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 www.NALF.org North American (303) 220-1693 |
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NALF Notes NALF Commercial Programs Maximize Value of Seedstock Investments When commercial cattle producers buy and transfer registered Limousin seedstock, they gain access to NALF’s programs, services and expertise. They benefit from the breed’s performance data to facilitate dependable selection based on trustworthy expected progeny differences (EPDs). Registrations and transfers unlock the doors to technical support and marketing assistance for their next calf crop. NALF’s commercial programs department is here to help Limousin breeders and their customers obtain market-topping prices with a variety of services. Data collected during the Visions Quest (VQ) cattle-feeding and carcass-discovery project with Colorado State University (CSU) helps fuel breed improvement and greater returns for Limousin breeders and users in the future. VQ Round 2 now is underway to demonstrate further the breed’s improved grade, growth and docility. It includes 27 breeders and customers from 13 states, and they delivered 311 head of Limousin-influenced cattle. Special thanks goes to those producers who are assisting NALF in generating the critical performance and carcass data and making a valuable contribution to NALF’s research, educational and promotional activities. The LimMark tagging program identifies Limousin-sired feeder calves and replacement females. The sky-blue Allflex tags come with NALF documentation and industry identification. As the program begins its second year, NALF is working with several technology companies that will be able to assist Limousin customers with documented source, age and other verifications that can affect animal health and open doors to enhanced marketing opportunities. Order your LimMark tags using the unique customer number printed on your Bottom Line mailing label and bulls’ registration papers. Complete instructions are in the “Programs” section of the NALF Web site (www.nalf.org). NALF organized special Limousin-influenced feeder-calf sales at six auction markets in five states in fall 2006. They provided more than 70 commercial Limousin producers with opportunities to market their uniform, muscular, efficient calves at a premium due to the large sale lots and the demand for efficient feeder cattle. NALF assisted the auction markets in consigning more than 6,400 head. Working with auction markets is part of the Limousin breed’s commitment to the commercial industry. When you have Limousin-influenced calves for sale, do not hesitate to work with your local auction market and NALF to promote and host a special sale. NALF also provides a free Web-based feeder-calf listing service where you can post calves for sale in an easy-to-use, classified advertisement. If you consign calves to an auction market or prefer to sell them via private treaty, NALF promotes those Limousin Exchange Feeder Calf Classifieds listings to order buyers, feedlots and individuals interested in feeding Limousin-influenced calves. The Limousin Exchange Bull Listing Service and Females for Sale component are running with remarkable success. They allow NALF members to list seedstock for sale in searchable databases on the NALF Web site. Buyers can identify a variety of criteria – including state, owner, sire, EPDs, color, horn status, percent blood, sale date and type, and price – to obtain information about the animals that fit their needs. The quarterly Bottom Line newsletter goes to all commercial producers who have had a bull transferred to them in the last three years. (Their Limousin seedstock suppliers also get copies.) Besides each issue’s current information about the Limousin breed and what it provides to the beef industry, the mailing panel credits the active NALF members whose transfers triggered the “subscription.”
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