July 5, 2011

Canada invests to enhance beef cattle quality

On behalf of Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz, Rob Merrifield, MP for Yellowhead, declared that CAD1.7 million (US$1.8 million) will be invested in the Canadian Simmental Association (CSA) for research that will benefit the beef industry by improving the quality of beef cattle.

"I think it is very important we put a lot of money into research across Canada," said Merrifield. "We have to stay in the forefront of the beef industry as far as moving genetics forward and being as competitive as we can possibly be."

The investment comes from the Canadian Agricultural Adaptation Programme (CAAP), which is a five-year, CAD163-million (US$169.7 million) programme focusing on the agriculture industry's ability to take advantage of opportunities, respond to new and emerging issues, and test solutions to new and ongoing issues.

The three-year project, which was proposed and partially funded by CSA, will use DNA and other genetic data to help producers identify, select and breed cattle that will improve fertility, meat quality and relative feed intake for the beef sector. The ultimate goal of the project is to make it easier for farmers to produce better breeds of cattle and improve overall quality of their beef.

"If we can make a better quality product and do it more efficiently and effectively as an industry then everybody has a chance to make some more money," said Bruce Holmquist, director of programming for the CSA. "As an industry, we have been through eight very tough years since 2003 and we have turned a corner now but we have lost a lot of producers along the way. Hopefully things like this will peak some interest in our youth and get them to stay in the industry."

With the CSA heading the project, research will be focusing on the Simmental breed of cattle, which originated in Europe and were introduced to Canada in the late 1960s. Slowly growing over the years, Simmentals are now the second most popular breed of cattle in the country. On a global market, CAD2.5 billion (US$2.6 billion) worth of beef is exported from Canada annually and the project will focus on ways to advance the quality of the country's beef industry making it more appealing and competitive for years to come.

"The average farmer will be able to discern what kind of genetics they are going to be able to utilise in their herds so that they will have less inputs and better out comes, that is really what it is all about," said Merrifield. "If we can do that in an effective way here in Canada, we will be on the forefront internationally"

Working with the University of Guelph in Ontario, Gensor Laboratories in Saskatchewan, Beef Improvement Ontario (BIO) and Livestock Gentec in Alberta, CSA will be releasing information on their findings through various beef sector groups including the Canadian Beef Breeds Council.