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FEATURE In the fall of 2019, Lakeview Hutterite Colony built a new offsite state-of-the-art cattle housing By Connie Sieh Groop facility for ET recipient housing and calving. attle developed at the Lakeview process to develop meaningful EPDs but DEMANDS FROM SOCIETY Hutterite Colony near Lake Andes, the North American Piedmontese Associa- In the general beef industry, cattle pro- CS.D. provide enhanced beef genetics tion (NAPA) has dedicated great resources ducers are today at risk of losing more mar- in response to consumer demands. Those to building the data based on real mea- ket share to other proteins (both animal and looking for a healthy dining experience are surements and professional performance vegetable) largely because the consumer savoring the high-protein, low-fat genet- evaluations. “So, we now have some very wants a repeatable and enjoyable dining ically tender beef from Piedmontese cat- effective, breed-specific EPD tools to use in experience plus a low-fat healthful prod- tle for their tables. Cattle producers are selection. We are even working on a new uct that they can feel “good” about eating finding significant benefits in raising these genetic evaluation for feet and leg traits to from an environmental perspective. Pied- animals as well. launch a breed ‘Structure EPD.’ Our focus cross beef hits all of those targets because According to Jerry Hofer, the genet- has always been, and will always be, to keep it comes from a genetic feature unique to ics of the Piedmontese cattle originated building better cattle from the ground up.” them, not tied to any feeding or process- in Europe as an extremely muscled, These efforts are all about producing ing regime. Hofer says, “At Lakeview, we coarse-shouldered type of animal that was better beef. By utilizing this Piedmontese are designing a better delivery-vehicle (Pied a far cry from meeting the American cattle- specific gene in a cross-breeding scenario, bulls) to carry this important gene into the man’s standards. After more than 20 years the increased beef yield plus improved cattle industry so it actually works for the of careful selection, Hofer believes they beef quality (low-fat genetic tenderness) is rancher—but it is the beef consumer who have now developed into a breed that is achieved in one cross-breeding season with really drives the bus.” earning the respect of the American cattle- no additional management changes. There Research shows Pied beef is naturally men, one rancher at a time. Hofer oversees is also a great deal of hybrid vigor gained low in over-all fat, especially the saturated cattle development at the Lakeville Colony. by crossing Pied bulls with non-Pied cows. fat that most consumers want to avoid. The “I felt it was worthwhile to devote time and Years of USDA research confirm that the small amount of fat present in Piedmontese energy on developing the breed as I recog- cross calves are born easily and are vigor- beef has a higher percentage of the “good” nized that this single gene could contribute ous. poly-unsaturated fats (omegas) and CLA much to a beef carcass and the whole In- “Our years of breed-improvement necessary for people to get from their dustry.” selection through NAPA have improved diet. Pied beef is also very high in protein, Hofer explained that from a phenotypic rate of gain and structure. But the carcass while also being genetically tender. So, it is a and overall functioning standpoint, the ani- performance, feed efficiency and the total healthy gourmet dining experience. It even mals at the forefront of this breed are now consistency of the beef product is where cooks considerably faster (25–30 percent very much Americanized. “We’ve made the Piedmontese have the most to offer the faster) so it has a great efficiency in time great strides to develop animals with a lon- beef industry.” and energy savings in the kitchen. ger, flatter muscle pattern that leads to a Hofer has had an influential position on The cattle have a Piedmontese-specific smooth-shouldered, nice square-hipped, overall breed improvement and direction myostatin-allele mutation, which is a natu- easy moving kind of animal that meet the for several years. As past president of the rally occurring DNA sequence that dramati- demands of even the most critical ranchers North American Piedmontese Association, cally impacts carcass quality. Hofer says, “In in today’s industry.” Hofer says, “It has not always been easy, plain cowboy language, the myostatin is a The low numbers of full-blood Pied- but it is great to see how far the breed has natural protein in all mammals and its func- montese in North America made it a slow come.” tion is to tell the muscles to stop growing. 