Average growth and carcass traits of the steers are reported in Table 1. There was a substantial range among final body weights, 958 to 1,643 lbs, and hot carcass weights, 519 to 967 lbs. Average daily gain for the group was 3.75 lbs per day, which exceeded the 2020 Elanco fed Holstein steer benchmark (2.80 lbs/day) by nearly 1 lb per day. Crossbred steers consumed 6.59 lbs of feed per lb of gain while the 2020 Holstein benchmark was 7.65 lbs of feed per lb of gain. In fact, feed conversion was similar to the 2020 native cattle benchmark of 6.54 lbs of feed per lb of gain. The crossbred carcasses had an average ribeye area of 12.3 in.2 and 0.32 in. of backfat. Distribution of USDA Quality and Yield Grades are reported in Table 2. About half of the carcasses graded Choice while 44% graded Select and the remaining 7% graded Standard. All carcasses were Yield Grades of 3 or below. A total of 4 carcasses received a Yield Grade 1, 3 of which also graded Standard.
While the crossbred steers were more efficient than the Elanco benchmark average for fed Holstein steers, both Holstein and crossbred steers, grown under similar management conditions at the LEC, have performed better than the 2021 beef x Holstein steers. While the impact of the reduced performance is unclear, authors surmise that health conditions may have suppressed the growth and carcass performance of the steers finished in 2021. In future work, the pedigrees of steers over all 4 years of the study will be compared to determine if genetic potential impacted the performance of this particular group of steers.
Table 1: Growth and carcass performance of beef x Holstein steers finished on the LEC feedlot in 2021.Trait | Mean ± Standard Deviation | Minimum | Maximum |
---|
Initial body weight, lbs | 745 ± 146 | 434 | 1,020 |
Final body weight, lbs | 1,311 ± 152 | 958 | 1,643 |
Average daily gain, lbs | 3.75 ± 0.44 | 2.55 | 4.76 |
Dry matter intake, lbs/day | 24.5 ± 2.63 | 19.1 | 32.9 |
Feed efficiency, feed/ gain | 6.59 ± 0.79 | 5.11 | 9.36 |
Hot carcass weight, lbs | 751 ± 94.4 | 519 | 967 |
Dressing percentage | 57.2 ± 1.41 | 54.2 | 60.1 |
Back fat, in | 0.32 ± 0.11 | 0.10 | 0.60 |
Ribeye area, in2 | 12.3 ± 1.37 | 9.40 | 17.3 |
Table 2: USDA Quality and Yield Grades of carcasses from beef x Holstein steers finished on the LEC feedlot in 2021.USDA Quality Grade | % |
---|
|
Prime | 0 |
Choice | 49 |
Select | 44 |
Standard | 7 |
Commercial | 0 |
USDA Yield Grade | % |
---|
1 | 6 |
2 | 60 |
3 | 34 |
4 | 0 |
5 | 0 |
What's next?
Penn State will continue researching the impacts of sire selection of beef x dairy growth and carcass performance. Thanks to the generous support of Premier Select Sires and participating dairy farms throughout the state, 130 crossbred steers resulting from planned matings were born in the summer of 2021 and are being commercially grown in anticipation of their arrival at the LEC in April 2022. Researchers plan to showcase and discuss steers from planned mating at the 2022 Ag Progress Days hosted at the Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center.
An additional 900 units of beef semen were used to inseminate Holstein cows this summer to generate the final group of steers for this study to be finished at the LEC feedlot in 2023.
Funding Note
This work is supported by Critical Agricultural Research and Extension (CARE) [grant no. 2020-68008-31411] from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Source : psu.edu