# Sticky  Comparative Rating of Cattle Breeds (1974)



## Ken Scharabok

At a used book sale some years ago I purchased a copy of Animal _Agriculture: The Biology of Domestic Anvils and Their Use by Man _ (1974) by H. H. Cole and Magnar Ronning, Editors. In the section on _Description of Animal Species, Breeds, Strains and Hybrids and their Distribution _ there is a table on _Comparative ratings on economic traits of 29 breeds of cattle now available to North American producers_.

The comparison looked at a number of traits as follows:

Cow traits: Age of puberty, Conception rate, Milking ability and Mature size
Calf traits: Preweaning growth, Postweaning growth and Optimum slaughter weight*
Carcass: Cutability, Marbling and Tenderness
Bull traits: Fertility, Freedom from genital defects and Calving ease (sire effect)

*Not used for below as I didnât know how to assign a fair grade to it.

Grades were given on a scale of 1-5, with one being the best. I know it is not necessarily scientific, but I added up the trait scores for an overall one. The lower the total, the better, in concept, the breed.

Hereâs how they graded out: #1 â Holstein (22), #2 â Simmental (24), #3 â Brown Swiss (25), #4 & #5 â Ayrshire (26) & Hays Converter (26), #6 â Beefmaster (27), #7 â #12 - Braford (28) & Devon (28), Jersey (28), Limousin (28), Maine-Anjou (28) & South Devon (28), #13 - #16 â Angus (29), Brangus (29), Guernsey (29) & Red Angus (29), #17 - #18 â Red Poll (30) & Galloway (30), #19 - #21 â Charolais (31), Murray Grey (31) & Scotch Highland (31), #22 â Milking Shorthorn (32), #23 â Hereford (33), #24 - #26 â Polled Hereford (34), Santa Gertrudis (34) and Shorthorn (34), #27 â Polled Shorthorn (35), #28 â Charbray (36) and #29 â Brahman (42).

Couple of interesting aspects. Straight dairy breeds took three of the top four places. Had the Jersey not taken a severe hit for slow growth, it would have been among the top finishers. All traditional dairy breeds were below the average. Brahman was far, far at the end of the list. However, two Brahman crosses (Braford & Brangus) did fairly well. Not included were some now popular crosses, such as Angus/Holstein** and Angus/Hereford***. On the carcass traits, as a whole traditional dairy breeds had an average of 6.2 versus the traditional beef breeds average of 7.3 (remember lower is better). The two breeds which had the best score (1) on tenderness were the Guernsey and Jersey. Here the Brahman scored a 5.

** Local beef cattlemen seem to prefer a black cow with a white bag, indicating a bit of Holstein blood, and usually indicates a 'good milker'.

***Commonly called Black Baldies (Angus bull), Red Baldies (Hereford bull) or just White Faced.

By function, straight dairy averaged 26, dual dairy/beef 28, beef crosses 30.8, beef (w/o Brahman) 31.4 and beef w/Brahman 32.3.

For those statistically inclined, the average score is 30 with a standard deviation* of 4.1. That puts the Holstein out at about two standard deviation (SD)**** and the Brahman out at about 3.4 SD. One of my statistics instructors said a good practice is to throw out the high and low score and look at the rest. When that is done, it appears to be a slight skewed to the left bell shaped curve with 15 below 30, two at 30 and 11 above 30.

**** I have read there are feedlots in CA which specialize in feeding out Holstein steers as almost all come out as USDA Choice.

Also note the average for straight dairy was right at one SD away from the composite average score. If I remember my statistics classes correctly, 95% of the population will fall within one standard deviation of the average. This would put the staight dairy in the upper 5% or so of the population.

Optimum slaughter weights given: 850 â Jersey, 900 â Ayrshire, Guernsey and Scotch Highland, 950 â Angus, Galloway, Polled Shorthorn, Red Angus, Red Poll and Shorthorn, 1,000 â Milking Shorthorn, 1,050 â Brangus, Devon, Hereford, Murray Grey and Polled Hereford, 1,150 â Beefmaster, Braford, Brahamn, Hays Converter, Santa Gertrudis and South Devon, 1,200 â Brown Swiss, Holstein and Limousin & 1,250 â Charbray, Charolais, Maine-Anjou and Simmental.

