EDMONTON – Colin and Fay King of New Zealand credit genetics from Canadian Herefords for their farm’s success.
Before the Kings imported their first Canadian cow in 1985, a graph of their genetic evaluation program was as flat as a prairie field. With the introduction of Canadian genetics, the graph line took a sharp turn upward.
“As soon as we introduced Canadian genetics, it skyrocketed,” said Colin, who has travelled to Canada 11 times in search of livestock genetics.
The calves’ birth weights stayed the same, but the milking and growth rates increased dramatically, Fay said during a stop at Farmfair International in Edmonton in search of more Canadian Hereford genetics.
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Recently a group of two-year-old heifers culled from the Kings’ herd had an average dressed weight of 300 kilograms and a 71 percent dressing percentage, the highest yield measured at the packing plant dedicated to the Hereford Prime program, New Zealand’s branded beef program.
Gordon Stephenson, general manager of the Canadian Hereford Association, recently travelled to New Zealand and Australia to help identify producers who were likely to use Canadian genetics.
“My role is to promote international market development,” said Stephenson, who added there is an untapped market for Canadian Hereford genetics overseas.
The Kings are spending five weeks in Western Canada touring farms, attending production sales and attending Farmfair and Canadian Western Agribition in Regina.
Colin said some animals have already caught his eye, but he hasn’t spent his money yet.
On his last trip 18 months ago, he bought $10,000 worth of semen from Canada and the United States. This year he estimates he’ll buy about 500 straws of semen to send back to New Zealand.
“If we didn’t keep buying bulls to keep improving, we might as well quit,” Fay said.
The genetics exchange isn’t one-way, however.
Stephenson said Canadian breeders are also starting to look to New Zealand for cattle that are able to gain weight on grass as they place more emphasis on grazing cattle longer on grass and forage.
“The cattle may not have to go into the feedlot for as long,” he said.
