The market for beef in the United States of America is substantial. Meeting this demand exceeds the capacity of local suppliers and some beef that is sold in America is imported. However, the country's most renowned beef breed is a local variety, namely Irish black and Irish red cattle. This breed has been developed at home in the USA, and these animals have an established reputation for superlative breeding and standard of carcasses.
The breed originated during the 1960s when a breeder in Iowa, Maurice Boney, started developing it by concentrating mainly on Friesian cattle with a minor presence of Aberdeen Angus ancestry. Some of the Friesian sires came from Ireland, which is the history behind the name. It has taken about 50 years for the breed to reach its present industry status in terms of its superior breeding potential and quality of meat.
Boney tried to make sure that the genes of his herd stayed the same as much as possible. He targeted homozygous traits, which are the result of both the male and female parent having the same gene for that specific trait. He opposed heterozygous traits because he was trying to ensure that his herd's genetic material was more consistent than that of other cattle. This is important because it causes more stable results in the breeding process.
Most of the individuals belonging to this breed have black coloring, while occasionally a red one appears. The standard of the hides is relatively high. About three centuries ago in Scotland, Scottish farmers crossbred English Longhorn cattle with their Aberdeen Angus herds to produce animals which were physically stronger and larger. This is a possible reason why some examples of Boney's breed have red hides.
In these breeds, a red hide is associated with a recessive gene, so many members of a herd might have carried it but not had red hides. This is how it may have been transported across the Atlantic. A mammal has two sets of genes for each characteristic, so a recessive gene is one which only manifests in the phenotype (physical offspring) if it is the gene for hide color in both gene sets of the animal.
The meat is tasty and well-marbled. Irish red carcasses receive high industry ratings, at about 90% Choice grade or higher. The meat is therefore suitable for sale and use in any area of the beef industry.
Cattle farmers pay attention to the breeding potential of the animals. The female Irish black or red cattle have relatively wider pelvises, so they do not usually present problems in giving birth. They exhibit significant fertility and their gestation period is also short, at about 280 days. This means that they can produce more offspring during their lifespan. Their udders are exceptional and produce much milk. The sires breed calves with a low weight at birth.
Individuals reach an impressive size. Calves reach between 1000 and 1500lb. The feed-to-gain ratio is about 5lb of feed to 1lb of gain. This ratio is an important consideration for industry operators since herds are mass raised to supply an immense market.
Irish black and Irish red herds are a demonstration of what can be achieved by natural selection in breeding. This is in contrast to genetic modification, which has recently arrived on the scene. Future developments will show how that prime piece of steak can be made tastier in the lab.
The breed originated during the 1960s when a breeder in Iowa, Maurice Boney, started developing it by concentrating mainly on Friesian cattle with a minor presence of Aberdeen Angus ancestry. Some of the Friesian sires came from Ireland, which is the history behind the name. It has taken about 50 years for the breed to reach its present industry status in terms of its superior breeding potential and quality of meat.
Boney tried to make sure that the genes of his herd stayed the same as much as possible. He targeted homozygous traits, which are the result of both the male and female parent having the same gene for that specific trait. He opposed heterozygous traits because he was trying to ensure that his herd's genetic material was more consistent than that of other cattle. This is important because it causes more stable results in the breeding process.
Most of the individuals belonging to this breed have black coloring, while occasionally a red one appears. The standard of the hides is relatively high. About three centuries ago in Scotland, Scottish farmers crossbred English Longhorn cattle with their Aberdeen Angus herds to produce animals which were physically stronger and larger. This is a possible reason why some examples of Boney's breed have red hides.
In these breeds, a red hide is associated with a recessive gene, so many members of a herd might have carried it but not had red hides. This is how it may have been transported across the Atlantic. A mammal has two sets of genes for each characteristic, so a recessive gene is one which only manifests in the phenotype (physical offspring) if it is the gene for hide color in both gene sets of the animal.
The meat is tasty and well-marbled. Irish red carcasses receive high industry ratings, at about 90% Choice grade or higher. The meat is therefore suitable for sale and use in any area of the beef industry.
Cattle farmers pay attention to the breeding potential of the animals. The female Irish black or red cattle have relatively wider pelvises, so they do not usually present problems in giving birth. They exhibit significant fertility and their gestation period is also short, at about 280 days. This means that they can produce more offspring during their lifespan. Their udders are exceptional and produce much milk. The sires breed calves with a low weight at birth.
Individuals reach an impressive size. Calves reach between 1000 and 1500lb. The feed-to-gain ratio is about 5lb of feed to 1lb of gain. This ratio is an important consideration for industry operators since herds are mass raised to supply an immense market.
Irish black and Irish red herds are a demonstration of what can be achieved by natural selection in breeding. This is in contrast to genetic modification, which has recently arrived on the scene. Future developments will show how that prime piece of steak can be made tastier in the lab.
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