The Australian Wagyu Association (AWA) holds is annual ‘Wagyu Edge’ conference and tour in the Gold Coast, Queensland from 27 April to 3 May 2021. Featuring three days of inspiring speakers, a strong technical programme as well as branded beef competition and elite sale, you will find further information including how to take part online, on-demand or in person by clicking HERE.
WAGYU HERD PART OF NORFOLK ESTATE'S SUSTAINABLE VISION
Worstead Wagyu team L-R Bruce, Gavin & Alex Paterson
Brothers Gavin, Alex and Bruce Paterson have made some big changes to the management of the Worstead Estate, Norfolk, among them a new Wagyu herd. Courtesy of The Farmers Guardian, who ran this excellent three-page feature in their edition of 18 January, you can find out more by clicking HERE.
STEVE BINNIE AT BRITISH CATTLE BREEDERS CONFERENCE 26 JANUARY
BRITISH CATTLE BREEDERS CLUB Virtual Conference Tuesday 26th January 2021
Steve & Liz Binnie
Well-known Australian Wagyu breeder, Steve Binnie, is one of the keynote speakers at this year’s British Cattle Breeders Conference being held ‘virtually’ on 26 January from 9am. Steve runs Binnie Beef & Delta Wagyu at Mirannie Station, NSW, Australia. The title of his paper is ‘Adapt or Die.’ Drawing from the Binnie Family’s 120 years of stud cattle production, Delta Wagyu genetics, production and logistics capability must now prove itself across global supply chains, from Mongolian winters to deserts of Africa and everywhere in-between, says Steve. Delivering consistently mouth-watering steaks at the world’s best restaurants and now direct to homes, all starts with genetics. British Wagyu breeders may remember Steve speaking at the UK Wagyu Revolution Conference held at Warrendale Wagyu in June 2016. For the first time, the British Wagyu Association is one of the event’s sponsors with a limited number of WBA Members able to join the conference free of charge - please contact Richard Saunders on info@britishwagyu.co.uk if you would like to take part. Click HERE for the full conference programme or visit the BCBC website www.cattlebreeders.org.uk
WAGYU INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 10-12 NOVEMBER
Please click HERE for the delegate booklet for the Wagyu International Conference 10-12 November. With 200 delegates from across the globe, Day One certainly exceeded all expectations with the presentations reinforcing the position of Wagyu as a superior product. Day Two celebrates the Wagyu product with cooking demonstrations by four top international chefs, a session on the demand for Wagyu genetics, innovation in beef production as well as Wagyu meat as part of a healthy diet. Day Three will close with the technical sessions. Hosts are the South African Wagyu Society www.wagyu.org.za.
WAGYU ELITE SALE TOPS AT AUD$32,000
ELITE WAGYU SALE - WRAP UP
Females to $32k; Bulls top at $25k; Semen reaches $3,200
Here are the sale results from the Australian Wagyu Association (AWA) Elite Sale held on 4 November 2020 courtesy of the AWA Weekly News Update.
”The Spring 2020 Elite Wagyu Sale met with weaker demand from International and Australian breeders due to the economic uncertainty from the virus throughout the world and the US elections.
Several lots were sold after the sale as Sellers tried to meet the market. The strongest demand was for embryos from all Australian buyers. Demand from Canada and USA was best in the semen sales with three international buyers buying four lots. It was certainly a buyer`s market due to the disruptions in the world today.”
8/18 FEMALES
Gross $106,000 Average $13,250 Top $32,000
4/11 BULLS
Gross $53,000 Average $13,250 Top $25,000
38/58 EMBRYOS (9/14 Lots)
Gross $55,100 Average $1,450 Top $2,100
80/130 SEMEN STRAWS (8/13 Lots)
Gross $57,450 Average $718 Top $3,200
29/56 Elite Wagyu Sale lots sold
Gross $ 271,550 Average $9,364
WAGYU VIRTUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 10-12 NOVEMBER
The programme is now available for the first ever Wagyu Virtual International Conference 10-12 November 2020. Delegate places cost $USD 150 and full information can be found by clicking HERE. A number of high-profile speakers and representatives from the worldwide Wagyu industry will be taking part. Day One addresses the theme of ‘Wagyu International Development’ whilst Day Two focuses on ‘Celebrating the Wagyu Product’ with Day Three comprising ‘Technical Sessions’. Hosts are the South African Wagyu Society www.wagyu.org.za.
