The American Angus Association released three new maternal expected progeny differences (EPDs) on Friday, May 23, alongside annual updates to the genetic evaluation and the economic assumptions used to calculate $Values. Users of Angus genetics can now utilize the Functional Longevity (FL), Teat Size (Teat) and Udder Suspension (UDDR) EPDs, developed by Angus Genetics, Inc. (AGI^®), to help make selection decisions for their operations. In addition, these three new EPDs were incorporated into both the Maternal Weaned Calf Value Index ($M) and the Combined Value Index ($C), further refining the characterization of maternal function inside those indexes. 

“Providing additional selection tools centered around improved maternal function has been a priority for the Board of Directors and Association staff for many years,” says Smitty Lamb, chair of the Breed Improvement Committee of the American Angus Association^® Board of Directors. “I commend breeders who have collected the data to help us get there."  

“We have made significant progress in terminal traits, but as a breed, we need to remember, the Angus cow is what got us here,” Lamb says. “We need to continue to find and select the outliers who exemplify the very best of the breed’s maternal excellence.” 

The Association also released updates to Heifer Pregnancy (HP) and feed efficiency genetic evaluations which, along with improving the traits themselves, reduces computing time for these evaluations by as much as 60%. 

This is key to ensuring on-time delivery of the weekly genetic evaluation. Additional details on each part of the annual update can be found below. Annual genomic score updates, which have typically coincided with the annual update and the release of the 2025 Fall Sire Evaluation Report, will be released on June 27 and include genomic scores for the three newly-released EPDs. This separation increases efficiency for both processes.

Maternal EPDs released 

The cow is a cornerstone of any successful operation, and Angus females have proven themselves to be reliable, consistent producers. Their merit is reflected in the population of the U.S. cow herd, which is now more than 80% Angus influenced. Producers have spent years selecting cattle with not only good maternal strengths, but those who exemplify the best of the Angus breed. 

“We’ve always bred for cows,” says Mark Nikkel, owner of Mill Brae Ranch since 2018, and herd manager since 1987. “The bulls pay the bills and keep you in business, but there’s got to be a cow first.” 

Guided by that principle, Mark and his wife, Janice, began tracking udder quality on the Maple Hill, Kan., operation more than a decade before the Association formalized a scoring guide; and, prior to that, their selection was done anecdotally.  

The current Association scoring system was established in 2021, based on guidelines set by the Beef Improvement Federation, and uses a score from 1 to 9 to characterize both teat size and udder suspension. Scores are collected on dams within 24 hours of birth and can be submitted along with data collected on the calf. 

“The teat size and shape is so important to us as we calve. ... Age plays into this as well; that’s where the longevity piece comes in,” Janice explains. “When you have a 3-year-old that shows a decline in udder quality, they’re not going to be here very long. Now we’ve wasted a lot of time and money to produce this high-quality animal to send her down the road, and that makes no sense.” 

This is a sentiment that Esther Tarpoff, director of performance programs for the Association, hears often. In the cattle business, seedstock producers and commercial cow-calf operators play the long came, it’s important to have confidence that today’s selections are based on the best information available to help ensure a profitable outcome in later breeding cycles. 

“We’re excited to move these EPDs into full production, enabling weekly predictions of the traits,” Tarpoff says. “This advancement enhances the ability of Association members and, more importantly, their commercial cow-calf customers to select for cow survivability and lifetime productivity — an area that has been missing from the Angus genetic toolkit until now.” 

Following a dispersal of the original Mill Brae herd in 2018 and a brief break from raising seedstock, Mark and Janice made the decision to purchase back several foundational females that were still in production at other operations to reestablish their registered Angus operation. They made the commitment, at that time, to enroll in the Association’s Inventory Reporting program to earn MaternalPlus^® distinction, and submit their historic teat and udder data. The two initiatives gave the Nikkels access to the three research EPDs. 

“I used those spreadsheets, and I know they are just research EPDs; but I am so thankful I had access to them,” Janice says. “If an individual bull that we were looking at didn’t score well in the longevity, teat and udder categories, he went off the list ... it takes too long to overcome [challenges with] those types of traits.” 

The FL EPD aims at improving the cow herd by increasing the number of calves a female can produce over her lifetime. The Inventory Reporting program and the commitment made by enrolled members was crucial to the ability to characterize this trait. As a whole herd reporting system, Inventory Reporting and its second tier, MaternalPlus, tells a more complete story about a herd and its females. Every year, each female is reported to have a calf, a reason code for not having one or a reason code for culling.  

This allows for more complete data to be quantified and used to predict the number of calves a female (or daughters of a sire) is expected to produce by six years of age. With the production release of this EPD, all registered Angus cattle with either a genotype or phenotype on file will have an FL EPD. 

