Episode #11: Case Study in Strategic Beef Herd Development with Mary-Jane Orr

We are back chatting this week with Mary-Jane Orr, General Manager for Manitoba Beef & Forage Initiatives Inc.  Mary-Jane leads a dedicated team at MBFI to advance Manitoba’s beef & forage industry through engaging stakeholders, evaluating on-farm innovation, and extension for sustainability of farmers, the public, and the environment. She deeply values the opportunity to collaborate with producers, researchers, education providers, extension specialists, conservation groups, and all stakeholders in field-testing management practices and growing understanding of improved production in Manitoba. Mary-Jane holds a PhD from Purdue University in soil microbial ecology in agricultural systems, is a Professional Agrologist, and Certified Crop Advisor. Her experience in ecology and field agronomy gives her a unique perspective on the challenges facing agriculture today. 

In this episode, we are talking about the Strategic Beef Cattle Herd Development Project that is underway at MBFI.  This case study is in its 4th year.

The episode starts with an overview of the Strategic Beef Herd Development Project, its origin and the objectives that MBFI is hoping to achieve. We look at hybrid vigor and why this can add profitability to the herd.We also discuss many different decision making tools, such as culling strategies and breeding stock selection criteria, as well as their importance and impact on herd sustainability. 

Mary-Jane shares information on the different technologies that are being trialed as part of this project, which includes genomic testing, smart boluses, carcass ultrasounding, eSense ear tags and GPS collars.  Each of these play an important role in gathering information on each animal in the herd and allows MBFI to make herd management decisions for future goals.   

This is a long-term study  with a lot of different aspects and information.  The hope through sharing information about this project is that producers may find elements that are useful for them in their operation, and will ultimately improve the  farm’s profitability and sustainability. 

To view the entire project report, with sections on each topic, please visit: https://www.mbfi.ca/nutrition-feed-efficiency and look for the Strategic Beef Herd Development Project listing .

To contact Mary-Jane and find out more about this project, or any of the other projects or events at MBFI, please call her at 431-255-0011 or email at [email protected]

There are many great links and resources referenced in this episode.  We encourage you to take a few minutes to view these, if you are interested in learning more.

John Basarab "Genomic retained heterosis effects on fertility and lifetime productivity in beef heifers" https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/full/10.1139/cjas-2017-0192 

John Basarab Background & Information https://livestockgentec.ualberta.ca/2021/06/25/john-basarab-new-head-of-beef-operations-at-gentec/

Recent article in Western Producer on Basarab, “Beef sector faces genomic roadblocks” https://www.producer.com/livestock/beef-sector-faces-genomic-roadblocks/

Alberta Beef Producers Article on Hybrid Vigour, “Rein-vigor-ate your herd” https://abpdaily.com/business-tools/reinvigorate-your-herd/

Graham Plastow, UofA Bio https://apps.ualberta.ca/directory/person/plastow

Canadian Cattlemen Article on Genomic Tools with Graham Plastow, “Genomic tools for crossbred cattle in the works” https://www.canadiancattlemen.ca/features/genomic-tools-for-crossbred-cattle-in-the-works/

Neogen Igenity Profiles 

https://www.neogen.com/solutions/igenity-profiles/

UltraBeef Ultrasound Services - Visit them on Facebook at Ultrabeef Ultrasound Services or online at www.ultrabeef.ca

There are many references in this episode to resources found on the Beef Cattle Research Council website.  To view these, please visit https://www.beefresearch.ca 

The research programs and daily operations at MBFI would not be possible without the funding from the Province of Manitoba, Government of Canada, and Canadian Agricultural Partnership, as well as the partnership with Manitoba Agriculture, Manitoba Beef Producers (MBP), Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) and the Manitoba Forage and Grassland Association (MFGA). 

We encourage you to follow MBFI on social media, or check out the website for more information on project findings and results, upcoming events and more!

Instagram: @MBBeefandForage

Facebook: @MBBeefandForage

Twitter: @MBBeefandForage

Website: www.mbfi.ca 

Email address: [email protected] 

Mary-Jane’s Phone Number: 431-255-0011