Colorado State University and American Hereford Association

Adding to Beef’s Positive Story

The American Hereford Association (AHA) has a longstanding history of progressive research aimed at characterizing genetics associated with production efficiency, which plays a key role in environmental and economic sustainability. AHA built on this research in 2022 with initiation of a pioneering cooperative research project with AgNext and Colorado State University. This multi-year project aims to discover genetic differences related to production of methane and nitrogen, two key greenhouse gases associated with global warming and climate change. Ultimately, the data could lead to development of selection tools for producers to improve the carbon footprint of Hereford genetics. Research results will be shared here as they become available.

National Reference Sire Program

Since its inception in 1999 the National Refernce Sire Program (NRSP) — industry-unique in size and scope — has enabled the Hereford breed to identify the genetic merit of young sires faster and more accurately. The program has been the cornerstone for developing new selection tools, validating the efficacy of genomic tools and more. Progeny of the NRSP are part of the study being conducted by the AHA and CSU.