€30,000 HEIFER TOPS EUROPEAN WAGYU GALA
EUROPEAN WAGYU GALA – SALE REPORT & SYMPOSIUM REVIEW
· €30,000 Heifer Top Price
· Five-month-old calf makes €12,000
· Breeding Bulls to €11,500
· Semen to €3,600 per straw
· Embryos up to €3,600 each
Saturday 12 September 2020 saw the annual European Wagyu Gala take place in Muenster, Germany, with a high-achieving online auction grossing €445,000 preceded by a symposium featuring two international speakers: Scott de Bruin, Mayura Station and former Australian Wagyu Association President; and PJ Budler originally from South Africa but now more often found in Fort Worth, Texas.
Sale Spectacular
The sale achieved a full clearance with females sold to €30,000, bulls up to €11,500, embryos at €3,600 and a tremendous €3,600 per straw figure for five straws of Mayura Prologue, a son of the top-ranking Australian-bred sire Mayura Itoshigenami Junior, realising a whopping €18,000 for the five-straw bundle with a further five straws going under the hammer for €14,000. This was perhaps the headline price and eclipsed the AUS$4,500 paid for Mayura Prologue semen at this spring’s Australian Elite Wagyu Sale. Prologue has a marbling score EBV of +3 and an SRI (Self Replacing Index) of AUS$287.
Itsuko -Leading Price at €30,000
Topping the sale at €30,000 was Itsuko, a July 2018-born heifer with outstanding genetic heritage, from Wagyu breeder Alexander Looshen. Sired by Aizatzuru 10.201401, the paternal side is dominated by the foundation bulls Fukutsuru and Kikutsurodoi both well-known for marbling; whilst the maternal side boasts Itozurudoi, a sire for growth, frame and milk, as well as the 100% Tajima cow, Kinu Y385, coming from Blackmore breeding.
Miss Pepper €21,000 pictured with her grandsire Mayura Itoshigenami Junior, Number One sire worldwide
Next best female at €21,000 was the June 2019-born Ms Pepper, by the Mayura Itoshigenami Junior son, Peppermill Grove, and out of a dam with good maternal traits combined with top carcase figures. Seller was Marblelution Genetics. Mayura Itoshigenami Junior is the Number One ranked sire with an SRI of AUS$+343.
Third-highest heifer was another Peppermill Grove daughter, again from Marblelution Genetics, this time in the shape of Ilka, a January 2019-born in-calf heifer featuring bloodlines from two prominent Australian breeders, Westholme & Blackmore. Ilka sold for a healthy €14,500.
Two further animals made €12,000 apiece in the form of the five-month-old heifer calf Ms Kanitoshi and the yearling heifer Miss Reeves. Another four females made €10,000 per head. Two bulls reached five figures with the leading price of €11,500 paid for Mr Nikuru, a son of Itozuru Doi with his great combination of growth and marbling, sold by Wagyu DE. At €10,000 was the red Wagyu bull Mr Garant from the same home.
The trade in embryos was strong with a leading price of €3,600 per embryo for a mating of Sumo Cattle Co Michifuku and out of a Mayura dam with top 1% figures from Marcel Merz/Mayura Farms.
