Selecting for Better Fat: What Angus Research Says

Now and then somebody says there is a health-conscious Angus line bred for less saturated fat. We could not verify a named strain or its claims, so we will not describe one. What we can tell you is what published research says about breeding for fat quality in Angus, and what that means when you are standing at a bull sale.

Can you breed for it

Heritability tells you how much of the spread in a trait comes from genes. Two Angus studies are worth knowing.

A 2007 Iowa State report, Heritability Estimates for Fatty Acid Concentration in Angus Beef, looked at grain-fed calves. It found genetic control over five fatty acids of health concern: 14:0, 16:0, 16:1, 18:0 and 18:1. As a percent of lipid, heritability ran 0.20 to 0.49. Per gram of beef, 0.12 to 0.27. The authors said to select on the percent-of-lipid basis and keep lipid concentration as a goal, so a healthier fat profile does not cost you marbling.

A 2013 BMC Genomics paper used 2,110 Angus-sired calves out of 134 sires. Marker-based heritability ran from 0.06 up past 0.49 depending on the fatty acid. Markers explained up to 57% of the variance. They found 57 regions of the genome linked to at least one fatty acid, and three of them carry genes called FASN, SCD and THRSP. The authors called it a tool Angus breeders could use to select for altered fatty acid composition, and said the actual causal variants still have to be found.

What that means at the bull sale

The trait is heritable, the tools are young

Heritabilities of 0.2 to 0.5 are in the range of carcass traits you already select for. So it can move over generations. But the BMC Genomics study put the accuracy of the genomic predictions anywhere from -0.06 to 0.57. At the low end, that is a coin flip. As far as we know, fatty acid composition is not a standard EPD in the Association's evaluation. Check what they offer at angus.org.

You cannot give up marbling

Fatty acids and total fat travel together. Chase one hard and you can move the other. Marbling is what the grid pays for. The Iowa State authors said to keep lipid content as a goal for that reason. Farm.fm has a solid page on understanding bulls to read before sale day.

Feed can undo it

Genes set a range. Diet moves you around inside it. Finish a bull's calves in a way that pushes the fat profile the wrong way and you wasted the selection.

A sensible plan

1. Pay for what pays now: calving ease, growth, fertility, marbling.
2. If fat quality interests you, ask your genetic provider what tests exist and what accuracy they report.
3. Do not trade marbling or cow function for a trait no buyer pays for.
4. Find a buyer or program that rewards fat quality before you spend real money on it.

Where this fits

Right now fatty acid selection is a research project more than a program. That can change, and the cattlemen who keep carcass data and sire records will be the first to take advantage when it does. The Nebraska beef extension site posts plain summaries of selection basics. For buyers and breeding partners, the agriculture directory is a decent place to start looking.

For the guy at the grill

If you eat beef and watch your fat, trim and cut choice matter more than breed. A lean cut with the edge fat trimmed carries less total fat of every kind than a ribeye. Genetics may add a little more difference someday, but it is not on the label.

Keep the records that make this possible

Any day you want to use fat-quality genetics, you will need two things: pedigree and data. Keep sire and dam on every calf, keep birth dates, and get carcass results back tied to tag numbers. Without those, no marker panel or evaluation can help you. With them, you can see for yourself whether a sire group finishes with a different profile, and you will be ready when a test or program becomes available.

Ask the seedstock producers you buy from what they track. A breeder who collects carcass data on progeny, and who can show it, is worth more than one who sells on pictures and pedigree alone. That habit pays whether or not fatty acids ever become a line on the sale sheet.

Do not chase a trait no one pays for

Every hour and dollar you put into one trait is not going into another. Today, buyers pay for marbling, weight, yield and consistency, and cows have to calve every year. Put those first and treat fat quality as a long-term watch item.

The short version

Fatty acids in Angus beef have a real genetic component and the research points to tools. The tools are young, the trade with marbling is real, and feed can override the genes. Check current research and the Association's offerings before changing your bull battery. We are independent and not affiliated with the Association or Certified Angus Beef.