Beef cattle

Validating available genomic predictions marketed for commercial crossbred cattle

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Abstract

Commercial DNA testing in the beef industry has advanced substantially since its introduction in 2000. Three major options now provide genomic predictions for commercial crossbred cows: two that estimate breeding value based only on an individual's DNA (MBV1 and MBV2), and a third that incorporates pedigree, phenotype, and DNA (GE-EPD). These tools are marketed for use in crossbred heifers to genetically rank them for a range of maternal, production, and terminal traits, allowing producers to select replacements with superior genetic merit. The objective of this research was to determine the accuracy with which three commercial genomic predictions (MBV1, MBV2, and GE-EPD) identify additive genetic merit in crossbred commercial dams as measured by realized progeny performance. DNA was extracted, in triplicate, from samples collected on 974 crossbred cows at University of Missouri research farms, with all cows evaluated by each genomic test (MBV1, MBV2, and GE-EPD). Mixed models were used to evaluate relationships between dam genomic predictions and calf phenotypes, using 269 to 928 progeny records depending on trait. To account for environmental and management variation, calf age, contemporary group, and age of dam were treated as fixed effects, with sire as a random effect. It is important to remember that comparing a genomic prediction on a dam to the performance of her progeny already lowers expectations of accuracy as the genomic test is only accounting for half of the genetics passed from one generation to the next, and do not account for sire contributions. GE-EPD was the only commercial option that showed a significant (P P ≤ 0.01) but not weaning weight, yearling weight, hot carcass weight and ribeye area (P ≥ 0.07). MBV2 tended to have regression coefficients closer to the expected value of one and were significant (P P = 0.14). In conclusion, all three genomic predictions provide an ability to predict the average genetic merit of progeny from commercial females. Producers who use them to make more accurate replacement heifer selection decisions can increase their rate of genetic gain, thereby shortening genetic lag between commercial and seedstock herds.

Keywords: 2026

How to Cite:

Bailey, C., Courter, J. & Decker, J., (2026) “Validating available genomic predictions marketed for commercial crossbred cattle”, World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production Digital Archive 2026(1): 2291503. doi: https://doi.org/10.31274/wcgalp.24305

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