Page 17 - NZ Hereford Magazine 2023

Benmore’s 598 hectares ranges from irrigated flat paddocks
(above) through to big hills for the cows (below).

Chris has seen enormous change over almost four decades of breeding.

“I’m probably more of a believer in data than I used to be. If you send to a bull to someone, they’re hopefully not
I think the Hereford breed has advanced a lot in the past 20 going to go and walk off a bluff. They need a good constitution
or 30 years because we have the tools to improve things we as well.”
thought needed to improve – the things you can’t necessarily While having an eye for stock is a good start, Chris is
see through looking at an animal. diligent in his collection of data and use of Breedplan to
“You can see a whole lot of things, but you don’t know its give him the information he needs to improve fertility and
genetic potential underneath the skin; whether it has a short growth rates.
gestation, or whether it has more or less milk, or whether “All sorts of different traits are measured – scrotal
it tends to be a leaner-type cattle beast or circumference, gestation length, IMF –
whether it’s got a higher or lower birth anything you might want. The way you use
weight.” “We’re trying that data is the important thing, and it’s
But while he’s come to believe in the to breed the very helpful.”
value of breeding worth scores, Chris says fundamental He cautions against trying to make
numbers alone are not enough when it changes too fast simply by choosing bulls
comes to selection. structure and with the highest EBVs for a particular trait
“You still have to have your basic fertility and because that could have an adverse effect
stockmanship. You need to be able to use all those traits on other characteristics of the resulting
that data in the right way to adjust cattle in calves, possibly structural, or related to
whatever direction you’d like to take them your basic hill things like fertility.
in, but you have to like what you see in the breeding cow Chris reckons it’s important to select bulls
paddock. should have.” that will gradually improve the breed, and
“We’re trying to breed the fundamental they’ve worked to breed animals with better
structure and fertility and all those traits your Chris Jeffries intramuscular fat (IMF), among other traits.
basic hill breeding cow should have.” “In the space of reducing carbon
He reckons the steep hill country his cows emissions, the Hereford breed has made big
spend most of their lives on is a prefect challenge – a way to strides in the past 30 years, becoming more efficient, and the
assess whether they, and their calves, have what it takes to sensible use of genetic data is the key to this.
survive and thrive in tough conditions. “We’re getting cattle that grow quickly and their growth
“If they have any structural defects or they have limitations, pattern is able to be managed better; they don’t necessarily
they’re more likely to succumb or tweak a hip or something just grow and grow into big animals,” he says.
like that, and it’s helpful for the calves too. The young stock “We can bring our cow size down but still have the same or
do learn how to get around hills. better number of kilograms going out the gate at a younger age.

Year 2023 HEREFORD MAGAZINE 15