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Dr. Jamie Courter is your Mizzou Beef Genetics Extension Specialist

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By Jared E. Decker Many of you have probably noticed that things have been a lot less active on the A Steak in Genomics™   blog, but you probably haven't known why. In January 2021, I was named the Wurdack Chair in Animal Genomics at Mizzou, and I now focus on research, with a little bit of teaching. I no longer have an extension appointment. But, with exciting news, the blog is about to become a lot more active! Jamie Courter began as the new MU Extension state beef genetics specialist in the Division of Animal Sciences on September 1, 2023. I have known Jamie for several years, meeting her at BIF when she was a Masters student. I have been impressed by Jamie in my interactions with her since that time.  Dr. Courter and I have been working closely together the last 6 weeks, and I am excited to work together to serve the beef industry for years to come! Jamie holds a bachelor’s degree in animal science from North Carolina State University and earned a master's degree in animal...
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Beef Genetics Education Team Announces National Essay Contest: “What does it mean to be a beef breeder in the 21st century?”

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Youth participating in  4-H,  FFA, or junior beef breed organizations are encouraged to compete in a national essay contest. Essays should respond to the prompt “ What does it mean to be a beef breeder in the 21st century? ” The winning essay will be published in one of BEEF magazine’s online newsletters (e.g. BEEF Daily or BEEF Cow-Calf Weekly). The 2nd through 5th place essays will be published on A Steak in Genomics blog. We will award $500 for first, $300 for second, and $200 for third place in the contest. The first place winner will also receive 50 GeneMax Focus or PredicGEN tests. Essays will be judged by beef genetics extension specialists, breed association staff, and trade publication staff. Essays will be judged on their ability to encourage best practices and technology adoption by describing: Trust and effectiveness of beef breeding best practices and technologies. Simplicity of using technology. The profit and sustainability outcomes of usin...
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AHA Educational Forum: AHA Creative Services

Sean Jersett, Christy Bengno, Julie Mais, Alison Marx, Caryn Vaught Number one piece of advise for an advertiser: Be aware of your sale dates! You need to have the deadlines for dates to go to the printer and when catalogs will be to the customers. You need to have your ducks in a row before the printing date. How do you handle photography? Photos need to be high resolution, print quality photos to look good in the catalog. "We need to have the photos identified so we know how to use them," Bengno said. Dropbox or email is a good way to send in the photos. Make sure that email allows for the photos to be sent as high resolution. If you have a lot of photos, Dropbox is much easier. Put the photos in Dropbox and then share the folder with the AHA staff. Make sure you notify the AHA staff that you have added photos to an existing shared photo. When using phones, make sure your phone has a high quality camera on your phone and that you have your phone setting to the highe...
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Brangus Journal: Understanding Genomic Prediction

Head on over to the Brangus Journal website to see some of my latest writing on genomic prediction. The Dance Steps of Genomics Part I: Understanding Genomic Prediction Personally, it is probably my favorite of the articles I have written, so I would encourage you to make the time to read it. What do you think of the article? As always, your feedback is welcome. Loading...
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AHA Educational Forum: myHERD services

Stacy Sanders and SyAnn Foster AHA "When we do things electronically, we are no longer waiting on the postal service," said Stacy Sanders. He also noted that electronic reporting did not require any handling or processing by the association staff. The electronic recording also eliminates paper work and automatically uses semen certificates that have been released to the breeder. In addition to the AHA myHERD.org service, the association also allows you to use Genetic and Economic Management (G.E.M.) and CattleMax. AHA is also working with the smart phone app CALF BOOK. "We want to give you options, we want to give you something that works for you," Sanders said. The myHERD service is also switching to a different system to enable a faster web interface, which will also work better on smaller screens like tablets and smartphones. AHA has a goal of 80% of records turned in electronically. Weaning and yearling data is currently above 80% reported electroni...
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Road Warrior: First Week of November Addition

This weekend I get to cross the state to visit with several producer groups. Friday November 4th I will be speaking at 3pm at the Joplin Regional Stockyards during the Central States Beefmaster Breeders Association field day . The CSBBA will be having a performance bull sale at the Joplin Regional Stockyards the next day at 1 pm. I will be discussing the how and why of genomics. Saturday, at 8am I will be speaking as part of the Pearls of Production Program at the University of Missouri South Farm Research Center in Columbia, MO. I will be discussing bull selection, and the South Farm herd bulls will be on display for viewing. Saturday at 7 pm I will be speaking at the  2016 Beef Producers Seminar in Maryville, MO. The trade show will start at 2pm with demonstrations and presentations to follow.  I will be discussing genomic prediction, and we will have a live animal demonstration with a set of heifers that have commercial heifer genomic predictions. Google says this...
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Farm Management Program Addresses Tough Times and Tackles Tough Questions in Agriculture

          According to Garry L. Mathes, chair of the 2016 Missouri Livestock Symposium, producers and land owners coming to the Missouri Livestock Symposium to participate in the farm management section can expect the speaker lineup to address some of the toughest questions facing agriculture today. Mathes continues to say that the Missouri Livestock Symposium continually strives to be on the cutting edge of producer education and our Farm Management section is designed to do just that. Dr. Scott Brown, University of Missouri ag economist, will return for the Saturday program to lead two discussions. The first talk focuses on “Land Values and Cash Rents: How Far Will They Fall” and the second talk concentrates on “Who is Winning the Agricultural Trade Game.” Dr. Brown brings many years of experience dealing with agricultural economics and farm management. Mathes notes Scott is an exceptional speaker and no one will want to miss his presentations.  Als...
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eBEEF Monday: Economically Relevant Traits

Economically relevant traits (ERTs) are those that are directly associated with either a cost or a source of revenue.  Not all Expected Progeny Differences (EPDs) represent traits that are ERTs, and instead represent indicator traits. It is important for producers to know the difference between ERTs and indicator traits when making selection decisions. For more information, see the eBEEF.org factsheet " Economically Relevant Traits ."
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