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Investment in agricultural research and development is critical if the sector wants to fulfil the role envisaged for it in the South African economy, said Prof Norman Maiwashe, general manager of the Agricultural Research Council (ARC)-Animal Production during the afternoon session on the first day of the 2025 LRF Stockman School at Aldam in the Free State. This session was sponsored by Zoetis.
He pointed out that, relative to its international competitors, South Africa was under-investing in agricultural research and development. Adequate investment is, however, not just an agricultural issue: it is about securing long-term competitiveness, food security, and sustainable rural livelihoods.
Evidence from the Beef Genomics Programme and animal improvement schemes illustrate the payoffs of adequate investment are among the highest in agriculture.
Targeted interventions needed
To unlock the potential of the red meat sector, Prof Maiwashe emphasised, targeted strategic interventions are required to change the fortunes of the sector. The Agriculture and Agro-processing Master Plan (AAMP), a social compact between government, industry, labour and civil society, highlights the following:
- Resolving policy ambiguities and creating an investment-friendly environment.
- Investing in, and maintaining enabling infrastructure critical to industry, such as electricity, roads, rail and ports.
- Providing comprehensive farmer assistance, development finance, research, and development and extension services.
- Improving food security, increasing production and employment, and ensuring decency and inclusivity.
- Facilitating market expansion, improving market access, and promoting trade.
- Improving localised food production, reducing imports, and expanding agro-processing exports.
The current estimated budget for successful implementation of the AAMP, he said, was R2,5 billion.
Implementation of the AAMP and the Red Meat Industry Services’ (RMIS) 2030 Strategy will require significant further investment in public research and development, inter alia:
- Enhancing the capacity of manufacturing of the foot and mouth disease (FMD) vaccine and research and development facilities.
- Nation-wide implementation of the National Livestock Identification and Traceability System (LITS) to enhance biosecurity.
- Genetic improvement of national herds and flocks through genomic technology, specifically the Southern African Beef Genomic Programme (BGP).
To achieve the ambitions of the 2030 Red Meat Industry Strategy, he concluded, South Africa must boost public R&D funding for animal improvement, animal health and traceability; leverage private co-investment via producer levies, breed societies and industry; and align research priorities with strategic goals – exports, climate resilience, inclusive growth.
Sub-fertile bulls create economic losses
The goal of a beef cow-calf production operation is to wean one heavy, healthy calf per cow per year, which possesses the greatest genetic potential to perform. In order to achieve this, explained Dr Stephen Hughes, reproduction specialist veterinarian from Howick during his presentation, it is critically important to use bulls that are able to impregnate 30 of more cows in as short a breeding season as possible. However, between 10 and 20% of bulls may be classified as sub-fertile, or unsatisfactory. This means they are not able to impregnate their quota of cows on schedule.
Eliminating these sub-fertile bulls from herds is therefore hugely important, he said, and the way to do this is through a breeding soundness certificate that certifies that a specified series of tests have been thoroughly conducted on the bull, and that the results are reliable.
Breeding soundness evaluation, he further stressed, is but one of three important inputs towards minimising the risk of sub-fertility. The first is selecting for correct conformation and soundness, and the second is effective management.
Reproductive efficiency, he said, equals management plus nutritional and animal health plus selection pressure plus reproductive technologies.
Maximise genetic gain with a bull pack
The value of the bull pack was the title of Dr Christian Duff’s talk during the last session of day one. Dr Duff is chief of operations at ABRI, the Agricultural Business Research Institute in Australia.
Focussing on a team of bulls in a cow group, rather than the individual bulls, he explained, could maximise genetic gain while managing the risk associated with possible low accuracy of estimated breeding values or EBVs of individual bulls in the pack.
BREEDPLAN is the world’s most widely used genetic evaluation system for beef cattle, with 16 million animals evaluated globally – of which half is in Australia – and 1,2 million genotypes globally.
EBVs express an animal’s true breeding value, while the accuracy of an EBV expresses the confidence level in the EBV prediction. The higher the accuracy, the less EBV change is expected as more data becomes available about that individual animal. Lower accuracy implies that the EBV may shift as more info is added.
An EBV with an accuracy of more than 90% is considered a high accuracy estimate of the animal’s true breeding value. It is unlikely that EBVs will change considerably with the addition of more progeny data.
The question of accuracy
With a 75 to 90% accuracy, EBVs are of medium-high accuracy. EBVs in this range will usually have been calculated based on the animal’s own performance coupled with the performance of some the animal’s progeny.
With a 50 to 74% accuracy, the EBVs are of medium accuracy. EBVs in this range will usually have been calculated based on the animal’s own performance and pedigree and possibly genotype information.
EBVs with less than 50% accuracy are preliminary. EBVs at this accuracy level could change substantially as more direct performance or genotypes becomes available on the animal.
EBVs can describe the genetic merit of groups, not just individuals, he pointed out. This is useful for evaluating bull packs or donor females in ET programmes. EBV accuracy increases with team size and genetic diversity.
Spreading the risk
While low individual EBV accuracy implies a higher risk, the bull pack approach spreads this risk. Younger bulls can rival proven sires when used in teams. A bull pack approach thus avoids an ‘all eggs in one basket’ strategy. This approach should also be considered across mating years, providing more predictability to reach genetic goals.
Dr Duff’s take-home message regarding bull selection was to compare animals based on EBVs regardless of accuracy, and when EBV’s are similar, to give preference to the higher accuracy EBV.
To improve accuracy, he advised, record more traits or genotype, maximise contemporary group sizes, source from performance-recording herds, and use proven sires or team-based (pack) strategies. – Izak Hofmeyr, Plaas Media