One conclusion which can be reach from this data is if you are looking for beef for your freezer, don't overlook the dairy breeds.

Here is a somewhat technical, but more current, research on the topic:

http://www.extension.umn.edu/dairy/holsteinsteers/pdfs/papers/ComparisonDairyVsBeef_Rust.pdf


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## james dilley

Interesting read, Thanks for posting it.


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## GrannieD

Great information for the homesteader who is encouraged to go with specific breeds ...Thanks for posting this ,Ken.. It is good to see the breeds compared.....GrannieD


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## Oxankle

Ken; 
I wonder what qualities they rated?

If this comparison were sound the industry would be heavily tilted toward dairy breeds, yet not a single grower (other than walmart) prefers dairy breeds for beef. 

Who, given a choice, would eat Jersey steaks when Angus was available?
Ox


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## Sun-E-View

Don't knock those jersey's we raise straight beef, dairy beef crosses, and jersey and the jersey's will be as good or even better than the beef. Don't knock them until you try them!!!!


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## Ken Scharabok

Oxankle:

I have been told there are feedlots in California who grow out almost exclusively Holstein steers as they almost always come out as U.S.D.A. Choice or better.

Have heard a rap on Jersey is the fat may be yellow. I also understand it is basically the same stuff which turns carrots yellow.

One study, almost mentioned in passing in the book. However, it does pretty well confirm what I have read elsewhere.

Also keep in mind it may not be the beef you cook as how you cook it.


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## ozark_jewels

Oxankle said:


> Ken;
> Who, given a choice, would eat Jersey steaks when Angus was available?
> Ox



My family would!! And many of our customers. We sell Jersey steers to folks who want the pure Jersey for the flavour. I'll take Jersey over Angus any day of the week!! :clap:


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## Oxankle

Ladies and Gentlemen:

If the market preferred Jersey Beef the pastures of America would be full of Jerseys. Size is not an issue; some strains of Jerseys have been bred to be pretty large already. Yes, Jersey fat does contain yellow pigment, but that is not a serious drawback--a matter of what you are accustomed to only. 

As for the Holsteins, that is a different matter. Holsteins are large animals, there are millions of Holstein bull calves each year for which there is no market but beef and they grow out lean. There is a huge market for such beef--I am told that McDonald's and many others in the fast food market buy this meat. 

Keep in mind that every bovine is destined to become beef unless it is a pet, or dies of sickness or old age. If you develop a taste for Jersey beef good for you, but the market will not support an assertion that it is superior.


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## Jennifer L.

It's just a case of the consumer doesn't like yellow fat. If you had a case of chuck steaks in front of you and some of the fat was yellow, and the rest was white _and you as a consumer didn't know why some had yellow fat_, then what would you buy? The white fatted meat, of course. You'd probably think there was something wrong with the yellow fat. 

Advertising is the key to all of this, and Angus has the upper hand right now. The buyers don't even want any colour cows now, they want black. So you can do local word of mouth but that's about it unless you have a huge amount of people behind you.

I've got Holsteins and was glad to see them rated so high, but I'm going to be crossing at least some to Milking Shorthorn this next year in preparation to going to a more "beefy" animal while still being able to milk them. When it comes time to go to an all beef herd, I'll probably get an Black Angus bull from a neighbor.

Jennifer


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## warrior

Dairy breeds are fine eating. Even though dad and I raised beef cattle and never dairy for some reason or another we always had a jersey, holstein, swiss, shorthorn (milking) around either pure or cross. Dairy cross cows could always be counted on to throw and raise a fine calf and always had enough milk. Some of the better eating ones came off shorthorn cows thrown to a good angus or charlais bull.
BTW the santa gertrudis breed has a percentage of shorthorn in it as does the beefmaster. The shorthorn has been used extensively in the composite breeds.


