14 Jul 2015

A Simmental stud breeder from South Africa advised farmers in Ghanzi recently at a networking session organised by Barclays bank to investigate genetics of cattle before buying them. 

Johan Styger urged farmers to refrain from buying bulls based on their looks, and counselled that they should look at a beast’s background information, including the history of its mother.

He said farmers should consider the value of the meat and the calves it may produce as well as factor in environmental changes since they affect the growth and fertility of their cattle. 

He said that while the environment influences the physical appearance of cattle, their genes cannot be changed. Mr Styger said the general component of a gene is passed on to offspring such as birth weight, growth and milk.

He said for farmers to make profit, they need to consider fertility in selecting their bulls. He said proper bull selection has a bearing on the production of live calves and generic improvements in economically relevant traits.

" Buy bulls from progressive breeders and ask for guarantees and after-sale service. Farmers should treat their cows as their employees and have a contract with them that details the production of calves. "

He said non-performing cattle should be removed from others. He said to determine optimum fertility, farmers must first look at the age of the first calve (AFC) and the inter-calving period. He encouraged farmers to benchmark on each other every year and come up with good management strategies.

For his part, the head of business banking at Barclays, Andre Potgieter, said they have a specific Agric Strategy focused on commercial farming, feedlotting and maize production.  ENDS