Averages:
39 Females €7,567
3 Bulls €8,833
73 Embryos €1,254
10 Semen Straws €3,200
Total Sale Gross €445,150
Symposium Review
Wagyu Breeders Association Company Secretary, Richard Saunders, writes:
“It was great to hear Wagyu cattle perspectives from one of the foremost Australian cattle breeders, Scott de Bruin, who runs Mayura Station on the Limestone Coast in SE Australia. This Wagyu operation was established in 1998 with the import of 25 females and 4 bulls and now numbers 8,500 Fullbloods marketing 40,000kg of retail beef per month. Exports account for 70% of production mostly to China, the Far East and Middle East. Key to the success of the Mayura brand has been data collection: DNA for analysis, 8-weekly weighings and carcase assessment for marble score, eye muscle area and rib fat with a big emphasis placed on identifying the top 5% performers within the herd. According to Scott, creditable data means minimum carcase numbers for sire and dam; consistent feeding programmes; and evaluating the performance of management groups. Profitability is the key strategy at Mayura with the specific objective being to reduce age to slaughter (24-26 months versus the Australian average of 36-40 months) but still maintaining a superior carcase. Scott recognises Breedplan as the most advanced genetic evaluation system in the world – this being the vehicle for increased performance and predictability. ‘Don’t be afraid of cattle that carry recessive disorders’ was a final message noting that these could be the best performing commercial cattle. By way of conclusion, Scott summed up his three tips for a successful future breeding strategy: a) get your data assessed by a third party; b) use high-accuracy performance-proven sires; and c) collect data and progeny test.”
WAGYU ELITE SALE 29 OCTOBER - MEMBER FOCUS
Wagyu Elite Sale 29 October - Focus on UK Breeder Philip Maddocks
Looking ahead to the next AWA Elite Wagyu Sale being held online on 29 October 2020, we focus on one of the prominent buyers at the last sale at the end of April, UK breeder Philip Maddocks. This article is courtesy of the August 2020 Australian Wagyu Update where it first appeared.
Philip Maddocks pictured with his father David
As with other prominent international buyers, Philip Maddocks shares the understanding that quality Wagyu needs marketing and education in order for European Wagyu beef producers to realise true reward given many British consumers are more likely to be deterred by the appearance of the higher marbling.
A third-generation farmer from the North-West Midlands, Philip’s grandfather and later his father were well-respected breeders of British Friesian and Holstein cattle – gaining reputation throughout the UK and the Continent under the Wyndford Herd brand.
However, Philip and his brother chose not to follow that path and Philip established a salad leaf business, a success in its own right.
With the dispersal of his father’s herd of 500 cattle in 2017, Philip knew that his father would miss the world of cattle, so searched for an alternative – and found Wagyu.
“The original plan was to have 10 animals and keep them in a field, but my father’s interest in genetics was piqued with Wagyu, to learn more about pedigrees and bloodlines. A meeting with a US breeder at a Wagyu sale in Germany ended up with a purchase of embryos using Holstein as recipients – we had to buy more Holsteins,” said Mr Maddocks.
The principal focus for Mr Maddocks is to establish a Fullblood Wagyu pedigree herd, to sell genetics, but he appreciates that producing beef will be the ‘proof in the pudding’ on the quality of those breeding decisions.
To date, he has purchased genetics from the US and Australia and owns cows in the US for the purpose of flushing, but acknowledges it is early days yet. Currently, there are 100 Fullblood Wagyu cattle on the farm.
For Mr Maddocks, the Australian Elite Wagyu Sale and AWA BREEDPLAN gave someone with very little knowledge or history with Wagyu a window to what is available and a starting point for quality genomics.
“The British Wagyu Breeders Association is still in its relative infancy, but as a UK member we are automatically members of Australia given the reciprocal arrangement that the WBA has with the AWA. Most of us understand that genetics are not the full story; phenotypes are part of it.
“Germany and the US tend to focus on SCD scores, but I aim to gain more balance across the animals rather than just focus on one trait. Nutrition will be the other consideration – what works in Japan and Australia may not be the perfect blend here in our colder winters. Time will tell once we finish some cattle.
