REGINA – A trip to Canadian ranches has convinced an English Angus breeder about the merits of black cattle within all breeds.
Jess Denning has been working with six Canadian Angus breeders as part of an exchange program in her role as Aberdeen Angus youth ambassador for the United Kingdom.
Her five month work study abroad concluded with Canadian Western Agribition, held in Regina Nov. 22-27.
Her 21st birthday was Nov. 25, which she celebrated during the Angus show.
Her family has been involved in the Angus breed for only six years, but she quickly developed a passion for beef cattle.
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The Denning family ran a dairy farm for generations in Somerset but switched to beef when the price of milk fell so low the farm started to flounder.
The family also has an apple orchard and sells juice, beef, pork, lamb and poultry in an on-farm store called Temple Farm Foods. The juice is named Temptation Apple Juice.
“A lot of farmers have had to diversify to keep the farms going,” she said.
Denning became involved in the junior Angus program shortly after her family added beef cattle. She was selected as ambassador from among eight candidates last year.
The exchange program offered an all expenses paid trip to the country of her choice, and an examination of international herd book registries convinced her Canadian Angus were among the most influential.
Denning is an avid show person.
She started showing chickens when she was eight and moved on to Jacob sheep, a horned spotted variety whose colourful wool is valued by spinners and knitters.
Her cattle-showing experience as a junior has not been as extensive, but her time in Canada expanded her abilities in that area.
She has been able to see the birthplaces of Canadian cattle that have been used in England such as Cudlobe Angus of Claresholm, Alta., Miller- Wilson Angus at Bashaw, Alta., and Belvin Angus at Innisfail, Alta.
“I got to know the people as well as the cows,” she said.
She was originally worried she might not get to see the Rocky Mountains but discovered that most of her hosts could point the range out to her from their front yards.
They also made sure she travelled to the mountains, where she learned western riding on trail rides.
She has come to appreciate wide, open spaces and Canadian style cattle.
Canadian Angus cattle are more moderate in size with deeper bodies. She has also been impressed with the sturdy feet and legs and good udders she saw in Canada.
British cattle are larger, which she believes is partly influenced by judges’ selections at shows.
However, she thinks that may start to change.
“It will be interesting to see in a few years if the cattle will be more like the cattle here,” she said.
Limousin remains the dominant breed in Britain, where the heavier muscled, lean meat carcass is considered more desirable. More producers also use the heavy, double muscled Belgian Blue in their programs to add more beef.
She would eventually like to import Canadian genetics to her family operation, which has 20 purebred cows and a commercial herd of 60.
Her trip to Canada also introduced her to Red Angus. The breed is not prominent in Britain and she had never seen them shown.
However, the black influence was an even greater surprise.
“Everything seems to be black here. I had never seen a black Simmental,” she said.
