There are a number of reasons to choose Speckle Park cattle
They are a highly efficient breed with excellent conversion of raw feed to beef. This means they provide a greater amount of high quality beef for every kilogram of feed (grass or grain) that they eat. This leads to more cost effective beef production on the farm or feed lot.
Utilising hybrid vigour (see below) by breeding Speckle Park bulls with an existing cow herd has seen dressing percentages of 60%-plus in the first crosses (F1). Combined with their high lean meat yield, high quality marbling at a young age and feed conversion efficiency on paddock grasses alone the breed is winning hook competitions around the world and showing exceptional results in feedlot trials.
The end product for the consumer is an exceptional quality of meat comparable to a Wagyu cross. Tender, delicious, and with high marbling creating a highly desirable product in an efficient and sustainable manner on grass alone.
Speckle Park cattle are moderately framed, highly resilient and sound on their feet. They are deep, soft and thrive in tough conditions. Speckle Park cattle are highly fertile and blessed with good maternal attributes. They are easy to handle and gentle in nature with great longevity and disease resiliance.
These positive attributes make Speckle Park cattle suitable for any cattle operation large or small as well as small property owners such as hobby farmers.
Hybrid vigor, (Heterosis oroutbreeding enhancement) is the improved or increased function of any biological quality in a hybrid offspring. An offspring is heterotic if its traits are enhanced as a result of mixing the genetic contributions of its parents. The heterotic offspring often has traits that are more than the simple addition of the parents' traits, and can be explained by Mendelian or non-Mendelian inheritance.[1] Typical heterotic/hybrid traits of interest in agriculture are higher yield, quicker maturity, stability, drought tolerance and others.[2]
Recent preliminary trials in Angus cattle have shown up to 10% overall increased yield due to hybrid vigour in their F1 cross bred progeny using a Speckle Park Bull over Angus Cows and Heifers compared with typical yields using pure bred Angus bulls.
If you still like your cows black then you can easily achieve the same 10% increase in yield using a black coloured Speckle Park Bull. Or if you like a splash of colour you can colour mark your black cows and give their progeny that classic speckle park white top stripe and black panelled sides using a white Speckle Park bull over your black cows.
Visit the Speckle Park International (SPI, breed society) website to learn more about the Speckle Park breed. Or contact us with any questions you may have and we can advise on choosing the right sire not only to colour your herd but to add the benefits of hybrid vigour and superior marbling that come with Speckle Park cattle.