“Establishing the brand is the other consideration. We will go under the Wyndford Wagyu brand for beef and genetics as it will strengthen our recognition and reputation, and educate consumers on what Fullblood Wagyu is, compared to some of the cheaper beef on the market that may have false claims about Wagyu content.”
Ultimately, Mr Maddocks aims to sell Wagyu genetics throughout Europe and the Middle East.
Now with two sales per year, AWA’s next Elite Wagyu Sale will be held online on 29 October 2020. The most recent sale held on 30 April 2020 performed strongly with 63 of the 96 lots sold to a total gross of AUS$1.31 Million. Vendors and bidders participated from around the world with 146 bidders from 11 countries registered for the online auction with 10 of the 20 female lots sold overseas to a top of AUS$105,000 to US breeder Jeremy Freer of Double 8 Cattle Company. Two polled Wagyu purebred heifers sold to a Swiss buyer for AUS$65k & 62k who purchased a further 6 lots. Overall, 6 lots went to the UK and a further 6 to the USA. Look out in due course for catalogue on www.wagyu.org.au.
FULLBLOOD REGISTRATION GUIDE PUBLISHED
The British Wagyu Breeders Association has today published a Members’ Guide to registering Fullblood Wagyu animals, and has been put together in partnership with the Australian Wagyu Association, Neogen & Caisley Tag. For the full step-by-step guide please click HERE or check out THE BREED/REGISTRATIONS section on the website.
NEW BRITISH WAGYU ASSURANCE SCHEME
NEW BRITISH WAGYU ASSURANCE SCHEME LAUNCHED
New British Wagyu assured logo
A new British Wagyu Assurance Scheme - due to start from 1st July 2020 - has been established by the Wagyu Breeders Association (WBA). With a branded tissue punch ear tag and sire verification at its core, the novel scheme unites all parts of the supply chain in assuring the integrity of the British Wagyu brand.
All rearers, growers, finishers, processors and retailers will benefit from membership of the scheme as consumer demand for premium British Wagyu-assured beef grows – backed up by the distinctive new logo on packaging. It will be financed through agreements with the WBA’s major tag and DNA partners, from logo royalties alongside membership fees.
WBA Director, Chris Dickinson, North Netherscales Farm, Skelton, Penrith says: “This is a hugely exciting time for the premium end of the beef industry with customers demanding not only superior eating quality but also animals that are fully traceable and reared to the highest welfare standards. The new British Wagyu assurance scheme puts out a very strong marker.”
The principles of the scheme are:
All animals sire verified to a registered Fullblood Wagyu bull
Dams either dairy-bred or native breeds
All animals born in the United Kingdom
All animals tagged with British Wagyu-branded DNA tissue-punch tag
All animals DNA sire verified
All animals BVD tested negative
All animals whole-life Red Tractor assured
Minimum age at slaughter 24 months; no maximum age
No bull beef
The scheme will:
·Lead the industry in terms of traceability, animal welfare and consumer trust
Enhance the integrity and value of premium Wagyu beef
Be at the forefront of data collection for meat quality, performance efficiency and climate change
Increase the profile and demand for British Wagyu
The new Caisley British Wagyu branded tissue punch ear tag
Integral to the success of the scheme are data collection and analysis which will underpin the financial return on investment. With a world-leading partner in place to carry out DNA and genomic testing, and with access to carcase and performance data linking back to all sires, the whole supply chain will quickly have at their fingertips a valuable marketing and breeding tool to maximise efficiency and profitability as well as ticking wider environmental boxes. From the outset, these will include standard carcase information such as days to slaughter, DLWG, carcase weight, killing-out %, and over time will expand to key economic traits like retail yield and feed efficiency. In the short term, important management factors such as calving ease, birthweight, gestation length and (semen) fertility can be incorporated with the longer-term ambition being to add marbling (marble score and fineness), tenderness and taste into the equation.
Please visit the BRITISH WAGYU ASSURED tab for full scheme rules and how to order the various Caisley tag combos