Finishing value pilot shows calf growth potential at 18 months
Calves by run bulls are not yet included because the sire must be matched through AI records.
|October 21, 2026Listen to the full interview:
This episode featured as part of the Livestock and Genetics segment in partnership with Carrfields Livestock.
A new finishing value being piloted at a Waikato saleyard shows a beef-on-dairy weaner calf’s genetic potential for live weight at 18 months.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) beef on dairy engagement and relationship manager Lucy Coleman says it combines live weight breeding values from the dam and sire.
“It’s going to help you pick between similar looking calves at a calf sale,” she says.
She says the pilot only covers calves recorded at birth to a dam whose mating records match an AI sire, so run bulls are excluded.
“Genetics is only one piece of the puzzle.”
She says she would like it to largely replace buyers’ preference for calves with particular markings.
This episode featured as part of the Livestock and Genetics segment in partnership with Carrfields Livestock. To learn more about buying, selling or managing livestock, or to connect with a local livestock specialist, visit carrfieldslivestock.co.nz
Watch the full interview:
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