Agricultural News
American Angus Association Completes a Successful Fiscal Year
Thu, 11 Nov 2021 15:35:47 CST
The American Angus Association® concluded a successful fiscal year, packed with member-wide achievements and industry-leading advances. The year marked the seventh-consecutive year of more than 300,000 registrations, with an additional 143,305 recorded transfers. The fiscal year, which concluded September 30, tallied a grand total of 27,560 regular and junior memberships combined.
Returning to normalcy after a year of cancellations and uncertainty, production sales experienced record-breaking averages with a 27.4% increase in female sale averages and a 13.6% increase in bull sale averages.
The Angus family hit new levels and historic records.
"This business has changed in such a huge way in a relatively short period of time," says Mark McCully, CEO of the Association. "When you think about what we're delivering to the consumer today, we're delivering the highest quality product that our industry has ever delivered. In addition, we have more tools, better ways to describe feeder cattle and a progressive membership that has their eye on the future."
Angus Genetics Inc. (AGI), a subsidiary of the American Angus Association, announced new leadership by appointing Kelli Retallick-Riley as president. AGI celebrated a milestone accomplishment of one million genotypes, only possible with the hard work of Angus breeders who are willing to invest in the technology. The use of these genotypes allows enhanced accuracy and predictability of difficult-to-measure traits. AGI continued work on tools that improve the profitability of the beef cattle industry, including collecting additional data for the hair shed research expected progeny difference (EPD) and introducing new udder scoring guidelines.
One thing that remained constant this year, as it has since its inception in 1883, is the Association's dedication to its membership. This year Association members surpassed 20 million registrations, a feat that ensures the demand and value of registered Angus cattle industry-wide.
In efforts to keep focus on maternal traits and longevity, the Angus Herd Improvement Records program implemented the Inventory Reporting option. This simplified reporting method gives breeders the option to record difficult-to-reach traits while maintaining accurate herd records. Inventory reporting gives full credit to high-performing females, ensures a complete record of the herd, and provides insight on economically relevant traits. The recorded traits then serve as decision-making tools for both commercial and seedstock producers.
As a cutting-edge source of information, Angus MediaSM created the "Feeder-Calf Marketing Guide," a resource for commercial cattlemen using registered Angus bulls. The publication aided producers in their marketing decisions by providing tips, in-depth explanations of AngusLink SM and the Genetic Merit Scorecard®, commercial directories, and information on all process-verified programs offered through the Association's Commercial Programs department. With its goal of providing cost effective and quality marketing services to Angus breeders, Angus Media produced a record 491 salebooks and 424 breeder websites.
The Certified Angus Beef ® (CAB®) brand affirmed its quality standard with another year of exceeding consumer expectations. Combined focus on genetics and management lead to a record-breaking 36.8% brand acceptance rate. Cattlemen earned $1.7 million per week in carcass-based premiums and CAB marked its second largest sales year on record at 1.215 billion pounds. It implemented a #RestaurantChallenge to support the struggling restaurant industry and worked with more than 19,000 licensed partners in 54 countries this year.
With the value of Angus cattle consistently increasing, the Association configured its new advertising campaign to emphasize the power of Angus. With the confusion of black-hided cattle in the marketplace, the campaign illustrates the confidence cattlemen can put in the power of EPD data, documented pedigrees, and marketing programs with the purchase of a registered Angus.
As a nod to George Grant's arrival to North America with Angus genetics on May 17, 1873, the Angus Foundation hosted the inaugural Angus Day of Giving on May 17. The fundraising event included a series of mail, video and social media outreaches to promote the lasting effects of the Angus family. The campaign raised $14,000 of unrestricted funds, acquired more than 25 new donors and reached over 59,000 prospective donors.
To view the 2021 Annual Report with in-depth information about the year, Click or tap here.
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