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## dmckean44

Oxankle said:


> Ken;
> I wonder what qualities they rated?
> 
> If this comparison were sound the industry would be heavily tilted toward dairy breeds, yet not a single grower (other than walmart) prefers dairy breeds for beef.
> 
> Who, given a choice, would eat Jersey steaks when Angus was available?
> Ox



I know I for one would prefer a Holstein or Holstein/Angus cross any day of the week. And midwest beef is almost always superior to the Texas beef in the grocery stores.


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## TexCountryWoman

I have a small herd of Hereford/Holstein based cattle. Some have small dabs of Red Brangus and Beefmaster too, but all have Hereford and Holstein. I am in Texas cattle country and people think me a bit strange because of my insistence of dairy blood. I have a pretty Reg. polled Hereford bull on these cows and with the mommas heavy milk production and the calves nice white faces and chunky bodies, my calves top the market. Sometimes strange is good....Diane


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## Bryant1380

Me and my father raise out holstein steers ONLY for our beef. We've tried a couple of beef types, and yeah, they're good, but you can buy holstein bulls _so stinkin' cheap_ and they lean out fine. 

Just don't shut them up and feed them out until they build their frame, or else you'll just be feeding bone. 

Fine steaks. Fiiiine steaks.


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## Ronney

Interesting reading Ken, thank you.

And brought to the fore again the discussion on Jersey beef. In another recent thread I made the comment that I would like to promote Jersey beef but wouldn't know where to start and at the moment, don't have the time. I eat nothing but Jersey but I'm in the position, like most here I assume, to rear my own and make the choice.

There would be, I think, two main reasons as to why Jersey is seen as unacceptable and the most important one is the publics perception of yellow fat. They have been educated for so long that beef should have white fat that they can't see it any other way as Jennifer pointed out.
The other reason is the farmer himself. The Jersey has a slower growth rate and smaller carcase weight. He could probably get around some of that by being able to graze more to the acre but the turn around rate would still be slower than if he were raising, say, Angus. 

So, how does one educate the public and promote this meat and is it possible for small farmers who are not wholey reliant on their farms for an income, to direct themselves at a niche market? 

Cheers,
Ronnie


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## ozark_jewels

Ronney said:


> There would be, I think, two main reasons as to why Jersey is seen as unacceptable and the most important one is the publics perception of yellow fat. They have been educated for so long that beef should have white fat that they can't see it any other way as Jennifer pointed out.
> The other reason is the farmer himself. The Jersey has a slower growth rate and smaller carcase weight. He could probably get around some of that by being able to graze more to the acre but the turn around rate would still be slower than if he were raising, say, Angus.


Also I beleive another reason most of the general public does not prefer Jersey beef, is that they are simply unaware it exists. Most of the people who buy meat at the supermarket have no idea what the different breeds taste like. They simply go by the propaganda, and that is(at the moment), that Angus is the best! 
And as you mentioned, Ronnie, the growth rate and carcase weight is smaller on a Jersey. Because of that, I have a feeling that Jersey will probably be a niche market for the most part.......


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## longrider

the beef lobby is huge, i worked on a cattle farm for a while in alabama. one of my church going girl friends is the advertising director for the Alabama cattlemans asso. 

one of her big programs is to teach kids across the state about beef and its importance in the diet. needless to say it is skewed towards eating red meat every meal- preferrably theirs. 

Winn Dixie had a big program about eating pure angus, unaltered with and unmixed. of course, we sold most all of our cattle to WD and yet we shot them up with antibiotics when ever they got a runny nose and when they came down the chute for various innoculations. 

its all about money. if you buy it from a store you get an unknown.


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## savinggrace

I just asked my city slicker husband if he were buying a steak in the grocery store; both looked good, one had white fat the other yellow what would he buy? 'The white...you don't see yellow fat on beef and there might be something wrong with it'.

There you go, the opinion of joe schmoe average consumer.


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## Up North

One breed nobody has mentioned is the Normande. It's a dual purpose breed out of France. I don't have any purebreds but we have been crossing them with our Holstein and Aryshire cows. We have butchered a couple so far and I have been very impressed. I never paid any attention to what color their fat is-I think it's white though. They have a huge frame and grow pretty fast. One thing I was impressed with this summer is how fat they get on grass. Our animals go straight from the pasture to the butcher with no grain. There meat is good and tender.


