Sussex X Beefmaster adds Value

The farming enterprise of Chris Pretorius and his son Dr Johan Pretorius is situated between Harrismith and Verkykerskop in the Free State. Prior to this, the family owned a large dairy farm on the outskirts of Kokstad. Early in the 1990s, this farm was sold to the local municipality, and the family relocated to the Harrismith district. Here, while Johan completed his studies at Onderstepoort as a veterinarian, Chris, by then in his 50s, had to start building up a new family farm based on crop farming and beef cattle.

Chris was fortunate in that he was familiar with the type of veld found in Harrismith as being fairly similar to that of Kokstad in East Griqualand. After a few exploratory visits, he was able to acquire a larger farm than he previously owned, with some excellent Rooigras (Themeda) grazing. During the process of establishing his beef herd, Chris bought in animals from various breeds, as he needed to increase numbers to achieve the necessary profit targets on the new farm.

Once Johan had qualified as a vet, he started practising in the Harrismith and Warden districts. Fairly soon, Chris and Johan decided on Beefmasters as a basis for their herd by using Beefmaster semen via AI on the existing mixed breed cows. Once they had sufficient Beefmaster heifers, they bought three Sussex bulls from a stud breeder in the Vrede district. These bulls were used to open the heifers as Chris had previously used Sussex with good results in the past. In time more Sussex bulls were bought. The crossbred calves grew well, and most of the heifer calves were retained in the herd.

CROSSBRED BEEFMASTER X SUSSEX IN HARRISMITH DISTRICT.

Once these heifers were taken up into the herd and matured in turn, the Pretorius’s noticed the greater capacity in the Sussex crossbreds versus pure Beefmaster, while the Beefmaster influence resulted in smoother coats and many of the females were dark red in colour. While colour may not be so important per se, it is a fact that dark red animals are in high demand in SA, both among private buyers as well as feedlots.

This cross between Beefmaster and Sussex appears to combine the best attributes of both breeds. The Beefmaster genetics contribute to hardiness and smoother coats (see photo above), while Sussex delivers better growth rates from the resultant hybrid vigour in the F1 cross.

Climatic conditions in different years can affect weaning weights. In the summer of 2022, heavier and more prolonged rains affected the average wean weights which were down to 231kg from the usual 250 – 255kg of previous years.

It should be remembered that Bos taurus breeds have proven higher fertility markers than tropical breeds. In purebred or crossbred Sussex herds, conception rates of over 90% are common when using natural mating. Combined with earlier maturity, Sussex can make a meaningful contribution to the efficiency of reproduction in different herds.

The cattle on the two farms belonging to the enterprise have an outstanding record of reproduction efficiency. Dr Johan Pretorius reports that conception over the past 4 to 5 years has been 95 to 97%, with 95% of cows weaning a calf.

Profitable beef production is largely a matter of obtaining efficiency gains. Where a specific cross offers earlier maturity, higher fertility, as well as faster growth rates, then farmers need to take advantage of these traits. Beefmaster cows, with their beneficial attributes, have been a deservedly popular choice in recent years in South Africa. When crossed with a predictable sire line, such as Sussex, they can excel in the role of a dependable dam line in commercial herds. Sussex adds value in turn with a calm temperament and good carcass conformation. In the past, many different Sussex crossbred animals won supreme champion block test prizes that became part of the breed’s heritage in South Africa.