“With the use of technology like genomics, we are turning generation intervals faster than ever,” says Kelli Retallick-Riley, AGI president. “Traits like udder quality or lifetime production records that need to be collected on sires’ daughters take time; producers will be able to utilize the FL, Teat and UDDR EPDs as risk mitigation tools, especially in today’s fast-paced genetic landscape where an A.I. (artificial insemination) sire may no longer be actively marketed by the time his daughters reach full production.” 

Along with the release of the three new EPDs, $M has been updated to include the new traits. As new traits are incorporated into a $Value, economic weights are reallocated across both existing and newly introduced EPDs. Despite the inclusion of additional traits to $M, correlations remain above 0.90. This is because $M already had several other traits considered in its calculations, and the addition of the new EPDs allows for a refinement of the index — not an overhaul of the economic model. However, individual animals may experience notable re-ranking depending on their performance in specific traits. 

As part of the makeup of $C, the updates to $M will also be reflected in the $C index with an even greater correlation of 0.98. Producers can learn more about the research backing the Functional Longevity, Teat Size and Udder Suspension EPDs and Dollar Values on Angus.org. Additional details about the annual updates are available in this Angus University video. 

Heifer Pregnancy EPD updates 

Building on the 2024 updates that improved the description of Heifer Pregnancy in the breed, additional refinements to the genetic parameters have led to an updated heritability estimate for the trait. Last May, adjustments to the contemporary group guidelines for Heifer Pregnancy were completed; this allowed the EPD to better account for environmental factors. This year, genetic variance components were updated using the current phenotypic database and more efficient methods for predicting variance components in binary traits. 

“Updating genetic parameters and heritability is a routine procedure for all genetic evaluations. As more data is recorded and selection takes place, the population evolves, and the distribution of variances can change,” said Andre Garcia, AGI senior geneticist. “Updating these parameters and the heritability of traits with the most current data and methodology ensures that the genetic evaluations are efficient, and EPDs are accurate and relevant for the Angus population.” 

The heritability of HP moved from 0.15 to 0.07 because models now better account for environmental factors which redistributed the variance within the population. The correlation between the new EPD and the previous remains high at 0.98 (a one would indicate it was exactly the same trait), which means there was not a significant reranking of animals, although producers will notice the overall spread of the HP EPD is smaller and a slight reduction in individual EPD accuracy. This is a result of reduced heritability. Additional details on the methodology behind this update are available in this Angus University video and an upcoming By the Numbers article to be published in the June issue of the Angus Journal. 

Feed intake model updates 

This 2025 update comes as the result of an extensive research and testing effort. To improve efficiency and address the complexity of the model used to predict feed efficiency selection tools, dry mater intake (DMI) and residual average daily gain (RADG) EPDs, this update refines the contemporary groups, introduces animal age, and re-estimates variance components and heritability. 

The biggest change for producers to keep in mind is the contemporary group. Research found age variation among contemporary groups and environment prior to the feed intake test period have a significant effect on performance. Breeders collecting feed efficiency records will need to have at least two animals from the same birth herd, year and season in a group to have the records included in the evaluation. Single animal contemporary groups will be excluded. Prediction accuracy will increase by 9.2% with the update. 

Correlation on EPDs from the previous model was high (≥0.96), however, producers may see individual changes to EPDs and accuracy, as well as minor reranking. Producers will see minimal movement in the indexes that consider feed efficiency, such as Beef Value ($B), but will potentially see slightly more changes in $B’s subindex, Feedlot Value ($F). Additional details are available in this Angus University video and in a future By the Numbers article to be published in the June issue of the Angus Journal. 

Economic assumptions updated 

Producers recognize changes in the cost of inputs like feed from year to year can impact management decisions. To account for the ever-changing factors of the U.S. beef industry and connected industry, $Values use a seven-year rolling average to account for economic variation. The cost and revenue data, sourced from CattleFax, shows a continued rise in both ration cost and weaned calf sale prices. As of May 2025, feed cost was up thirteen dollars to $237 while weaned steer calf prices averaged $203 per hundredweight (cwt.), up $21. Respectively, heifer calves averaged $183 with a price jump a few dollars shy of the steer increase. Because of a similar increase across the board, the new economic assumptions had little impact on the $Values. A detailed breakdown of the economic assumptions can be found on Angus.org. 

Resources

The following resources are available to help Angus genetics users leverage the tools and programs available through the Association. Those with additional questions are encouraged to reach out to the Member Services team by phone at 816-383-5100, email (angus@angus.org) or through the message center in their AAA Login.

• Angus University: New Maternal Tools, Annual Updates 
• EPD and $Value Definitions 

Research backing EPD development: 

• Functional Longevity
• Teat Size and Udder Suspension
• Heifer Pregnancy 

Collecting & Submitting Data 

• Teat Size and Udder Suspension 
• Feed Intake 
• Collect Additional Data 
• Submit Data: Inventory Reporting