2020 AMERICAN GELBVIEH FOUNDATION ANNUAL REPORT Dedicated to Member Education, Youth Development, and Research By Al Knapp, AGF President The year 2020 is nearly in the books. In more ways than one, it has been a challenging year for many. This year has been full of calamity, chaos, personal loss and surprises of not the good kind. However, if we look back over history and realize that in a 30 year span our ancestors lived through two world wars, the Spanish Flu pandemic, the Dust Bowl, and the Great Depression, we see that 2020 hasn’t been so bad. History is a great teacher, a great equalizer, and a changer of perspective. By studying history, we learn what others have lived through, we learn from other’s mistakes and we are better prepared to face the future. So it is with the new American Gelbvieh Foundation (AGF) history book, “Gelbvieh in the U.S. - The Breed, The Association, The People,” which takes account of the history of the AGA from 1971 to 2020. The AGF has been busy chronicling the history of the American Gelbvieh Association (AGA) in this exciting new book written by Teres Lambert for the AGF. This project falls under one of the Foundation’s three tenets: member education. It is useful to know from whence we came as we chart a path forward. A special thank you to the AGA breeder members and corporate sponsors that made this book possible. It is a fantastic read and chock-full of quotes and stories from many of the founding fathers of the AGA. The book will be printed and ready for delivery by Christmas. Please visit Gelbvieh.org under the Foundation tab for ordering instructions. Also, under the headings of research and member education is the Steer Challenge and Scale & Rail Contest. The AGF 2020 contest was a huge success with 134 animals on feed and harvest data collected; animals were harvested July 8, 2020. The contest continues to grow with additional breeders represented annually. Unfortunately, the usual fanfare and awards presentation at the AGA annual convention will not take place this year. However, congratulations to all our category winners and thanks to all the breeders that participated. Under youth development, the Foundation once again provided $4,000.00 in scholarships to AGJA members as follows:
Grace Vehige Gabrielle Hammer Brook Nowack Rachelle Anderson Danielle Scott
Earl Buss Memorial Leness Hall Memorial AGJA AGJA AGJA
$1000 $1000 $ 750 $750 $ 500
In addition, the AGF sponsored the awards banquet at the 2020 AJGA Route 66 Classic held in Springfield, Missouri. Research is the final tenet of the foundation. The AGF partnered with the AGA on a Carcass Data Collection Project in 2019 by pledging $20,000. The AGA Carcass Data Project is a collaborative effort to enhance the carcass trait database. This project is a breed improvement directive, providing vital genetic information to recharge the carcass database and enhance the predictability of current selection tools. Since its launch, the project has had approximately 500 head of steers on feed in various stages, with the majority already harvested. The carcass data has been collected and DNA tests will be run shortly. Research
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