Prime_Time_spring_2019

SEEDSTOCK MARKET ING AND PROMOT ION

Lisa Bard | Editor | lbard@blueprintma.com Preferment

T his is the inaugural “Preferment” – a column dedicated to thoughts, ideas, con- cepts and discussion about seedstock marketing and promotion. So why “pre- ferment” and not “market- ing” or “promotion”? Preferment is defined

should be marketed and promoted as such and put into the genetic pool for seedstock. So what gives seedstock cattle value over and above commercial cattle – many of which are still marketed as a commod- ity? While an animal’s base value is still its salvage value, the added value for a breed- ing animal comes in the form of its genetic contribution to the commercial producer or even another seedstock producer wanting to improve their herd through the addition of specific genetics. In order to ask and receive additional value for a seedstock animal over and above its salvage value, a seedstock producer needs to be able to prove its genetic superiority. Without pedi- grees and genetic information, there is no proof of its superiority. With this informa- tion, seedstock producers can produce and market cattle that will perform as needed and expected. Therein lies the value in the Akaushi registrations, pedigrees, data and DNA verification. The very first step to successful market- ing and promotion is to have a superior product. That begins long before you have anything to market and requires knowledge of your customer, your product, what you can and will produce, and how you’re going to get there. Growing up on a seedstock op- eration, I recall the lengths our family went through to produce a superior product. This was way before EPDs and indexes, and long before genomics was even a thought, much less a reality. Ours was a very extensive op- eration and the cattle needed to perform in some very difficult environments. Our goal was to make sure that what we produced could perform not only for us, but for our very demanding clients. My dad spent hours poring through pedigrees and data, planning the breed- ing herds and matings. The goal was to produce bulls and heifers our clients were looking for or to produce replacement heif- ers that we needed to improve our own herd. We collected as much data as 

as “the advancement to a position of honor or profit.” Isn’t that what seedstock produc- ers are striving for – the advancement of their cattle to a position of honor, which leads to a position of strong demand, which leads to an advancement to a position of profit? If we can’t make a profit with our cattle, then we will no longer be in busi- ness. The same goes for our customers who buy our cattle. If they are not profitable using our genetics, they won’t come back to buy more replacements or bulls the next time they need seedstock. The true ad- vancement of cattle to a position of honor or profit comes through the genetics created or developed through selective and man- aged breeding programs. Seedstock producers are genetic suppli- ers to the cattle industry, plain and simple. Our job is to provide genetically superior bulls or heifers and cows to other seedstock producers and/or commercial producers that will improve or advance their herds. Typi- cally, seedstock are purebred cattle that are registered through an association and have a pedigree that can be traced for genera- tions. Most also have genetic predictors in the form of expected progeny differences (EPDs) that have been developed through performance evaluation and data. Some, like the American Akaushi Association, re- quire DNA verification of parentage. Not every purebred beef animal is des- tined to be seedstock. Not every heifer is of quality to be a replacement female, and not every bull calf should be a breeding bull. Only the cattle worthy of being seedstock

Akaushi Prime Time • Spring 2019

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