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## tinknal

The problem with jersey beef is not flavor or quality, it's size, feed conversion, and survivability of calves. Jersey calves are notoriously hard to raise on the bottle, grow slowly, have lousy feed conversion, and poor yield.

Funny that study didn't directly address economic issues such as feed conversion, and the cost of the maintanence of the cow.


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## ozark_jewels

tinknal said:


> The problem with jersey beef is not flavor or quality, it's size, feed conversion, and survivability of calves. Jersey calves are notoriously hard to raise on the bottle, grow slowly, have lousy feed conversion, and poor yield.
> 
> Funny that study didn't directly address economic issues such as feed conversion, and the cost of the maintanence of the cow.


True, they are not the most economical to feed out, just one reason jersey meat will always be a niche market and not embraced by the feed lots. But after raising bottle calves since I was 6 years old....I'll take raising a jersey calf anyday over raising a holstien. The holstiens get sick and give up, jerseys at least fight. Goats are easier to raise on the bottle than any calf! :happy:


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## milkstoolcowboy

Ken,

One caution is that if this study is published in 1974, it must be using breed information from before '74. The genetic evolution or progress of these breeds, particularly over a 30+ year period, is not inconsequential. The 1970 Angus is not the same as the 2006 Angus.

Second, the study just assigned ratings to these four general categories, but it sounds like you then took this data an imposed equal weights across the four categories. Most cattlemen would want to place higher weights on rate of gain, feed conversion, and carcass quality. This is what Tinknal is getting at. 

Third, there is no reason to believe that the sample is normally distributed, but say it is. Then the number of observations which should fall within + or - one standard deviation is 68 percent. The number of observations (percent of distribution) which should between + or 1 two standard deviations is about 95.45 percent.

In my experience, Jersey calves are tough little sh*ts and survivors, but they take forever to finish. Feeding out Holstein steers is not at all uncommon. I've had real good luck with survival rates of Holstein bull calves, but they are from my cows, not bought at the sale barn. You have a day-old calf, truck him to the sale barn, have him stand there a few hours and then haul him home, that's a lot of stress on any young animal. I've always heard that the frailest dairy breed in terms of calf mortality are Guernseys.


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## Ken Scharabok

I believe you are correct on the standard deviation spread. Long time since I took statistics. I agree on changes in breed. For example, today's milk line Hosteins are way, way different than say 1955. Then they were basically barrels with legs. Now they are breed for height and large udders apparently.


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## Ken Scharabok

Admin. action.


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## francismilker

Very interesting thread Ken. And also some good points made on the pros and cons of jersey beef. 
I do have one quetions however: I've heard that in order to become "certified angus" beef on the market, it doesn't neccessarily have to be an angus animal? I heard that rather the carcass has to attain a certain criteria based upon it's grade and marbleing. Is this correct anyone?


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## Jhuffman

I have never raised a cow. I just bought a 3 month old female holstein to put in my freezer. I hope I did the right thing. 
I'm planning on keeping her about 14 months.
Is the female meat as good as the male?

Thanks


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## Karin L

Francis--from what I heard, yes this is correct. CAB can be from cattle that have other breeds in the woodpile along with Angus. Just so long as the beef is considered premium would the marketing standard for CAB prevail.

Jhuffman, there have been studies done that beef from heifers isn't any different from that of steers. However the time needed to have them fill out and get enough meat on their bodies instead of fat is different than males. At 14 months I'm certain she's ready for the freezer now.


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## Allen W

francismilker said:


> Very interesting thread Ken. And also some good points made on the pros and cons of jersey beef.
> I do have one quetions however: I've heard that in order to become "certified angus" beef on the market, it doesn't neccessarily have to be an angus animal? I heard that rather the carcass has to attain a certain criteria based upon it's grade and marbleing. Is this correct anyone?


They have to be black and the CAB inspector give them the nod. It's a good premium on the ones that make it.


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## Ken Scharabok

Making a sticky again. Don't know how it fell off consolidated list.


