Galloway Bull
Galloway Bull

A few minutes of your time to consider all the G’s involved in the beef industry.

Consider:

  • Galloway - developed the ability to thrive on limited grasses and graze the roughest of forage.
  • Adult Galloway cattle reach heights between 1.37 meters for males and 1.22 meters for females. The average Galloway males weight around 812 kg. and the females around 567 kg
  • Gain – Would an average daily gain of 3.62 lbs be satisfactory in your feedlot?
  • Grain & Grass – Would an average feed efficiency of 5.24 lbs of dry matter per pound of gain work for you?
  • Grade – Would you be satisfied with 88% of your product grading AA & AAA?
  • Gross Weight – Would an animal weighing 1230 lbs with these grades enable you to make the premium cut & size of your steaks & roasts?
  • Growth – Would an 85lb birth weight calf weaned @ 200 days weighing 600 lbs, put on feed for just 172 days and then slaughtered at 1230 lbs be considered satisfactory?
  • Greenhouse Gases & the Environment – Wouldn’t it make sense that a higher gain on less grain consumed over fewer days would make less methane gas & manure per pound of beef produced? And how much water does an animal on feed consume?
  • Genetics – the biggest G of all. Have you ever considered Galloway Genetics? The aforementioned numbers are real averages derived from the performance of Galloway sired steers placed in the Olds College Steer-A-Year project, over the last decade. Yes, there may be higher numbers in some categories, however if one considers the net of all the G’s, perhaps adding some good Galloway genetics to your herd would create a sensible crossbreeding program that nets you a few more G’s. Genetics are far more consistent than grain markets, and are very effective in increase profit.

Galloway

Why we selected the Galloway for the Dairy Herd Improvement Project in Mongolia. 

The way the Galloway cow produces at optimum levels--on limited resources and in rugged environments. We liked the way the females bred back every year.

  • We liked the superior carcass traits already built into the breed.
  • The breed's hooves are rock hard, so they could cover miles of rugged country. They have light birthweights, so calves would come easily and survive. They have independent, ruddy dispositions so they could take care of themselves in the most rugged of conditions imaginable.
  • They have a thick, woolly haircoat to kept them foraging in deep snow.
  • They have natural agility and mobility to keep them moving across range and pasture with minimal environmental impacts.
That's why we believe the breed, with four centuries of beef production backing it up, we feel the Galloway holds the key to Mongolia's Dairy Herd and Beef Market future. 

The Galloway female. 
 
The Galloway female is an optimum beef production machine. Her calves are born easily, rarely requiring assistance. Her milk is strong, loaded with essential nutrients. Her udder is positioned tightly, virtually concealed. Her eyes, nose and teats are darkly pigmented. 

Her calves have outstanding health and vigor, possessing ability to make competitive gains on the ranch and in the feedyard. 

She is moderate-framed and easy-fleshing, requiring fewer pounds of feed through winter. She possesses unsurpassed fertility, enabling her to breed back each year, even when forage is scarce. Her resistance to disease and sickness is second to none. 

 

Galloway Cow   Galloway Cow in Summer

Government research shows that year in and year out, Galloway cows wean a higher percent calf crop than other beef breeds, and more life calves at weaning equates to bigger dividends on sale day.

Galloway Calf
Galloway Calf

Galloway Beef -- a cut above other breeds.

Galloway Steer

Galloway cattle produce beef that exceeds consumer expectations for leanness, taste and tenderness. This is important for both domestic and export markets.

At the U.S. Meat Animal Research Center, sensory evaluation panels ranked Galloway beef head and shoulders above the 11 other breeds analyzed. In direct comparisons, Galloway ranked ...   

  • 1st in Flavor
  • 2nd in Tenderness
  • 2nd in Juiciness
Interestingly, the Galloway is one of only a handful of beef breeds in use today that was developed specifically for beef production, not dairy or draft. Historians noted the Galloway's "tender and juicy" beef in the year 1530. 

That tradition of beef production has enabled the breed to capture some of the most competitive carcass competitions in North America. Commercial producers, feeders and packers note how the breed "fattens from the inside out," depositing desirable marbling--taste fat--in their ribeyes long before they reach undesirable levels of cover, or waste fat--a rare, and highly sought-after characteristic. 

Galloway carcasses are moderate in weight, yet percent yield and percent retail product exceed their heavier counterparts of other breeds. They consistently produce a large amount of salable beef product. Galloway cattle have low levels of wasteful internal fat - fat that surrounds the kidneys and heart and lines the pelvis. Their carcasses are well-marbled with large ribeyes. It is often said that Galloway beef has a distinctive eating quality, superior to other breeds. 

In direct comparison between Galloway and the five other beef breeds evaluated by U.S. Meat Animal Research in Clay Center, Nebraska, Galloway stands tall: 
 

  • 1st lowest in Fat Thickness (0.48 inches)
  • 1st lowest in estimated percent Kidney, Pelvic and Heart Fat (3.13%)
  • 1st highest in percent Retail Product (69.7%)
  • 1st lowest in percent Fat Trim (17.8%)
  • 1st lowest in pounds of Fat Trim (110 lbs.)
  • 2nd highest in Ribeye Area (11.28 sq. inches)
  • 2nd highest in Dressing Percentage (61.2%)
  • 3rd highest in Retail Product Pounds (426 lbs.) 

Galloway -- that distinctive, woolly haircoat. 

Galloway cattle come in three primary colors--black, red and dun--and in three color patterns--solid, white park and belted. 

Their distinctive, woolly haircoat makes them warm, energy efficient foragers--that's a big plus when the northers blow in. 

Researchers at Montana State University estimate that beef cows with hair coats just one inch thicker consume 20% to 25% less feed in order to maintain body weight when the weather is cold. 

The Galloway's thick winter hair coat enables their calves to endure variations in temperature, strong wind and driving rain--conditions that put calves of other breeds in the sick pen.  Their hair coat also provides insect resistance, and many contend it enables the breed to maintain low levels of backfat. In warm weather, Galloways shed their winter coats easily and their hair becomes slick and shiny. 

 

   
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