Feed is one of the biggest expenses in the cattle business.
That makes one question increasingly important:
How much feed does it take to produce the pounds you're selling?
Not all cattle are equal.
Two animals can gain at a similar rate and finish at a similar weight, while one consumes considerably more feed to get there. From the outside, they may look equally productive.
Economically, they're not.
That's why feed efficiency has become such an important part of the breeding program at Byergo Angus.
We don't want cattle that simply get bigger.
We want cattle that do more with what they're given.
What Is Feed Efficiency in Cattle?
At its simplest, feed efficiency looks at the relationship between what an animal consumes and what it produces.
One of the easiest ways to understand it is feed conversion.
If a bull has a feed conversion of 4.5:1, it means he consumed approximately 4.5 pounds of feed for every pound of weight he gained during the test period.
A bull converting at 6.5:1 requires approximately 6.5 pounds of feed to produce that same pound of gain.
Both animals gained a pound.
One required substantially more input to do it.
Multiply that difference across hundreds of pounds of gain, multiple calves and multiple generations, and feed efficiency stops being an interesting number.
It becomes an economic trait.
The Cheapest Gain Is the Gain You Don't Have to Buy
Cattlemen can't control the price of everything.
Feed prices move. Fuel moves. Fertilizer moves. Markets move.
What we can do is select cattle that are genetically better equipped to turn available resources into production.
That's the opportunity behind feed-efficient genetics.
If cattle can produce the same — or greater — performance while requiring fewer inputs to get there, the economics begin to change.
That's why we believe the conversation shouldn't only be:
How much did he gain?
It should also be:
What did it cost him to gain it?
You Can't See Feed Efficiency Standing at the Fence
This is one of the most important things to understand about the trait.
You can evaluate a lot about cattle with your eyes.
You can study structure, feet, muscle, capacity, movement and phenotype.
You cannot look at two bulls standing next to each other and reliably determine which one required less feed to produce his gain.
You have to measure it.
That's why Byergo individually feed-efficiency tests cattle.
Individual intake data allows us to identify differences that would otherwise be hidden when cattle are eating together in a pen.
We're not assuming an animal is efficient because of his pedigree.
We're not calling him efficient because he looks the part.
We're collecting the data.
What Do We Measure?
There are several pieces of information that help build the picture.
Feed Conversion
Feed conversion measures how many pounds of feed an animal consumes for each pound of weight gained.
In simple terms:
Less feed required for the same gain = better conversion.
Dry Matter Intake (DMI)
DMI helps describe differences in the amount of dry matter an animal is expected to consume.
But low intake alone isn't the goal.
A bull that eats less and performs less hasn't necessarily accomplished anything.
We need to consider intake alongside performance.
Residual Average Daily Gain (RADG)
RADG helps identify genetic differences in post-weaning gain while accounting for feed consumed.
It adds another piece to the efficiency picture by helping identify cattle capable of achieving more gain relative to their intake.
Cost of Gain
This is where the numbers become very real.
What did it actually cost to add that pound?
Cattlemen don't deposit feed-conversion ratios in the bank.
They sell pounds.
Understanding cost of gain helps connect biological efficiency to economic efficiency.
Efficient Doesn't Mean Small
There's an important distinction here.
Our goal isn't to breed cattle that eat as little as possible.
The goal is to produce cattle that make the most of what they eat.
We still want growth.
We still want performance.
We still want pounds.
We still want carcass merit, maternal ability, fertility, sound feet and functional cattle.
Feed efficiency is valuable because it can help us produce those things without wasting input.
That's why we don't select for efficiency in isolation.
A low feed bill isn't much consolation if you've also got fewer pounds to sell.
Why Feed Efficiency Matters Beyond the Feedlot
It's easy to think feed efficiency only matters to the person finishing cattle.
We don't see it that way.
Efficiency has implications throughout the beef production system.
For producers developing or backgrounding calves, feed conversion can directly affect the cost of adding weight.
For producers selling calves, genetics capable of efficient performance can create value further down the supply chain.
And for producers retaining females, efficiency becomes a much longer-term conversation.
A cow consumes resources every day she remains in the herd.
If we can build females that maintain themselves, forage effectively, breed back and raise a strong calf without requiring unnecessary inputs, that efficiency can compound year after year.
Feed efficiency isn't just about what happens at the bunk.
It's about building a more efficient cowherd.
Why Genetics Matter
Management matters enormously.
So does environment.
But there is also a genetic component to feed intake, gain and efficiency.
That means selection decisions made today can influence how future generations perform.
A bull isn't only contributing genetics to next year's calf crop.
If you're retaining daughters, those genetics may remain in the herd for years.
And if you keep daughters from those daughters, the influence continues.
That's why we believe efficiency belongs in the breeding conversation.
Not as the only trait.
As part of building cattle that make economic sense.
Don't Chase One Number
There is no single number that tells you whether an animal is the right genetic choice for your operation.
Feed conversion alone doesn't.
Neither does marbling.
Neither does ribeye.
Neither does weaning weight.
Neither does any individual EPD.
The cattle still have to work.
At Byergo, we want to balance feed efficiency with the traits that make cattle valuable in the real world: performance, maternal ability, fertility, carcass merit, structure, feet and longevity.
Because cattlemen don't get paid for winning a spreadsheet.
They get paid when the entire system works.
Efficiency Genetics. Measured, Not Claimed.
We've spent years putting selection pressure on feed efficiency because the economics behind it are difficult to ignore.
Every pound of feed has a cost.
Every pound of gain has a value.
The space between those two numbers is where efficiency matters.
That's why we test it.
That's why we publish it.
And that's why we'll keep selecting for it.
The goal isn't simply cattle that eat less.
It's cattle that do more with what they eat — and genetics that can carry that advantage into the next generation.
That's what feed efficiency means at Byergo Angus.
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