80 Cattle Business Herd Reference Guide 2020-2021 Mother Nature occasionally allows genes to change, and if it is a positive change, the new variation will continue in a population. With Piedmontese myostatin, a natural mutation “turned off” the gene making it “in-active myostatin” and allowed for increased mus- cle growth. The calves are born with little to no extra muscle mass, but as they grow, they will continue to bulk up muscle mass (beef).” Jerry Hofer There are several variants of the in-ac- of the Lakeview tive myostatin gene, but the type found in Hutterite Colony the Pieds (C313Y) has proven to be the in Lake Andes, S.D. oversees the least problematic with the biggest posi- colony’s cattle tive effect on beef production. The North development. American Piedmontese Association is the first cattle breed registry in the world to montese specific gene. That differentiates tify trait leading sires, they have enjoyed a base their Herdbook eligibility on a specific certified Piedmontese from most, if not all, major increase in bull value and semen sales. gene. other beef programs in existence today.” In the fall of 2019, Lakeview built a new “All our seedstock Pieds, and all the Breed recognition along with demand offsite state-of-the-art cattle housing facility Certified Piedmontese slaughter animals, has grown by leaps and bounds, according for ET recipient housing and calving. Hofer are DNA tested to confirm they carry our to Hofer. The key driver has been the Cer- says it has been an impressive addition to specific type of inactive myostatin before tified Piedmontese Beef program, because the entire operation. they can be registered or marketed as Pied of the incredible success they have had mar- Production from the spring and fall beef,” Hofer says. “The value of this variant keting the beef product. The beef definitely herds at Lakeview Hutterite Colony results of the gene is powerful—providing more is well received by today’s consumer, and in 400-plus Piedmontese mama cows. “We beef per carcass with meat that is always it has become a challenge to keep up with use several hundred recipient cows in our leaner and more tender. You can take a demand. That drives the Pied bull market. embryo program. Our primary focus and piece of Pied meat off the shelf and verify With the NAPA programs, like the central- strategy with our ET Program is to develop through DNA testing that it has this Pied- ized bull performance test designed to iden- outcross genetics as that gives us the plat- Cattle Business Herd Reference Guide 2020-2021 81 gene that the offspring will inherit, being your cow herd over—just use Pied sires sired by the Pied bulls. You can use a on them and sell every Pied-cross calf for a 2-copy, homozygous Pied bull on any other nice premium. That says, there is tremen- breed of female and that crossbred calf will dous opportunity these days in becoming get 1-copy of the gene every time, which is a Piedmontese seedstock Pied breeder. FEATURE what gives the amazing consistency to the There are low numbers of seedstock Pied- beef product (tender and healthful) in every montese animals in North America (be- single carcass.” cause there were so few ever imported) and we are always in need of more pro- BUILDING A HERD ducers to build the next generation of Pied For those looking to introduce Pied- bulls.” montese genetics into their herd, Hofer All the production goes into the Cer- provides this advice. tified Piedmontese supply chain. The “A Pied bull carries this Piedmontese Piedmontese Beef/Lone Creek Cattle specific gene in a homozygous state, mean- Company’s calf buy-back program offers ing all calves he sires will have one copy substantial premiums on contracted cross- of the gene. With that gene present in the breds, and this drives the commercial-qual- offspring, it is science backed that the ten- ity-level bull market. derness and health attributes are there. In “Real seedstock quality bulls and fe- form to produce a dozen or more of full the commercial industry, if you want to males capable of helping improve the breed siblings of each mating and strategically se- capitalize on the premiums available for are in great demand,” Hofer says. “Probably lect the most balanced animals to advance Pied-sired calves from the Certified Pied- the same as in any breed, there are breed- not just our breeding program but to con- montese branded beef company, all you ing cattle that cost you money to own and tribute to overall breed improvement. We need to do is breed your good cow herd there are breeding cattle that will make feed and finish approximately 2,000 head of to Pied bulls (via AI programs or walking you money.

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