McCraken's family focus on BQI Elite Bulls
David Rankin, CAFRE (Downpatrick)
One of the components of PART 2 of the Beef Quality Initiative is Maintenance of progeny of Elite bulls. An allowance of £50 per male calf pedigree registered into the herd is available to herd owners, who are members of a national beef recording scheme (Signet or Breedplan) and who annually register four or more male calves bred from elite bulls.
Bulls either in AI studs or used for natural service are classified ‘Elite’ for carcase or maternal values by the BQI Breeding Advisory Board. These bulls must be in the top 1percent of the national breed for desirable traits/indices - muscling or maternal and above average for economically important traits/indices – Beef Value. Bulls in the bottom 1percent for calving trait values do not qualify as elite.
Providing all the criteria are met, the breeder is able to claim the allowance on all male calves pedigree registered within the herd in a qualifying year, even if some of the calves are not from elite bulls. This will facilitate linkages and comparisons between the progeny from elite stock and their contemporaries.
Henry McCracken and family who run the Seaview herd of Limousin cattle at Ballywalter in County Down have participated fully in BQI. Henry and his daughters Hazel and Judith established the Seaview herd in 1995 after buying a cow from Jim Scott (Ardigon herd). Their herd is now well known both in the show and sale ring for producing top quality Limousin bulls and females. Last year they won the NI Limousin large herd competition and one of their bulls Seaview Umpire was awarded the best young bull born in 2003.
Henry believes that through careful selection and use of top Ai sires they can continue to improve the quality of their herd. They place a lot of emphasis on Estimated Breeding Values (EBVs) when selecting bulls. Beef Value, 200 day milk and calving ease are the three most important traits for them.
They are aiming to produce growthy muscular bulls with good weight for age, while their heifers must have size and have milk potential. When you look at the bulls they have been using it is clear to see the focussed approach to their breeding policy.
Table 1: Bulls being used at Seaview (Elite bulls in bold)
BLUP run date 16.11.2004
| Calving Value | 200day Milk | 200day Growth | 400day Growth | Muscle Score | Muscle Depth | Beef Value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Broadmeadows Cannon | LM2C | +1 | +12 | +24 | +1.1 | +3.4 | LM23 |
| Ocean | LM0C | +1 | +22 | +48 | +1.0 | +1.1 | LM29 |
| Ronick Hawk | LM3C | +6 | +20 | +48 | +1.0 | +4.1 | LM31 |
| Shire Milton | LM-2C | +5 | +22 | +49 | +1.2 | +4.3 | LM34 |
| Ronick Oklahoma | LM0C | 0 | +30 | +56 | +1.6 | +6.0 | LM37 |
| Seaview Sunshine | LM2C | -1 | +31 | +46 | +0.9 | +4.5 | LM28 |
| Seaview Samson | LM1C | 0 | +36 | +51 | +1.0 | +5.4 | LM32 |
Seaview Umpire shown by Henry McCracken and his daughter Judith – Reserve Junior Male Champion at International Limousin Congress 2004
Their most recent success was with Seaview Umpire. Sired by Ronick Oklahoma, he had a Beef Value of LM35 and an elite muscle score of +1.4, which put him in the top 1percent for the breed. Umpire was the Interbreed Junior Champion at Shorts 2003, Junior Champion Balmoral 2004, and Reserve Junior Male at the ILC in Edinburgh 2004. He made £7000 at Perth and joined the herd of John MacPherson & Sons, Inverness. This is the second bull from the Seaview herd bought by MacPhersons, who run a herd of 200+ suckler cows.
David Rankin (CAFRE) discussing their Signet figures with Henry McCracken and daughter Hazel
Henry appreciates the value of recording in improving his herd but more importantly he sees it as a very useful tool for commercial suckler farmers when they are selecting a bull. He says that through the BQI learning programme more and more farmers are now seriously enquiring about EBV figures.
Henry sells 60 – 70 percent of his bulls at home and half of these would be to farmers who have completed BQI training.