We have several breeding programs going on here at the breeding research facility Happy Mountain^® Miniature Cattle Farm USA. The Kingshire^TM, Happy Mountain^®, Covingtonshire^TM, Kentshire^® and Grad-Wohl^TM are the main breeds under development right now. The Irish Jersey, Mini Cookie, Burienshire^TM, Auburnshire^TM and Panda^TM Miniature Cattle are four others that are entering their research development programs. These new breeds are being developed for specific markets. The Kingshire^TM, Happy Mountain^®, Grad-Wohl^TM, Burienshire^TM and Auburnshire^TM are in development for the organic and farm grown beef markets. The Kentshire^®, Covingtonshire^TM, Mini Cookie, Mini Panda^TM and Irish Jersey are basically for the pet and breeder markets. The Kentshire^® and Irish Jersey both also work well in the mini milker markets. These new breeds in development pretty much have the six miniature cattle markets covered. The pet, breeder, show, mini milker, organic beef and commercial farm grown beef markets are covered by one or more of these ten new breeds. There seems to be a lot of interest worldwide in the breeding research we are conducting, particularly from third world countries. The Internet and our Web Site have exposed them to our work.

Because of their feed efficiency and small stature these several breeds under development are ideal for small acreage farms and geographical areas worldwide that have sparse pasture vegetation and limited water resources. They are much easier to handle than the larger standard size animals and you can raise more animals per land area. As an example, on five acres of land you can raise approximately two large animals. On the same five acres you can raise two per acre or approximately ten of these new miniature breeds being developed. This will of course vary depending on the available pasture but our research has shown that the same relationship of number of animals to land area will be consistent. Our research has also shown that the smaller stature animals will gain weight more efficiency and generally will be 500 to 900 lbs at 13-15 months of age depending on the particular breed. The larger animals can be 1200-1500 lbs but usually not until 18-24 months of age. On five acres then, you can produce two large animals for a total live weight production of 2400-3000 lbs total live weight. The same five acres can produce 5000-9000 lbs of total live weight production with these smaller breeds being developed at our research facility.

If you have an unlimited supply of good pasture acreage, then perhaps these observations have little impact. If, however, your pasture area is limited then these observations can make a good deal of difference, particularly with bottom line profitability. These animals are 25-30% more feed efficient. This makes them ideal for organic beef production. The organic market is growing but organic grain is more expensive so you need an efficient feed converter in this beef production program. Basically you are producing twice as much live weight beef with the same amount of feed. It doesn't take a lot of brain power to figure out which is the best way to go. Also, we have observed that the percentage of carcass weight to live weight is higher with smaller bovine. About 62-65% is average whereas with large animals 55-58% is normal. These observations are particularly important for the small acreage farmer of which there are more and more. Our land areas have been developed into smaller five, ten or fifteen acre sites. Some agriculture areas require a lot size of no less than 35 acres. Large grassland areas are at a premium so feed efficiency is again a consideration. Consumer preferences have changed and that is also adding to the demand for smaller stature animals. Whether you have five acres or thirty five acres there is more opportunity for a profitable operation with these smaller breeds being developed. In addition, some people just like the idea of one entire animal fitting in the freezer. It's not necessary to find someone to share an animal with because there is just too much beef. The size of the cuts will also be smaller which fits today's consumer preferences. Steaks will be 4-6 ounces not the 8-12 ounce most consumers no longer want.

How about tenderness? Large animals do not normally yield tender beef. Tenderness in beef is, to a great extent a function of the length of the cell in the muscle. The shorter the cell the more tender the product produced. Veal, for instance, is very tender mostly because of the very young age of the animal. Veal has the very shortest muscle cell. Because of their size larger animals have what is called striated muscle cells. These are longer cells resulting in beef that is not very tender. There are some larger animals that do have shorter muscle cells even at maturity. The Japanese Wagu is an animal that yields tender beef because of a short muscle cell structure. The taller Dexter is another. Some breeders have tried a Dexter/Wagu cross but so far with limited marketing success.

A few breeders with pre 1950 genetics can also produce tender beef. The reason? Most pre 1950 animals were smaller of stature. Herefords, Angus and other animals when introduced to the United States were rather small animals most under 42 inches in height. We bred them up because we thought bigger was better. The demand for beef after the second World War was great so breeders developed taller and bigger animals to meet increased demand. There was an unforeseen cost to this trend of bigger is better. The natural tenderness of the original shorter animals was lost. We did in fact produce more beef but it has become less and less tender and less and less efficient. I know of a couple breeders, one Angus and one Hereford that their herds were closed in the 1920's. They both told me that their grandfathers did not feel that bigger was better so they closed their herds and have maintained the original smaller genetics. These animals are gorgeous. They are of shorter stature, very beefy animals that yield naturally tender beef. Some of the new breeds being developed at the Miniature Cattle Breeding Research Facility are based on some of these original genetics.

When you feed out an animal in a feed lot the purpose is to add fat. The USDA grading system is based on the amount of marbleizing in the beef. That is to say the more fat the higher the grade and the more live weight of the animal. But is this what today's consumers want? Fat is not a function of tenderness. Fat adds palatability. The American consumer has been lead down the path of tastes only. Add more fat and tough beef will be acceptable because at least it tastes good. But is the American consumer wising up? The loss of market share compared to pork and chicken would seem to indicate that this is the case. It seems that today's consumer is demanding tenderness as well as tasty beef products. Enter the world of miniature cattle.

Not all producers feel that the shift toward bigger animals was a mistake. Processors at the end of the day make their money on the number of pounds processed. It takes almost just as much time to process smaller animals as a larger one. What do you think they would rather process? You are right - bigger is better as far as they are concerned. Tenderness is not a function of their profit so the more bigger animals the more profit. Who cares that the product is not what consumers want. Add more fat to the animals and it tastes just fine and/or you can cook it a little longer if that is what it takes. Is this what today's consumers want to do? In our hurry up rush rush society precooked beef dinner offerings are being developed to fit today's lifestyles. These products will require tender, tasty beef products free of antibiotics and hormones. You get these characteristics from smaller stature, more tender, low cholesterol animals.