Propensity to store adequate fat to support concurrent high lactation and reproduction may not be compatible with desirable leanness and cutability in the market animal. It is difficult to achieve genetic excellence for all three of these traits in the same breed package. Even if a particular pure breed were considered by some producers to be ideal for a particular set of economic and environmental conditions, that same breed is not likely to be best for farms and ranches under different environments and facing different economic constraints. Divergent cattle breeds are a priceless gift from our ancestors. They are the raw material from which to create efficient cows and calves and efficient beef production systems.
Breeds differ for several reasons.
Second, they originated in different physical environments that have exerted natural selection for adaptation to the challenges that each environment imposed. Categorizing Beef Cattle Genetic Diversity Research and practical experience have shown that breeds available for beef production systems in America can be sorted among several biological types . Following is one such categorization. General purpose beef cattle breeds , as illustrated by Angus and Hereford. Included are breeds of temperate origin that have been selected and utilized primarily for meat production.