Angus Australia says selection tools may help drive nuances to reward performance

Angus Australia chief executive Scott Wright said producers were currently rewarded through market access, with processors favouring producers who consistently delivered a good product.

"It's not price per kilo, but it's giving them an avenue into a better market," he said.

"It's an interesting one. Over time will that be a bit more objective? Maybe.

"We're hoping that it will."

Mr Wright's comments came in response to the article "Breed society role a hot topic" in the August 10 edition of The Land, where a field day discussion questioned whether premiums should be paid in response to kill data, rather than the breed of the animal live.

Mr Wright said selection tools that used genomics, such as the existing Heifer Select and a steer select product that would be released this year, could see this change in the future.

"If we do a genomic test on a heifer and she's put up for sale, is that data valuable? We think so, and we think the market will reward it over time," he said.

"We're releasing a steer select product this year which will give producers and processors the ability to select steers and draft them into different market programs.

"For example, long fed or short fed based on how the prediction will work in regards with how they'll perform in the feedlot.

"That's coming in more and more, we've done some trial work with feedlots and they're pretty happy with the results."

The field day discussion also questioned the role of breed societies and whether they served commercial producers.

Mr Wright said competition between breeds was healthy and he valued breed societies' independence.

"I think as we get into a more complex world, with the likes of genomics companies, I think a breed society is a good model because it lets producers own their own destiny," he said.

Services offered to composite producers were fairly limited, with the multibreed register sitting at less than 4000 of the 145,000 cows on inventory, he said. Having purebred cattle made it easier for producers to make selection decisions within their herd, he said.

"If you've got an Angus population it's very easy to make selection decisions within that population," he said.

"It's rewarded in the market because of meat quality and really it's the processors and beef owners that are driving that demand.

"If the commercial guys follow that market advantage then they start to do self replacing herds with Angus genetics then they can use EBVs from our seedstock producers to select and make gradual progress over time.

"Heterosis is a great thing and it's a free kick if you like, but we can make good genetic progress over a long period of time by making good selection decisions with your purebreds. Once you bring in other breeds you introduce some more complexity."