDme labeled work with thimadine t o ac tua l ly ve r i fy t h a t hyperplasia i s s t i l l going on. But I th ink that when we ge t these biphasic d is t r ibu t ions of c e l l types with t h i s Coulter technique of counting and we can ac tua l ly see t h a t i n these six c e l l s t h a t we r e a l l y do have some small c e l l s , t ha t this biphasic type of d i s t r ibu t ion can be explained i n t he following manner, and t h a t i s the o r ig ina l population of c e l l s have undergme hypertrophy and moved up in to the la rger diameter ranges; and t h a t t he new population of c e l l s we see a t t h e l i m i t of detection beginning a t 25 microns could be c e l l s t h a t a r e j u s t recent ly formed and a re beginning then t o undergo hypertrophy.

Bob Kauffman: Thank you, Gene. I would l i k e t o say t h a t I agree t h a t t h i s i s one population, but it l e f t me with the fee l ing t h a t you thought t h a t hyperplasia was de f in i t e ly occuring and a l l t he work t h a t we have d m e t o t h i s point with thimadine suggests t h a t it does not occur and t h a t these t i n y adipocytes may not be adipose c e l l s mature as you might describe, but a r e s t i l l there , and may s t i l l be there a t b i r t h , and may be exactly l i k e muscle f i b e r s i n t h a t anything t h a t we see i n an increase i s an increase i n s i ze rather than i n numbers.

Gene Allen: So t h a t there i s a c r i t i c a l f ac to r between here and up t o the 25 microns i s bas i ca l ly what you're saying, t h a t when they a r e smaller than t h a t , then we don't see them p r io r t o t h a t time.

Bob Kauffman: Yes, and I th ink that perhaps one of t he reasons i s simply on technique, and I ce r t a in ly can ' t prove my point, and I r e a l l y a m not sure a t t h i s point and I th ink t h a t perhaps this i s a consideration t h a t w e need t o pay a t t en t ion t o concerning whether there i s any mitosis going on a t a l l a f t e r b i r t h .

95

Mike Dikeman: Are there any other questions?

Ray Field: About 5 or 6 years ago a t t h i s conference we had a gentleman from biisconsin wha had studied f a t c e l l development ra ther extensively, and he was ta lk ing about being able t o possibly dis t inguish between what he cal led pre-adipocytes and connective t i s s u e . H a s there been fur ther work along tha t l ine? adipocytes as they were described a t t h a t time? s t a r t with?

Can anybody now dis t inguish pre- What's h i s name t o

It was i n the proceedings about 4 o r 5 years ago.

Gene Allen: As fa r as I know, Ray, the answer i s no. Bob Kauffman i s working i n t h a t area. Can you dis t inguish a pre-adipocyte, Robert?

Perhaps he can fur ther enlighten us .

Could I ask Ray a question, and that w a s with regard t o whether o r not i n these exot ic breeds, Ray, you had any i n d i c a t i m of w h a t we might c a l l poor water binding capacity kinds of things tha t we see i n the pigs? Any indication of t h i s kind of thing coming i n t o some of our exot ic cross c a t t l e ?

Ray Field: There were comments about the s o f t lean which we a r e a l l aware of and I th ink t h a t most of us probably f e e l t h a t there i s more water on the surface of the lean i n many of t he exotics vs . t he Br i t i sh breed c a t t l e , but t he answer t o your question is , no, I haven't studi-ed t h i s t o any extent and there wasn ' t much concern as far as the packer r ep l i e s were concerned.

Mike Dikeman: A n y other questions? Yes, can we ge t a microphone over here, please?

Harold Herring, Amour and Company: I ' m curious a s t o or ig in of t he word exotic and whether t he Europeans on the continent of Europe consider t he breeds t h a t we c a l l "ecotic," exot ic .

Mike Dikeman: Who are you asking t h e question to , Harold?

Harold Herring: Dr. Fie ld .

Ray Field: I was curious a s t o a def in i t ion f o r t h a t too . Now you ' l l not ice t h a t i n my questionnaire I specif ied pa r t i cu la r ly those kinds of c a t t l e t h a t I d i d not want considered exotic, and because of t he l imi t ed experience with some of the others, I instructed those replying t o consider a l l except Angus, Hereford, Shorthorn, and Holstein as exotic. I ' m not sure of t h e de f in i t i on of the word or I ' m not sure how we use it i n t h i s country. r e f e r r ing mainly t o imported c a t t l e i n to t h i s country. question, I 'd l i k e t o hear a def in i t ion from t h i s group.

I think as Mike was using it, he was I t ' s a good

Clif ton Swift, USDA: I looked it up, it j u s t means foreign, and the reason I looked it up, I went t o a conference where we were considering a l l animal diseases which a r e exot ic . wonder what's wonderful about a disease and f ind out it just means foreign .

I went home t o

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Mike Dikeman: I ' d l i k e t o i n t e r j e c t j u s t a thought. I tend t o evaluate something, l e t ' s say these exotic breeds of c a t t l e , a s some- thing t h a t has been impDrted, something new t o our continent t h a t has something t o of fe r t h a t we don't already have. some of these breeds t h a t come from England are not r e a l l y cmsidered exot ic , because they a re not t ha t much d i f f e ren t from some of the breeds tha t we already have. Bob, do you have another question?

I personally f e e l l i k e

Bob Kauffman, Wisconsin: Yes. This i s for you, Mike. Your data looked very unusual from the standpoint of compositional analysis; you indicated t h a t something l i k e 78 percent of the carcass was muscle and something l e s s than 10 percent w a s fat and 12 percent bone. describe exactly what t h i s muscle contained? of f a t ?

