President’s Report

CGA PRESIDENT’S REPORT James Jasper

As I sit down to write this, I am watching the last of the snow melt from my yard. The grass is greening and the trees are budding. Winter has stayed entirely too long! I have talked to producers across the west and it sounds like most, if not all, are in a good situation when it comes to moisture. With some heat the pastures should take off and we can all take a break from feeding for a few months!

Looking back at the bull sale season, it was quite evident, there is a strong demand for Gelbvieh genetics. One of the largest reasons for that is the quality of cattle put on offer. I looked through many sales this spring and the standards for a breeding bull, carried by the membership, are second to none.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of those that have completed their Whole Herd Assessment. Herd assessments are the association's main source of income and are used to pay for our registry system, our EPD's, our excellent and efficient CEO, as well as advertising and sponsorship. In conversations I have received some feedback on the timing of the assessment. The assessment date is in line with when a majority of our large annual expenses are due and allows the board to form a budget for the year. I recognize that the timing gives early calving guys an advantage, as they can pull a cow out if she loses a calf. The reality is, we all decide, individually, when to let the bulls go and no date is going to suit everyone. In my situation, I am assessing cows that are raising their first calf and I have no idea if they are even going to have another one, so I get it. Another concern is the cost of the Whole Herd Assessment. I am the first to complain when this bill comes due, but we have checked with other breeds and the cost to members is at the lower end of average.

As you are aware, this year marks 50 years of Gelbvieh in Canada. I want to start by recognizing all those that came before me, that saw the value in this breed and were willing to take a chance. The CGA in partnership with the provincial breed associations have events planned throughout the summer and fall to mark the occasion, and I hope to catch up with many of you at these events. The first is the National Junior Show on July 22-24 in Stettler, Alberta. Special thanks goes out to the GAA/BC for organizing the event. We have a very strong group of Juniors in our breed and there is a special focus on the future of the Canadian Junior program, so Juniors, get your projects ready and come with ideas on how to improve the program going forward.

Lastly, I have a short personal Gelbvieh story you might enjoy. My eighty-two year old neighbor and landlord, trailered his fall calves to my place to be castrated and vaccinated. He is formerly a large Charolais breeder in the area. He is one of those guys that had always given me a hard time about my Gelbvieh. While we were processing his calves, my son was complimenting him on some stout buckskin calves. He kicked the dirt around a bit, then said to me, "Remember when your bull got in with my cows?" It turns out that 3 years ago, when old Crush had run out of cows, he headed to the neighbors. He liked one of the Gelbvieh cross calves so much he kept him for a bull, and now over half the calves we were processing were one quarter Gelbvieh! I made sure to inform him about our orange tag program before he loaded them back up!

Have a great summer and I look forward to seeing many of you in Stettler.