In today’s Beef Buzz, senior farm and ranch broadcaster Ron Hays continues his conversation with Mark McCully, chief executive officer of the American Angus Association, about AngusLink and how data-driven tools are helping add value for commercial cattle producers. McCulley says the AngusLink program continues to gain traction across the industry as buyers look for ways to manage risk in an increasingly high-priced feeder cattle market.
McCully notes that even with historically strong feeder calf prices, AngusLink-qualified cattle are still commanding premiums. “We’ve seen, continue to see growth in that program,” he said, adding that the AngusLink genetic merit score and Angus Verified claim give feeders more confidence when bidding. “They’re putting a lot of money in these cattle, so the more they can know about them, the more confident they can bid.”
He explains that visual indicators alone no longer tell the full story when it comes to carcass performance. “With 75% of the calves being black-hided today, that’s not as good of an indicator just today of how those cattle may or may not grade,” McCully said. He emphasized that AngusLink provides buyers added assurance, noting it gives “some peace of mind to a buyer that that animal may end up qualifying for CAB.”
McCully also highlighted continued innovation through Angus Genetics Inc., particularly in genomic tools for commercial producers. One key area of growth has been GeneMax, a genomic test for commercial Angus-influenced heifers. “They can take a DNA sample on those commercial heifers… and now today, the results include the dollar value indexes that we put on the registered seedstock,” he said, calling it a way to better align replacement heifer selection with bull selection.
Looking ahead, McCully says modernization of carcass evaluation systems and emerging technologies will shape the future of the breed. He believes the current USDA yield grade system is outdated, noting it “doesn’t explain as much of the differences in red meat yield as we’d sure like it to.” Beyond that, he’s watching rapid advancements in data and technology. “The advancement of the Angus breed for decades has been driven off data,” McCully said, adding that while traditional traits still matter, “there’s a lot more coming down the pike, and we want to keep our eyes open for that.”
The Beef Buzz is a regular feature heard on radio stations around the region on the Radio Oklahoma Ag Network and is a regular audio feature found on this website as well. Click on the LISTEN BAR for today’s show and check out our archives for older Beef Buzz shows covering the gamut of the beef cattle industry today.
