SG_USA_November_2019

American Red SGBI, RAAA COLLABORATION

By John Ford, SGBI Executive Director

DEAR SGBI MEMBERS, The American Red program, a

This partnership with RAAA provides a tremendous opportunity for SGBI and its members, and is a result of our memberships’ commitment to validat- ing animal performance through data collection and utilization of the breed’s DNA-verified genetic evaluation. Step Two in the development of American Red is on a three- to five-year timeline and will potentially expand the program by adding dual registry options and the possibility of developing a joint genetic evaluation and standardized EPDs. The leadership provided by SGBI members Tylor Braden, David Harris, Delmo Payne and Nancy Wunderlich was instrumental during the development of Step One. Program Specs  To qualify for the American Red commercial cattle program and accompanying tag, steers and heif- ers in the same calf crop must be sired by registered Red Angus bulls averaging in the top 50 percent of the breed for the HerdBuilder index (HB) or registered Santa Gertrudis bulls averaging in the top half of the breed for maternal and growth traits.

 Breed percentages on qualified cattle will range from 25 to 75 per- cent Red Angus and 25 to 75 per- cent Santa Gertrudis, with a small allowance for other breeds. Most qualified cattle will be red. However, color is not an exclusionary require- ment. Groups of cattle do not need to be fully red-hided to qualify.  Dams of qualifiable calves must contain at least 50 percent of the reciprocal breed, meaning 50 percent or more Santa Gertrudis when the calves are sired by Red Angus sires, or 50 percent or more Red Angus when calves are sired by Santa Gertrudis bulls. To verify dam-side genetics, qualifiable herds will sign a verification form stating that at least 50 percent of the genetic makeup of the dams of calves to be qualified is from the reciprocal breed.  The tag used for this program will be a unique, American Red-labeled tag issued by the Red Angus Associa- tion of America. Tagging options include dangle tags or EID/panel tag combination-nested sets. Calves must be tagged on the ranch of origin.

joint marketing effort between the Red Angus Association of America (RAAA) and Santa Gertrudis Breeders International (SGBI), will be officially announced and launched during the 2020 Cattle Industry Convention and National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Trade Show in San Antonio, Texas, early next year. This groundbreaking, commer- cially oriented, marketing program is designed to take advantage of hybrid vigor by maximizing the best traits of both breeds, providing commercial cattlemen with quality replacement females and feeders that hit end-point targets. This exciting collaboration will strengthen SGBI’s STAR 5 program and enhance the breed’s marketing opportunities. Below is a summary of the general requirements for this board- approved program. Please note, RAAA and SGBI staff are currently finalizing program specifics. Enrollment proce- dures, tagging processes, herd qualifi- cation specifications, Santa Gertrudis genetic merit scores and other informa- tion necessary for enrollment will be provided to SGBI members as soon as soon as it is finalized.

SEE MORE ABOUT THE AMERICAN RED PROGRAM ON PAGE 14 

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SANTA GERTRUDIS USA