Home

History of the Breed

Publications

Carcass Data Results

Show Results

Board of Directors

Upcoming Events

How to Become A Member

Animals For Sale

Association

Members

Semen For Sale Directory

Association Forms

White Park Products For Sale

The " American British White Park Association" is a new association established to unite the interested breeders of British White and American White Park cattle. There has been some mistaken information in the past that said the American White Parks are very different from the British Whites. In America this is not a true statement because the animals came from the same basic background. The number of breeders are too small to be separate and still be a viable part of the beef industry today, so as a group looking to the future, this organization is seeking unity. Breeders of "Whites" have a product that meets all industry standards of today and are seeking growth to continue into the future. Too much time has been spent on matters that are not important and not nearly enough time has been spent on selling a great breed of cattle.  Organizers of this new association are seeking as much participation in this new group as they are able to draw and hope to live up to the expectations of the new members.

In the past when anyone has read an article about this breed they have seen mostly history. It is great to know where they came from and how they got to where they now are. As has been stated many times in the past, these "Whites" come from a strong and hardy background. Their history goes back to at least 80 A.D. in England. The most important part of the whole story is that they have come from this long line of great cattle to a modem breed of cattle that fulfill the needs of the beef industry today.

The breed starts with cows that are very strong, fertile and polled. They usually mature at a weight between 1100 and 1500 pounds. Females are easy to settle as first calf heifers and continue to produce calves for many years and very seldom miss a year of production. It is very common for them to be producing at 12-13 years of age J.R. Simonson of Roseville, IL had a cow that was still producing at the age of 20 years.

The bulls are very aggressive breeders, but still gentle to handle. Their high fertility can allow one bull to service up to 50 head per breeding season and keep them well grouped at calving time. Their mature weight is usually 1800 to 2200 pounds.

The calves normally weigh between 70 to 80 pounds and this smaller birth size helps produce calving ease, but they soon make up for their smaller start with quick growth.  The calves seem to hit the ground running as they are up and nursing within a very few minutes of being born.  The cows are strong milk producers and are protective mothers without being aggressive and mean. They can raise twins as easily as they raise one calf.

The breed produces a high quality finished carcass. As of this writing the amount of carcass data collected is small in comparison to the larger numbers of known breeds, but we do not have to take second place to anyone in quality.  Several different feeding and cutout tests across the nation were averaged. The hot carcass weight was 724.55 pounds, ribeye area was 13.7 inches, internal fat averaged 2.37, 89% were choice or above, and an average yield grade of 2.36 was recorded. These numbers are from conventionally fed cattle, but there is also a feed yard in Nebraska that feeds "Whites" in an all natural program and they have a very high percentage that receive premiums. This program has be in operation for several years and those feeding cattle this way have been very satisfied with their results.  Breeders of this purebred line of cattle feel that they can be an important part of the future of beef in America.