Do you agree or disagree with this?

[frostback]

http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1113331102/are-cloned-white-cattle-the-answer-to-world-hunger-021015/

 

[Gargan]

http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1113331102/are-cloned-white-cattle-the-answer-to-world-hunger-021015/

I didn't have to read any further than the first sentence of the 4th paragraph to call "B.S.".

 

[librarian]

Do cowboys still "chap" guys that are a pain in the neck? If I had any chaps, I would sure beat this guy with them.
If you read the interview with the scientist it gets really really annoying

http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1113331105/the-science-behind-white-angus-cattle-an-interview-with-dr-james-west-021015/

But, at least he got the part right about Galloways and black skin.
But I always heard that red was the most heat tolerant and UV tolerant color.

 

[Tallcool1]

I certainly agree with the theory of white or light colored cattle having a higher tolerance to heat.

As far as doubling world production in 10 years and Angus cattle being the most efficient feeding cattle, I really don't know. I really don't know enough about the global cattle industry to say.

A couple summers ago we went through a really rough few days with heat and humidity. There were thousands and thousands of fat cattle lost in that 3 day period. I didn't personally see any white ones dead.

When I was growing up my father did a lot of order buying. His ideal feeder cattle were white with black noses. They were Charolais cross cattle. They fed well and tolerated heat.

 

[mark tenenbaum]

His assumption that Angus beef is really angus beef nullifies the whole idea for me-There are plenty of hi grading x-breds that are heat resistant-and already pass as Angus beef t the feedlots full of Holstien steers that do the same thing and are way more uniform as groups.-And cattle perform when they are fed US Style in that kind of environoment-Not the way they feed them in Indonesia or whatever- O0

 

[simba]

His assumption that Angus beef is really angus beef nullifies the whole idea for me-There are plenty of hi grading x-breds that are heat resistant-and already pass as Angus beef t the feedlots full of Holstien steers that do the same thing and are way more uniform as groups.-And cattle perform when they are fed US Style in that kind of environoment-Not the way they feed them in Indonesia or whatever- O0

I completely agree with that statement, Mark!

 

[knabe]

500 million cattle in india that go to waste.


that would be an easy way to increase productivity.


funny that we needed to go black due to marketing.


funny that we need to go to white due to productivity.


really, it's all about numbers to select from, luck and serendipity.

 

[librarian]

Learning about Senepol cattle, it seems hard to believe the researchers extracted only the short hair DNA and threw everything else on the floor. Maybe it's just a terrible translation of a summary of the research.
According to Wikipeadia, Senepol is 90 percent Red Poll and 10 percent Zebu.
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Senepol

http://www.senepolsa.co.za/index.php?p=15
http://senepol.com.au

This looks like a Senepol / Murray Grey cross.
http://www.texaspur.com/Senepol-.html

 

[aj]

I always wonder about who is behind websites.......I always like to understand......is there a bias in the..............management.....for lack of a better word. This website also has what appears to be bashing the "Pink slime" product. It just seems like people think in terms of propaganda........and it is free speech........BUT what is "straight up news" anymore. You have the comedy central spoofs.....etc.

 

[librarian]

aj, you raise a good point. My first reaction was that it was a joke, like something from the Onion.
But I don't think it's straight out satire. It's some mixture of popular science and mental msg that is just true enough and just crazy enough to make you wonder.
pseudo-Science-Pseudo-Fiction, but the fiction is in the omission of information rather than addition of fantasy.
Probably its masterminded to get the reader to follow some other link that tracks the readers vulnerability factor.
I get stuck wondering How can this be, when the question may be Why.
The younger generation has learned to never believe anything they read whereas pre-internet minds are slow to abandon the idea that content leads to knowledge.

But, I learned about Senepol, which really are well suited for climate change. The Red Poll genetics in the Senepol closed herd are probably really good and representative of what the breed was originally. Maybe a 10% Zebu infusion into Shorthorn would be useful..
Here is another story from that site, based on legitimate research but reported in a stupid way.
Were dinosaurs tripping balls on LSD fungus?
February 10, 2015
Read more at http://www.redorbit.com/news/science/1113331260/were-dinosaurs-tripping-balls-on-lsd-fungus-021015/#qYjgGWcrCZ7rVH1Z.99

 

[Mill Iron A]

This is the most annoying thing I have read next to the angus association putting out propaganda about straight breeding commercial cattle. The reason you don't hear about charolais steak houses is because they are too busy filling CAB!!!! The stupidity and arrogance is more than I can take.

 

[Duncraggan]

But, I learned about Senepol, which really are well suited for climate change. The Red Poll genetics in the Senepol closed herd are probably really good and representative of what the breed was originally. Maybe a 10% Zebu infusion into Shorthorn would be useful.

