American Gelbvieh Association President Rob Arnold and the Board of Directors would like to announce the hiring of Myron Edelman, Douglas, Wyo., as its executive director. Edelman officially begins his responsibilities August 1 and will be located at the Association’s headquarters office in Westminster, Colo.

Since 2009, Edelman has been with the Red Angus Association of America, initially as the director of value-added programs and most recently as the director of breed growth. He led their Feeder Calf Certification Program (FCCP) providing age and source verification and traceability for Red Angus influenced feeder calves, among other responsibilities.

Prior to his breed association work, Edelman was the cattle and feedlot manager for Wagonhound Land and Livestock, a 2,000 head cow-calf and 4,500 head feeder operation in Wyoming. A native of Sabetha, Kan., he grew up on a small grains and feeding operation. Edelman attended Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kan., earning a degree in agriculture education and animal science. For eight years, he taught vocational agriculture in Douglas.

“Myron has established an outstanding record for building demand for superior beef genetics, leading a team and establishing relationships within the beef industry,” says American Gelbvieh Association President Rob Arnold, Minot, N.D.

Edelman may be contacted at 303-465-2333 or by email at myrone@gelbvieh.org.

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The American Gelbvieh Association is proud to honor nine members from Nebraska, Kansas, North Dakota, Nevada, Missouri and Ohio for achieving Bronze, Silver or Gold status for the association’s Gelbvieh Performance Advantage program for the 2013 management year.

The Gelbvieh Performance Advantage (GPA) program was initiated in 2009 and recognizes AGA members who promote the performance aspects of their program through data collection. Nine members were recognized for the 2013 management year including two being honored with gold status, two with silver status, and five members being honored with bronze status.

The GPA program is unique within the seedstock industry and provides a tool for Gelbvieh producers, both small and large, to be recognized on records kept and data recorded in the previous calendar year.

“Participating members use the GPA program as a way to enhance customer experience as they provide a value-added service with the data they collect from their breeding program,” said Susan Willmon, American Gelbvieh Association director of breed improvement.

To attain GPA status, the AGA member must record performance data, use sires that meet or exceed established performance criteria, and implement technologies such as DNA testing, ultrasound, and A.I. in their programs.

In order for a member to achieve GPA Gold status, producers must collect and submit data on the highest percentage of performance data points. These herds practice A.I. breeding, DNA testing on calves and select sires to enhance breed improvement goals. Attaining this level requires 300 points.

Attaining GPA Silver status requires producers to collect data on animals later in their production cycle, in addition to standard types of measurement. This can include complete yearling data on females and mature cows, ultrasound data and DNA testing. A minimum of 200 points are required to achieve this level.

GPA Bronze status entails gathering performance data above the minimum standards set for the breed. Typically, a mix of performance data collection, DNA testing and sire selection standards categorizes a breeder at this level. A total of 100 points are needed to achieve this level.

Congratulations to this year’s award winners.

Gold status award winners

• Ginger Ertle, Greentop, Mo.
• John Huston Cattle Co., New Carlisle, Ohio

Silver status award winners

• Jean McWilliams, Orovada, Nev.
• Judd Ranch, Pomona, Kan.

Bronze status award winners

• Cranview Gelbvieh, Minot, N.D.
• McClatchey Cattle Company, Palisade, Neb.
• MLM Gelbvieh, Superior, Neb.
• Rippe Gelbvieh, Hubbell, Neb.
• Sandy Knoll Farms, St. John, Kan.

The Gelbvieh breed has a well-earned reputation as a strong maternal breed. In order to quantify those strengths the American Gelbvieh Association has engaged in research and development of EPDs and indexes to measure maternal traits. The results of this research are the creation of new tools to select for maternal productivity in Gelbvieh and Balancer® animals. 

The American Gelbvieh Association has partnered with Dr. Mike MacNeil, PhD., of Delta G to develop the $Cow economic selection index. $Cow represents the genetic value in dollars of profit of an animal when retained as a replacement female relative to other animals in the herd. A higher number represents more profitable genetics for maternal productivity.

“$Cow will serve producers in selecting bulls that will sire daughters with stayability and reproductive efficiency as well as other traits that lead to profitability in a production system,” says Kari White, American Gelbvieh Association breed improvement data analyst.

The $Cow index includes several traits. The most essential of these traits are heifer pregnancy, 30-month pregnancy, and stayability.

The heifer pregnancy (HP) EPD predicts the probability that a bull’s daughters will become pregnant as first-calf heifers in a regular breeding season, expressed as a percent. A higher value of this EPD is favorable, meaning that a higher percentage of a sire’s daughters get pregnant as first calf heifers compared to other sires in his contemporary group.

Exclusive to the Gelbvieh Association’s $Cow index is the inclusion of a 30-month pregnancy (Pg30) EPD. The Pg30 EPD predicts the probability that a bull’s daughters will become pregnant and calve at three years of age, given that they calved as first-calf heifers. This EPD is expressed as a percent, again, with a higher number being more favorable meaning a higher percentage of a sire’s daughters will calve at three years of age, given they calved as first-calf heifers

The stayability (ST) EPDs represents the genetic difference, in terms of percent probability, that a bull’s daughters will stay productive within a herd to at least six years of age.

$Cow incorporates other traits that affect the profitability of a female in a production system. These traits include milk, calving ease, moderate mature weight and the ability of calves to gain. A female’s genetics also influence the performance of her calves in the feedlot and at slaughter so traits such as feed efficiency and carcass value are also included in $Cow.  

By selecting on $Cow, cattle producers will make genetic improvement on economically relevant traits leading to improved maternal productivity. 

Susan Willmon, director of breed improvement with the American Gelbvieh Association stated, “We continue to work with AGA members and commercial producers to create genetic tools that have economic relevance. $Cow will help producers to select more productive females to maximize profitability through their maternal genetics.”

For detailed information regarding $Cow visit the EPD Research page at Gelbvieh.org.

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