Angus News You Can Use - The latest news and info regarding events, programs and services and other happenings at the American Angus Association.

2008 National Angus Conference & Tour - The American Angus Association invites you to join your peers during the 2008 National Angus Conference & Tour, Oct. 7-9 in Oklahoma City, Okla. A day long conference will be followed by a two day tour of local interest and ranches. Purina Mills, LLC, and Alpharma Animal Health are the major partners for the event. Click here for more information.

Notice - American Angus Association Chief Executive Officer (CEO) John Crouch has announced his intention to retire from his post later in the year. He made his intention known Feb. 20, during a regularly scheduled Board of Directors Meeting in Saint Joseph, Mo. Read more about his career and contribution to the Angus breed.

New Carcass EPDs to be released - New carcass EPDs will be released in the Fall 2008 National Cattle Evaluation. Click here to read more.

Board Meeting Actions Highlighted - Highlights from the most recent AAA Board of Directors meeting. Review of meetings of the Association, as well as Angus Productions, Inc., Angus Genetics Inc., Certified Angus Beef, LLC and the Angus Foundation are included.

American Angus Association’s Producer Priority Finder - This interactive program is designed to help commercial cow-calf producers identify the most important management priorities for their individual operations. You can improve the profitability of your cow-calf business by placing greater management emphasis on the priorities identified here. Click here to complete a brief self-evaluation of current management strengths and weaknesses.

U designated for Permanent Identification in 2008 - International letters are designated for each year of birth for Livestock Identification. These designated letters are an easy option to use in conjunction with numbers when permanently identifying animals. For example, U001 and U002, could designate the first two calves born into your herd in the year 2008. Click here for more information about permanent identification

NAIS Premises Registration – The American Angus Association has joined an industry coalition to assist in registering livestock producers’ premises for the National Animal Identification System. Registration is voluntary and the information is provided only to the proper animal health authorities in your state. Click here to access further details and an easy to complete registration form.

Angus Optimal Milk Module - Angus Optimal Milk is now updated with the latest industry average feed costs per cow. The revised version incorporates more than 40 cow-calf enterprise budgets published between 1994 and 2006 by land-grant universities from 23 states. Angus Optimal Milk allows commercial producers to input their current average cow weight and cow herd milking level, as well as annual estimated pasture and feed cost, to arrive at a milk EPD range matched to their needs. To access Angus Optimal Milk, click here.

Store registration certificates electronically free - Choose the electronic storage feature at no cost to store the paper registration certificates of existing registered Angus cattle. Producers can receive a paper registration certificate at no charge, when removed from electronic storage. For more information click here.

Priorities First - In fulfilling the mission to provide programs and services that will aid commercial cattle producers to achieve profitability, the American Angus Association commissioned an in-depth study to provide a blueprint for prioritizing profit drivers in today’s cattle operations. Priorities First: Identifying Management Priorities in the Commercial Cow-Calf Business, by Tom Field, Ph.D., Fort Collins, Colo., includes the responses of more than 200 successful producers and industry specialists from diverse geographic locations. To request this 28-page report e-mail Monica Jordan. A downloadable version is available by clicking here.

New Ultrasound Policy - The Association has adopted guidelines for accepting ultrasound data from multiple labs. At a special meeting May 18, the American Angus Association Board of Directors adopted a new policy to govern the gathering and processing of ultrasound information intended for use in the Angus Herd Improvement Records (AHIR) program. For details and new Breeder Protocol, click here.