We all know what a Shorthorn x Santa Gertrudis or Bonsmara does!

 

[huntaway]

But, I learned about Senepol, which really are well suited for climate change. The Red Poll genetics in the Senepol closed herd are probably really good and representative of what the breed was originally. Maybe a 10% Zebu infusion into Shorthorn would be useful..

In Australia there are a couple of herds trying to develop cattle better suited to their northern environment but still have eating quality and grade MSA. Yamburgan uses Santas in their Durham Tropicals And The Grove and Marellan are using Senepol. Here are links to their websites .Two sires at Marellan are composite, Prophet and oilskin.
http://www.thegroveonline.com.au/genetics.php
http://www.marellan.com.au/index.php/sires-and-semen

 

[Freddy]

It really puzzles me why there is not more of a trend in the summer to feed CHAR -X ,AND RED CATTLE during the summer month's ....Three year's ago around east central
NE. there were over 5000 head of black cattle lost to the heat .....Asked a guy what percent were black and he said any dead one's were black !!!!!!    Also asked about changing to more colored during summer and he said price and not enough of lighter colored cattle ....

 

[sizzler14]

There were some things I took away from this that i agreed with and some I agree with Gargans terminology of BS! The thing I did agree on was going in and altering genes and then cloning them because of what he said it takes 50 years. I believe it takes like 3 generations to see a difference in a specfic trait your breeding for in cattle, where as in the pigs you can do it essentially in 1 year. The beef industry now has to keep watching out for the poultry industry because they are able to adapt and change rapidly, and be able to get their product to market faster in a smaller area. So I agree with the altering of genes and then cloning them and then promoting the bull and getting semen out fast. Its a great idea because you can cut down on 2 generations of experiementing that in the end just may not work and you have to start over. I just dont know about the white angus! I realize the worlds population percipition is Angus is what GOD had to eat, but they're not the end all be all. If they were, certified angus beef would be 100% purebred angus, not just black hided cattle with a certain ribeye. But why cant we make herefords that excel with heat and other facits because of their excellent marbling? Why cant we alter the charolais to be able to finish faster (13-14 months), why are they only wanting the angus?? I feel you could alter multiple breeds and improve them to the standards we need. I understand the white shorthair, but I think this article and scientist has a lot of tunnel vision when it comes to Angus. It could be this is the first they've tried and Angus cattle were available to their disposal. I mean when they started cloning they worked on Dolly the sheep and then went to cattle. I just feel this article was published pre-maturly. I wanted to see Graphs and Stats proving this and proven justification, none of which they provided. I think they could be on the right track with altering genes, just maybe not the way their stating it.

 

[librarian]

Thanks, Sizzler, for making me think about this not as something going on at a University to justify grant money, but as a larger strategy. It looks like Big business to boost sub tropical beef production by introducing modified Angus.

This research is being conducted by CAG, Climate Adaptive Genetics.
From the site
About Us
Climate Adaptive Genetics is a privately held, Florida limited liability company, located in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. To date, the company has been funded by private investors.
The following facilities are available for use by Climate Adaptive Genetics.
Cattle Ranches
Lindstrom Angus ranch in Northeastern Alabama
WAG LTD ranch in middle Tennessee

From their site
http://climateadaptivegenetics.com/new-item-1/
CAG is a finalist for the $1 million 2013 Global Food & Health Innovation Challenge

Their advisory board has experience beginning with Monsanto and Dow, continuing to...
Under Dr. Caulder’s direction, Mycogen, Inc. had a successful IPO and was ultimately acquired by Dow Agro Sciences in 1998. At the time of acquisition, Mycogen’s market capitalization exceeded US$1.2 billion.
And
Dr. Caulder’s most recent success was as the Chairman of Athenix, Inc., a venture backed plant sciences company located in Research Triangle Park, NC. Athenix’s acquisition by Bayer Crop Science in November 2009, for $400 million delivered a substantial return on investment to its shareholders.
http://climateadaptivegenetics.com/about/advisory-board/
This is the management team
http://climateadaptivegenetics.com/about/management-team/
they proclaim:
Half the Time.
Half the Feed.
Twice the Beef.
Climate Adaptive Genetics will double the productivity of cattle by bringing
High Performance White Angus to sub-tropical regions.
CAB isn't far from CAG, just merge into Certified Angus Genomics and destroy the market for anything else.

But isn't the "white" in Silver Galloway a diluter gene?

 

[librarian]

Could this company patent their White Angus?
Would that make it illegal to use any progeny for breeding purposes?