Genomics fast-tracks breeding, improves accuracy and drives efficiency at Boonaroo Angus
Breeding a versatile and structurally sound animal used to take generations to perfect, however the use of genomic testing has been a game-changer for Australian beef producers.
At Casterton in south-west Victoria, Shane and Jodie Foster, alongside their children Claire and Tom, have been using genomics in their Boonaroo Angus stud herd to drive genetic improvement and boost efficiency in their operation.
“In the late ‘60s, my husband’s parents, Kevin and Irene Foster, purchased Boonaroo’s first 300 acres, and in the years since, we’ve built it to over 6000 acres of owned and leased country, running stud stock under commercial conditions,” Jodie said.
“We run about 3000 ewes in our prime lamb operation, and this year we’ll calve 600 cows in our stud Angus operation, which we’ve been running for about 25 years.
“We’ve been using genomics since its inception, and we’ve gone to a process where we TSU every calf at birth and utilise the genomics to parent verify every calf, test for any persistently infected animals (PIs) and make assessments based on highly accurate data.”
The Fosters’ objective is to breed animals that are versatile through all the markets and structurally sound.
“Generally, we’re trying to breed something that finishes easily, is very feed efficient and structurally totally sound because we’ve got very sandy soils down in this part of the world,” Jodie said.
“Our area down here is pretty reliable, even though the past 18 months have been pretty dry, and most clients are looking for something they can either put into a weaner sale or finish themselves on grass and fit into some sort of MSA grid.
“There’s a very strong grass finishing market locally, which many of the calves feed into from the weaner sales. We focus on genetics which finish on grass, while still being versatile enough to perform well in the feedlot.”
The ability to finish an animal on grass comes down to several key traits, Jodie believes.
“We’re using genomics to identify positive fat, feed efficiency, marbling and heavy carcase weight,” Jodie said.
“Because we’re in a self-replacing system, we also need calving ease and growth with correct structure, good milk and fertility.”
Identifying superior animals earlier drives efficiency
Identifying the animals that meet these objectives has been made easier by the genomics data from each individual calf, in conjunction with outcomes from the Angus Sire Benchmarking Program (ASBP) run by Angus Australia.
“The improved accuracy of the data means we’re able to drive the type of animal that we’re trying to breed by selecting certain data sets that would otherwise take many generations to obtain,” Jodie said.
“We’re able to fast-track our genetics and get far more information on structure as well as feed efficiency and carcase that we wouldn’t otherwise have if we were just doing it by eye.
“It drives genetic improvement quickly and that’s efficient in itself.”
Complementing this goal to identify superior animals at an early age and set their business up for success each year is their chosen service provider, Neogen, which boasts the largest livestock genomics lab in the southern hemisphere.
“Being an Australian-based company, we find they’re very easy to deal with and we get things done very quickly and efficiently,” Jodie said.
By weaning age, the Fosters can make an assessment with very high accuracy on what animals they want to keep for their stud program and what they will sell.
“We run a bull sale each year in February where we sell about 130 bulls, and we sell another 40 or 50 throughout the year in paddock sales,” Jodie said.
“The data we’re selecting on also allows us to choose our replacement females well before joining and be quite confident we have identified all the elite females.”
Animals whose genetic potential don’t meet the mark for the stud program, as identified by the genomics data, are sold commercially.
“Depending on the year, they will go to a store sale, or if we can, we’ll finish them ourselves and put them through JBS or Teys and look at the MSA data,” Jodie said.
“That’s always interesting, seeing what our own feedback is, and it’s fantastic to have some of those animals going through the system and seeing what they can do. A combination of 25 years of data collection, genomics and chiller assessment all adds integrity to the system and predictability of the bulls that we sell.”
