Raising the Bar
Targeting the Brand™ program helps commercial producers increase CAB® acceptance rates.
While Certified Angus Beef® (CAB®) acceptance rates are at an all-time high at roughly 35%, nearly doubled in the last 10 years, the Targeting the Brand™ program was revamped this May in hopes of raising acceptance rates even further, said Kara Lee, CAB production manager.
Lee highlighted how producers could breed and buy bulls for the brand in an American Angus Association webinar presented through Angus University. The webinar’s goal was to explain the Targeting the Brand program and how producers can use this initiative to produce cattle with the genetics to achieve greater CAB acceptance rates.
The push for higher acceptance rates comes from multiple years of selling more than a billion pounds of CAB product and increasing consumer demand for CAB brand meat, Lee said. Of the Angus-influenced fed cattle not meeting CAB standards, more than 92% miss the mark due to insufficient marbling.
“We talk about marbling a lot at Certified Angus Beef, because we know it’s the number one place where Angus producers are leaving money on the table in terms of missing out on that Certified Angus Beef premium that the packer could potentially pay,” Lee says. “In order for those cattle to ultimately achieve a higher rate of Certified Angus Beef acceptance, we have to start at the ground level and make sure we are doing due diligence to select the right kind of genetics to start with.”
When selecting genetics based on each producer’s specific needs, there are so many different traits to consider that marbling is not always at the forefront of their minds, Lee said. This is where the Targeting the Brand logo comes in. It’s meant to be used as a visual to help commercial producers identify specific bulls with the potential to help increase the CAB acceptance rates of their progeny.
Lee said CAB determined two measurements that most directly affect the genetic merit of cattle qualifying for CAB — the marbling expected progeny difference (EPD) and the grid dollar value index ($G) — and assigned minimum requirements for each.
Based on sire-identified carcass data from more than 8,600 records in the American Angus Association’s database, they identified minimum thresholds for sire marbling EPD and $G to achieve 50% CAB acceptance rates among progeny. The minimum requirements established to qualify for the Targeting the Brand criteria are:
- 1. Marbling EPD +0.65
- 2. $G +55.0
“Any registered Angus animal that meets the minimum requirements for both the marbling EPD and dollar grid index will automatically have the Targeting the Brand logo populate on [its] pedigree look-up on Angus.org,” Lee explained.
This means commercial producers can look for the logo along with the other traits they are considering when selecting a bull for their operation. Lee said CAB believes this program will help commercial producers continue to improve the quality of their herd genetics, and thus carcass quality.
“As we look at the future of Certified Angus Beef and our optimism behind the continued growth in consumer demand, we’re looking forward at where our next billion pounds of supply is going to come from,” Lee said. “In order to achieve that, we know we need to increase the number of those Angus-influenced cattle that truly cross the finish line in meeting all the specifications for Certified Angus Beef.”
To access Lee’s full webinar presentation, go to https://www.angus.org/Education/AngusEducation.aspx.
