20 | RURAL PEOPLE » Kerrah Simmentals One of the leading gene pools in NZ Russell Fredric Jon Knauf on the land. New Zealand’s largest national Simmental stud also has one of the leading gene pools of fully recorded Simmentals in the nation. Established in 2006, Kerrah Simmentals’ breeding program is focused on selecting animals that perform on steep terrain in challenging climatic conditions in a commercially run operation. Breeders have the opportunity to acquire Kerrah genetics through its annual bull sale which will be held this year on May 24, both on-farm and via online auction website bidr. Run by Jon Knauf and his wife Sam and Jon’s mother Colleen, the stud is based on the family’s 2100 hectare/1600ha effective sheep and beef farm, Tangiwai Station, just north of Wairoa. The station rises from 500 to 2400 feet above sea level and supports 14,500 stock units including 640 registered Simmental cows, 5000 ewes, 1500 hoggets and 80 rams. Kerrah’s vision is to produce moderate birth weight, easy calving cattle with “explosive growth” in an early maturing polled animal that thrives on hill country, Jon says “We wanted to create a stud that was challenged environmentally and to have plenty of numbers to select from. “We are committed to producing functional, docile cattle using a balance of proven science, accurate recording and stockmanship.” This focus has proven a sound strategy for Kerrah while also winning approval with its clients; at last year’s sale one of the Knauf’s bulls, Kerrah H410, sold online to South Otago bull breeders Garry and Julene McCorkindale for $45,000. Its not only breeders who have endorsed the quality of Kerrah’s cattle and the beef they produce. “We wanted to create a stud that was challenged environmentally and to have plenty of numbers to select from. We are committed to producing functional, docile cattle using a balance of proven science, accurate recording and stockmanship.” 1pm, Tuesday 24th May 2022 On-farm auction in conjunction with BIDR Seventh Annual Sale L to R: Ross Mitchell, Daryl Fergus, Rob Fergus, Tim Petro, Luke Bates, Deano Brenssell. www.fergusrural.co.nz Gisborne: Wairoa: Rob Fergus 027 4496007 Deano Brenssell 027 8638923 Luke Bates 027 4211653 Daryl Fergus 027 2092787 Ross Mitchell 027 4048965 Environmental Solutions Consultant: Tim Petro 027 3390400 Livestock and Agribusiness consultants. AGRIBUSINESS NOW OPERATING A B3 SQUIRREL Frasertown, Wairoa morungaz@xtra.co.nz 06 838 7336 or 027 271 2254 Proudly supporting Kerrah Simmentals Two years ago Kerrah Simmentals was the Steak of Origin Grand Champion against 266 other entries. Entries were were sent to Carne Technologies where they were scienti cally tested on tenderness, percentage of cooking loss in weight, marbling, colour, water binding capacity and pH. The stud is currently developing a higher IMF (intramuscular fat) line for clients that are looking for this trait. Progeny across the herd are bred through a mixture of natural mating, with 16 to 20 sires used annually including top yearling bulls, plus arti cial insemination and embryo transplanting. The use of DNA technology has helped Kerrah to fast forward progress in the “polledness” of terminal sires in addition to streamlining consistency of the Simmentals colour. The stud’s breeding programme using a docility EBV (estimated breeding value) has also resulted in a 20% to 30% improvement in the trait in much of the herd during the past decade. Milk and mothering ability are important traits in replacement females and Simmental cross females excel in these traits, further boosting the weaning weight of their progeny. The stud’s catalogue offer’s bulls that are either free of, or carry two copies of the hide-colour dilution gene. “Historically the variation in colour from Simmental was considered by some a weakness. With isolation of the dilution gene, its able to give more even lines of colour in the progeny.” While the beef market and prices are buoyant, challenges with killing space and shipping delays caused by the covid pandemic are “putting a lid on prices” to some degree, Jon says.
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