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Red Angus of Today
The Red Angus Association strives to help produce the finest beef cattle on the market today
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Obtaining & Evaluating EPDs
EPDs are obtained from genetic evaluation systems based on Best Linear Unbiased Prediction (BLUP) theory. Genetic evaluation systems based on BLUP theory use performance records, such as birth, 205-day and 365-day weights, along with pedigrees, to estimate EPD values. These systems simultaneously estimate EPD values for direct and maternal traits, incorporate all relationships among animals being evaluated, and use information from correlated traits in multiple trait evaluations. These genetic evaluation systems estimate EPD values on sires, dams and young (non-parent) animals that are comparable across herds within a breed.
Information Used in EPD Estimate
An EPD estimate on an animal incorporates the animal's records and its parent records, progeny records and sibling records, the animal's genetic ability and the environment in which the animal was raised. To help separate genetic ability from the influence of environment, producers supply information about the environment in which an animal was raised through the formation of contemporary groups.
Contemporary Group
A contemporary group is a group of animals born and raised together under the same management. Producers separate cattle into contemporary groups by determining which calves were raisedin similar conditions and grouping them together.
Contemporary groups are also determined by sex, so heifer calves are compared with heifer calves, bull calves with bull calves and steers with steers. Calves remaining in the same contemporary group after birth must also be measured for production record keeping on the same day.
Whisnand Red Angus Farm EPD Definitions
Now would be a good place to define the categories of our posted EPDs for our cattle. Each cow has an EPD chart associated with its picture and description. Six EPDs and their values are provided for each cow. The following is a terminology listing of those values.
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EPD's
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BW
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WW
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YW
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M
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TM
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S
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1.3
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42
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75
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17
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36
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11
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EPD definition - The expected difference (in trait units, usually expressed in lbs. or %) in performance of a bull or cow's progeny when those progenies are compared to a progeny of a sire or dam with an EPD of zero for the trait in question. EPD values are relative. They do not indicate absolute levels of performance. Rather, they can be used to compare expected progeny performance of different bulls or dams.
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FCCP
In 1995, the Red Angus Association of America introduced the Feeder Calf Certification Program (FCCP) that closely interrelated and achieves unprecedented accountability in both the seedstock and commercial segments of the cattle industry.
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