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## metam

Hi, Ken and thank you for keeping this thread going! I am about ready to purchase a few cows to put on pasture (about 10 acres currently fenced) and have found polled hereford cow/calf pairs bred back for what seems to be a good price. (The calves are heifers). I am hesitant to go with this breed, now! My Dad originally owned this property and always had the typical white faced angus herd. These pastures havent seen any livestock for a few years. My question is: would I be better off going with a couple of the hereford pairs and then try to find a dairy bull for the next breeding? Or do the purebred polled herefords seem to do well with rotational grazing? I'm basically just wanting to get the grazing underway and getting the pasures in better condition. Hope I'm making sense!


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## Ken Scharabok

I recommend going with a black bull (preferably Angus) so you produce what are locally called 'Black Baldies'. Market seems to like them quite well.


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## metam

Okay, thanks for the input!


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## Karin L

Metam, Herefords will do just as well on rotational grazing as Angus or Angus crosses. Just so long as you have make the right purchase and ask all the right questions, they should be ideal for your situation. Since you only have 10 ac to mess around with, which means you'll probably only build your herd up to about 5 to 10 head, I'd rotate: Angus one year and Hereford the next, so that you could either keep the baldy heifers and sell the steers, or sell all baldies and keep the Hereford straightbreds. Or, better yet, breed Hereford to all cows and heifers and once you've reached your maximum herd size, breed Angus to them to get your black baldies. Beyond that is up to you to decide.


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## metam

Thank you, KarinL! Other than the issues with the pinkeye and udder placement are there any specific questions you would ask?


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## Karin L

Well, I would ask to see the sire and the dam, and to ask what the birthweight of the cow was as well as the calf that is at side, ask what where the average birthweights and weaning weights of the brothers and sisters of that cow are, how the dam and sire are kept in condition throughout the year (breeding, calving, weaning), how the cattle are fed relative to how you want to feed them (hay and grass only or hay and grain with grass), and any problems with calving, prolapse, and abortions. You'd really have to know about conformation to know what to look for in a good cow, and that's both with udder placement and size, feet, legs, topline, femininity/masculinity, gut, hindquarter, heartgirth, length, barrel, hip and shoulders. If you google "beef cattle conformation" (or use any other search engine you prefer), you will get plenty of hits on what to study in regards in this manner. You should also know about body condition scoring, a method of determining how fat a cow is in regards to fertility and feed convertability. Speaking of fertility, you should also ask what the rate is for having cows coming up open, length of breeding season and subsequently length of calving season. Also, ask to look at the calves he/she has and you HAVE to go past the point of their cuteness to see the quality. I'm sure some folks might fill in some details that I missed, but that's pretty much what I'd be asking about if I were in your shoes. Hope that helps some.


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## Karin L

Oh, and one more thing. If you haven't already, read my post on the thread "Hereford vs. Angus" to get a feel for what you're looking for if you haven't read it already.


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## metam

Thanks again, KarinL. And I had allready read your post on Hereford vs Angus, as well! I'm still doing my research, and since the polled Herfords I had found are 7 hours from me, I'm gonna start pestering some of the local farmers here who don't participate in rotaional grazing (not intensive, at least) to see what I might be able to purchase from them. Just gonna make sure I ask the right questions, now that I know what to ask  I'll certainly keep you posted.


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## Karin L

Glad I could help.


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## usguernsey

Jersey and Guernsey beef will rank at or near the top of any taste or tenderness test. The obvious drawbacks are that they don't grow as quickly, nor are they as heavily muscled as beef breeds. Jerseys and Guernsey produce beta carotene instead of vitamin A, which is then bound to the fat in their milk and their bodies, producing golden yellow butter, but also yellow sub-cu fat. The effect is not nearly as strong on the feedlot as it is when animals are grazed. But, with a little education about beta carotene, it would seem that yellow fat could be seen as healthier.


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## trbizwiz

I love my red polls. They are smaller framed cows, good milkers, good mamas, put on condition well on straight grass due to their low stress, heat tolerance, and smaller frame.


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## bigbluegrass

Ken,

Would it be possible to get the data broke down to the top 10 breeds in each catagory? Maybe you posted it someplace else already. I am just curious how the more common beef breeds finish in any catagory. They must excel at something? I would guess maternal traits, but milking is probably in there. Just a thought. I know this is an old sticky so maybe nobody else is interested.


