A year and a half ago, in January, the AngusLink^SM program announced its partnership with IMI Global. Since that time the program has experienced tremendous growth and moved much closer to its goal of helping transform the way feeder cattle are marketed.

Before talking about all of the exciting things happening with AngusLink, it makes sense to take a step back and discuss why the program was created in the first place. The primary mission of AngusLink is twofold:

• The first goal is to simply put more dollars into the hands of commercial cow-calf producers, rewarding them for the superior genetics and management they have been providing.
• The second goal is to help build relationships between users of Angus genetics and other segments of the business.

Putting dollars in your pocket

Relative to the first goal of putting more dollars into the pockets of commercial producers, genetics have never been worth more than they are today. Indirectly, producers have always been rewarded for genetic selection, either by benefiting from those genetics directly (higher conception rates, more weaning weight, better feed efficiency, etc.), or indirectly by premiums paid by buyers benefiting from those superior genetics (postweaning gain, carcass weight, marbling, ribeye area, etc.).

The problem with our commodity marketing system is not so much that buyers do not understand the value of genetics. They simply haven’t had an objective, reliable way of measuring or knowing the genetic merit in a pen of feeder cattle. Without those metrics we tended to force prices toward an average, where the better genetics end up subsidizing the poorer cattle.

Tools for change

AngusLink created two programs — AngusVerified^SM and the Genetic Merit Scorecard^SM (GMS) — to help break this cycle.

AngusVerified was designed to help differentiate calves sired by registered Angus bulls, giving buyers certainty that when purchasing calves from a sea of black-hided cattle, they are truly purchasing Angus genetics.

The Genetic Merit Scorecard was designed to go beyond verifying sire breed to further differentiate those calves by describing the genetics with three scores — beef, grid and feedlot. Not breed-specific, these scores provide a ranking of genetic merit within the industry, with 100 being industry average on a 1-to-200 scale.

These scores allow buyers to buy with confidence, knowing the genetic merit for those calves and how they will perform in the feedyard and on the rail. Essentially, we are calculating an expected progeny difference (EPD) for a pen of feeder cattle, and it can be done by simply knowing the bulls who sired those calves and the genetic makeup of the cow herd.

The GMS is truly revolutionizing the way feeder cattle are marketed by creating that objective, reliable and easy-to-use metric that allows both buyer and seller to reduce their risk and increase their profit potential.

This summer AngusLink will unveil a score for replacement females. Called maternal, it will be available to Angus-sired females out of a cow base 75% Angus or higher.

Building relationships

In relation to the second goal of building and strengthening relationships within the industry, one of the primary objectives was to strengthen the relationship between cow-calf producers and their seedstock providers. While the scorecard lets you know where your calves rank relative to the rest of the industry, it also serves as a great benchmarking tool to measure your progress from year to year, letting you know if you are improving at a slower or faster rate than the industry. Working with your seedstock provider(s), you can identify your areas of strength and weakness, consider your goals, environmental constraints, management practices and marketing strategies to move your program forward from an overall profitability standpoint.

We are making strides in building relationships with buyers (packers, feeders and stockers) and providing a means to exchange information to improve the value of the cattle we are producing. The AngusLink program is truly a win-win scenario in which everyone profits by sharing information, and the industry benefits from increased demand through increased efficiencies and improved product quality.

A good start

AngusLink has experienced a very strong year and is building on that momentum.

The growth and acceptance of AngusLink has been nothing short of phenomenal in the last 18 months. Enrollments in AngusVerified and the GMS are up by 400%. Premiums last year were historically high, as well, with more than $18 million in premiums received by producers marketing their calves through the program.

Supply chains are actively seeking cattle that are AngusVerified and have the GMS. We even have a major packer, National Beef, for the first time ever, rewarding producers for their genetic selection by including the GMS on its U.S. Premium Beef (USPB) grids (see announcement on page 115).

New features

The Genetic Merit Scorecard was originally intended strictly to help producers market their feeder calves more effectively. As a result, it only focused on the terminal traits. However, there was a demand for a maternal score to help producers and buyers reap the same benefits of the GMS when buying or selling replacement females.

As a result, this summer we will be unveiling a fourth score for replacement females. This score will be called maternal, and will be available to females that are Angus-sired and out of a cow base that is 75% Angus or higher.

As the industry transitions into an expansion phase, this is a timely and valuable tool for both buyers and sellers of replacement females.

The number of calves that will sell through the AngusLink program is already running well above last year, and the excitement is palpable with the program experiencing more demand than supply.

Looking to the future

Increasing value has its benefits, but they are multiplied when producers can begin to capture and leverage the value of those genetics. It is human nature to point to the numerical success of the AngusLink program from a growth and premium standpoint. But I also look to the relationships it is helping to build, and the fact it is helping to differentiate cattle in a manner similar to what EPDs did for the purebred sector of our business.

Today most people wouldn’t consider buying a bull that didn’t have EPDs. In a few years, buyers of feeder cattle will likely insist on tools like the GMS to reduce their risk.

The American Angus Association Board of Directors made — and continues to make — a significant investment in the AngusLink program. Our directors saw what it would mean for cow-calf producers to move away from a commodity system, where everything was sold based on averages, and to provide a way to more accurately value our product while maintaining competitive bidding within our current marketing system.

AngusVerified and the GMS function much like the Certified Angus Beef^® (CAB^®) brand did, differentiating and branding our product at the consumer level. Ultimately, it created more value and more demand for our product while changing the way beef was marketed. Similarly, the AngusLink program was designed to reward ranchers for the investment they have made and to keep ranchers profitable while improving the health of the overall industry.

Our partnership with IMI also gives producers access to process-verified program (PVP) certifications and market access to supply chains utilizing claims such as non-hormone treated cattle (NHTC), all-natural and CARE Certified. IMI is the undisputed leader in verification programs. Meanwhile, we at AngusLink can focus on what we do best — characterizing the genetic side of the equation.

For producers wanting more information on AngusLink or who want to get the enrollment process started, contact AngusLink at 816-383-5100, or call IMI directly at 303-895-3002.

Editor’s note: Troy Marshall is director of commercial industry relations for the American Angus Association.