Did you Does t h i s include a l a t

Mike Dikeman: You're re fer r ing t o the Germ Plasm Project?

Bob Kauffman: Well, it w a s t he l a t t e r portion of it t h a t included up t o 78 percent muscle a s you indicated; I'd l i ke t o buy 10,000 of those c a t t l e .

Mike Dikeman: I ' m n.ot sure I can answer that thoroughly, but according t o percentage of f a t , i f there were only 5 o r 6 percent f a t , and a cer ta in percentage bone, I guess the other has t o be muscle. Now I can ' t answer t h a t thoroughly, Bob, because I don't know the complete background on t h a t paper.

Bob Kauffman: We normally th ink t h a t dmble muscled animals a re perhaps the leanest animals we have i n existence now t h a t we can measure composition on and when we get darn i n the 10 percent range, of course, t h i s i s extractable l i p i d and I ' m sure t h i s must not be. I ' m j u s t wondering i f t h a t ' s trimmable fa t from this product and the r e s t of it is a l l muscle, and seam f a t , marbling, and other things t h a t a r e n ' t removed by normal trimming techniques. can th ink tha t it might be because i t ' s very misleading under the present, unless y ~ u d idn ' t describe it.

That's t he only thing t h a t I

Mike Dikeman: I don ' t r e a l l y think I can completely answer t h a t . I ' m p r e t t y sure t h a t does not include any kidney and pelvic fat, but beyond that I r e a l l y can ' t answer the question, I ' m sor ry .

Yes, we have a question up i n the back.

Haven Hendricks, University of Nebraska: I was just wondering, Mike, i n comparing your y ie ld grades, your percent cu tab i l i ty , on Charolais, Limousin and the Simmental, they were 56 percent cu tab i l i t y i f I r e c a l l t h e figures r igh t , and looking through t h e GPE report these same c a t t l e had a yield grade of around 3. With the percent cu tab i l i t y t h a t you give, these c a t t l e would be yield grade 1. Can you explain t h a t a l i t t l e fur ther?

97

Mike Dikeman: Well for one thing, I would disagree with you on the yield grades. I said t h a t these cuts were boneless but ye t i n t h e r i b and i n the short l o i n some parts of t he vertebrae were l e f t i n and we estimated probably a percent and a half o f t h a t cu tab i l i t y w m l d be bone from thsse two cuts . So tha t would shrink tha t by about a percent and a h a l f . The other explanation i s t h a t I th ink the y ie ld grade i s under estimating the y ie ld on some of these so-called exotic breeds sf c a t t l e .

These were around 2.4-2.5. One explanat im i s t h a t

Well, I th ink t h a t most of yc~u a r e indicat ing t h a t you would l i k e t o break for lunch. I believe t h a t Zerle or R . B . has an announcement o r two before we break. hard work. R . B .

I ' d again l i k e t o thank my committee fa- t h e i r

R . B . Sleeth: Thank you, Mike, f o r t h i s very excel lent program t h a t you have presented t h i s marning t o us . t he e lec t ion for di rec tors which you voted for t h i s morning, and the three following men have been elected: Petula and Robert A . Merkel. Congratulations t o each of you three gentlemen. morning, the executive board f o r next year w i l l be const i tuted by Steve Z3brisky, B i l l Kramlich and G a r y Smith. From these six individuals give some thought between now and the business session t h i s afternoon a s t o whom you would l i k e t o be the Reciprocal Meat Conference chairman because w e w i l l have an e lec t ion during t h e business session t h i s afternoon. I believe Zerle Carpenter has an announcement o r two f o r you.

Now I have the r e s u l t s of

Larry L. Borchert, Anthony W . I n addition t o these three , as we announced e a r l i e r t h i s

Zerle Carpenter: Jus t quickly, f i rs t of a l l , lunch once mwe t h a t funny sounding name there i s Sabetha. If you go out on t h e ground f l o w the re ' s a fountain i n f ront of t h i s place, you go d i r e c t l y north m e block, on t h e corner t he re ' s a large ca fe t e r i a . You go up t h e s t a i r s on t he west side of that building, you ' l l go on in , you ' l l see a room marked back there f o r M A reserved for us . So there w i l l be some of us kind of s t r o l l i n g o r stumbling over t h a t d i rec t ion . Also, there i s a question about breakfast , t h i s morning I th ink we handled everything a l l r i g h t . Some of you had not regis tered, now you're kind of on your own now, and t h i s badge i s your t i c k e t f o r breakfast . children, the t a g doesn' t buy them t h e i r breakfast , but they may go through one of t he other l i n e s there and the g i r l there a t the cash r e g i s t e r w i l l see t h a t she ge ts a l i t t l e b i t of cash f o r t h e i r breakfast . So, you m i g h t need t o t e l l your wives and children they can go through, but they j u s t h i t one of those other spots i n the l i n e . The luncheon today i s sponsored by the Texas Cattle Feeders Association and we have other sponsorships for the breakfast and this i s the reason we ask that those be l imited t o the professional and associate members. I kind of l e f t you i n the dark a while ago on announcements, I guess, but wives are invi ted t o the graduate student a f f a i r t h i s evening. Pick up your t i cke t s , please, before l:3O t h i s afternoon. Change on babysit t ing-- Frenches Wee Aggey Land Nursery is prepared t o handle your request; they have the phone number out a t t h e r eg i s t r a t ion headquarters. t h a t takes care of my announcements--anyone else? go e a t .

A question about wives and

Let ' s see, Ok. J i m says l e t ' s

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