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## gimpyrancher

Perhaps for smaller operations;

Taste test. Bring the feed store owner and manager a small roast or a nice thick steak. If it's good, others will hear about it. Giving a sample to a few key people that deal with a lot of other people everyday might be helpful. The local cop near the end of his/her shift? How about at the local farmer's market, giving away a quarter of a juicy hamburger at your booth? An advertisement for your meat that tastes great.

The only thing keeping them from buying your meat is letting them them know it is the best around.

We have no idea what kind of meat we're buying at the grocery store. I don't think most of us really care. We just need to feed our family. It'd be nice to know we had another convenient option and could support our local economy in the process.


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## mplatt4

if 60% of the cows in a feedlot are black they can advertise it as angus beef it doesnt matter if the are 60% non spotted holstiens or limies or what that is the rule I use to feed at a couple of big feedlots at night and alot of those so called angus cows were not angus lol


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## francismilker

Old thread but a good read for sure. I miss Kens wisdom and input on the board. I can still say with certainty I prefer jersey beef but don't have an easy time refusing any steak from any animal. I like beef!!!!!! It's what's for dinner.


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## Candybabye

Oxankle said:


> Ladies and Gentlemen:
> 
> If the market preferred Jersey Beef the pastures of America would be full of Jerseys. Size is not an issue; some strains of Jerseys have been bred to be pretty large already. Yes, Jersey fat does contain yellow pigment, but that is not a serious drawback--a matter of what you are accustomed to only.
> 
> As for the Holsteins, that is a different matter. Holsteins are large animals, there are millions of Holstein bull calves each year for which there is no market but beef and they grow out lean. There is a huge market for such beef--I am told that McDonald's and many others in the fast food market buy this meat.
> 
> Keep in mind that every bovine is destined to become beef unless it is a pet, or dies of sickness or old age. If you develop a taste for Jersey beef good for you, but the market will not support an assertion that it is superior.


I think a lot of it is "marketing". The average American, aka Joe Q Public, thinks of Holsteins as dairy cows and their minds don't make the connection that they can also be for beef. Just as they think of lambs as meat and goats as pets. Goat meat is very good. Just as they turn their noses up at rabbit because they're "pets", worse guinea pigs. 

So much of what people choose to eat is marketing and culture and the American culture has moved far from eating "real" food and knowing that what we eat actually comes from animals. 
:shrug:


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## Jimoutside

Most beef is good, show me a breed that has bad beef! (Maybe somebody knows?)

I've always suspected that some big breeds like Charolais known for their lean beef might not taste as good as some of the well-marbled breeds. But I've never had the chance to knowingly sample Charolais, or anything other than Holstein and of course the CAB.

I've been told that Scottish Highland is one of the yummiest beef out there. Again, like the Jersey, you have a smaller animal that won't normally weigh out over around 1,000 lbs. 

I raised a few Holstein steers up but sold them before they got to market weight, because of personal reasons.

If I had the money to burn, my top choices for beef breeds (for personal use or local marketing, not national) would be Highland for northern climes (with possible crossing), and I'm not sure for southern climes, but maybe crossing longhorn with something meatier. For dairy, I believe I would look hard at Brown Swiss, and also raise up the steers for meat.

But I'm just armchairing here!
:banana:


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## ksfarmer68

I hear Watusi are not good for beef. Me i raise Gelbvieh. Great breed.


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## Okfarmer

Angus or Angus crosses all the way


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## farmerjan

This thread has been interesting for me since I have a good sized cow/calf operation. There have been several studies done over the years on tenderness and it is the "shear factor" of the meat. Wagyu are the most tender, then jerseys, guernseys, angus, hereford, and then from there I don't remember. Wagyu are the breed that was developed in Japan, there are actually 4 different "sub-breeds" (like varieties) that were developed in different regions there. The big thing with them is that they marble to the extreme and marbling is what makes the meat tender. Also they have very strict protocol for feeding them for what is known as "KOBE BEEF"... Australia is getting in to them and exporting the beef. Only beef raised in a certain area of Japan can be called KOBE but any meat from a Wagyu is very tender.
I have to take exception that jerseys are slow growing. I find that they grow just as well as any others, but they don't put on "meat and fat" like a beef breed. They are a smaller breed, they don't grow slower. In fact jerseys are one of the fastest maturing of the dairy breeds. I raise jerseys and guernseys for my own use, some from my own cows and some jersey calves I get off a couple of dairies. I find them to be tough little guys, WANT TO LIVE...the biggest thing so many people do wrong is to feed them too much milk in the beginning, then they get scours. They are LITTLE and cannot handle so much milk right off the bat. I try to raise them on my nurse cows and they can have all they want, it's just in smaller quantities at a time. 
Guernseys have been nearly ruined by trying to make them "milk wagons" which they are not. They used to be a coarse rawboned cow, and could survive on anything. Now they are so frail that it hurts me to see what they have done to the breed. The calves do not have a very good constitution and can get sick very quick. Also, they seem to have a higher percentage of bull calves so it is harder to get heifers to raise up. That is just my experience, and what I have heard around over the years.

Yes they have a yellow fat. It is from the beta-carotene that their body converts from the grasses and roughage they eat. It is healthier for you. That is why the slogan was "GOLDEN GUERNSEY MILK". It is also creamier tasting, but if you are used to 1 or 2% percent it will take some getting used to.
Charolais make fine beef. As do many of the beef breeds. I have heard Brahman cattle and Longhorns are stringier meat but have never eaten any. They are good cattle for mothering ability, and there are alot of the "Brangus" cattle marketed today. Most of that is in the finishing. One beef I am not too thrilled with is Brown Swiss for the simple fact that they take a long time to grow. They grow bone first and they are a slow maturing breed. I have found their meat to be tougher if it is grass fed and finished like my jersey and guernsey beef is. One thing people do not realize that it takes a certain level of maturity for an animal to marble; not just put fat on the outside but for it to actually marble through the piece of meat.
I don't kill any jersey or guernsey for beef until 24-26 months. And mine are 99% grass finished. I feed a little grain to keep them coming into the catch pen and friendly and quiet, but they are in no way grain fed beef. With the whole BSE and anything over 27 months you cannot get back any cuts that have the backbone or spinal cord, I try to kill before then. To me a grain fed angus at 14, 18 months, or what ever does not have the flavor I want and the meat is "tender" because it is immature. 
People don't "prefer" jersey beef because they are a basic dairy animal; beef is a secondary product. The angus assoc did one he// of a job marketing their product. Before they came out with the whole CAB there was actually a move by the Hereford assoc to market CHB but it was not pushed like the angus. 

Jersey /angus calves make a good beef, and the females make very good "beef" cows and their calves do good. They also will make a good family type cow, with enough milk for their calf and most families needs. With a little grain to keep their weight up, I will put a second calf on them since they make a good amount of milk.

Every one has their own taste preferences. I have a friend that hates "homegrown" beef as she says it tastes funny. Another was blown away with the flavor of some jersey beef I gave her.


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## soniaramberger

Good information


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## Green Barn

I can't stand a darn black cow...lol so ugly to me..... love me some shorthorns...darn good meat, nice marbling and I find them very easy to work...... America bought the whole Angus push, and it's really a lousy beev to me, like others said. Most of the meat certified Angus is not Angus....such a scam


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## barnbilder

Green Barn said:


> I can't stand a darn black cow...lol so ugly to me..... love me some shorthorns...darn good meat, nice marbling and I find them very easy to work...... America bought the whole Angus push, and it's really a lousy beev to me, like others said. Most of the meat certified Angus is not Angus....such a scam


I'm with you there. Shorthorns are excellent cattle. In Australia and in the UK, they are have promotion programs similar to Angus have here. My opinion is that they are superior cattle in performance and flavor, but one of the things holding them back here is their low numbers have driven them to be show cattle in many instances and that isn't always good for performance. It is interesting if you research how many breeds have shorthorn in their background somewhere. Even some of the continental breeds, when they were first imported, were bred up from shorthorns using artificial insemination, because shorthorns were the only thing we had that would deliver a calf sired by some of those breeds that were monsters back in the day.


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