Blonde d' Aquitaine
The Cattleman's Preference
Blonde d'Aquitaine is a breed of beef cattle originating from the Aquitaine district in the south west of France embracing the area of the Garonne valley and the Pyrenees. The breed is a combination of three local strains, the Garonnais, Quercy and the Blonde des Pyrenees. Blondes were predominantly draught animals until the end of the Second World War. This resulted in their muscle development, hardiness and docility. In the latter half of the 20th Century, the breed was proliferated to other parts of Europe and overseas, establishing major breeding populations in Canada, Australia and The United States. They were always hardy, lean animals with light but strong bone structure.
Blondes are easy to recognise by its solid colour, generally described as "wheat". They may range from almost Marilyn Monroe-blonde to golden-waves-of-grain yellow, but the hair will be short all over, and lighter around the muzzle, inner sides of the legs, and under the belly. They are thick-skinned and considered more heat tolerant than most continental breeds. Their hooves are light in colour. Some are polled; others have horns which are thick at the base and light in colour, graduation to darker tips. Their heads are distinctive: long from poll to muzzle, the forehead and muzzle are broad and the face is triangular.
Blondes are easy to recognise by its solid colour, generally described as "wheat". They may range from almost Marilyn Monroe-blonde to golden-waves-of-grain yellow, but the hair will be short all over, and lighter around the muzzle, inner sides of the legs, and under the belly. They are thick-skinned and considered more heat tolerant than most continental breeds. Their hooves are light in colour. Some are polled; others have horns which are thick at the base and light in colour, graduation to darker tips. Their heads are distinctive: long from poll to muzzle, the forehead and muzzle are broad and the face is triangular.
The breeds principal attributes are ease of calving and excellent growth rates, terminating in a carcass with a very high killing out percentage and an exceptionally high ratio of lean meat to bone.
Blondes are noted for their high rate of gain which leads to above average weaning weights and one of the best feed conversions in the feedlot, making them a very profitable animal.
Blondes are noted for their high rate of gain which leads to above average weaning weights and one of the best feed conversions in the feedlot, making them a very profitable animal.
Traits
- Easy calving
- Quiet temperament
- Heavy muscle
- Heat tolerant
- Tremendous length
- Great hybrid vigour
- Extra weight at weaning
- High yield carcasses
- Superior dressings percentages
- Greater profits for breeders and butchers
Meat
The Blonde d’Aquitaine have a high potential for producing quality meat whatever the kind: calves for slaughter, bull calves heifers and cows.
Growth and fattening
The rapidity of growth is outstanding in the Blonde d’Aquitaine animals.
The fattening results show the animal capacity, whatever sex they are, to produce quickly an important quantity of meat.
The fineness of the leather, of the bones, their small quantity of fat, etc…, rates high when slaughtered. Calves will give 70% and more, bull calves 65 to 70%, heifers 60 to 70%, cows 55 to 65%, bulls 65 to 70%. In cross breeding, 1st place was 57 to 64.6%.
It is a proven superiority of the Blonde d’Aquitaine breed to have the unique character of keeping this quality all her life. It is one of the principal characters of the breed and explains her efficient eating since fat requires more energy to produce than muscles.
Carcasses qualities
The characteristics of the Blonde d'Aquitaine carcasses are :
Theses characteristics, natural results of the breed morphology ( long body animals, fine skeleton or fine bone structure ) grant a high value to the Blonde d’Aquitaine carcasses, butchers love them.
In cross breeding, all tests show that the Blonde d’Aquitaine breed improves and produces the least fat carcasses.
Quality of the meat
From all times, consumers have appreciated the Blonde d’Aquitaine meat because of the finesse of her texture.
Today, she has another advantage. If we consider her high marble proportion, she is very slim. This is a very important characteristic considering the consumer's high interest in dieting.
Finally, the Blonde d’Aquitaine meat does not raise a problem of preservation ( conservation ) in ( vacuum ) industrial circuit. She is, thus, adapted to the new distribution methods.
Growth and fattening
The rapidity of growth is outstanding in the Blonde d’Aquitaine animals.
The fattening results show the animal capacity, whatever sex they are, to produce quickly an important quantity of meat.
The fineness of the leather, of the bones, their small quantity of fat, etc…, rates high when slaughtered. Calves will give 70% and more, bull calves 65 to 70%, heifers 60 to 70%, cows 55 to 65%, bulls 65 to 70%. In cross breeding, 1st place was 57 to 64.6%.
It is a proven superiority of the Blonde d’Aquitaine breed to have the unique character of keeping this quality all her life. It is one of the principal characters of the breed and explains her efficient eating since fat requires more energy to produce than muscles.
Carcasses qualities
The characteristics of the Blonde d'Aquitaine carcasses are :
- heavyweight
- a good structure
- fine bone structure
- low body fat or waste
- high rating of quantity of meat
- an excellent proportion of fast cooking pieces
Theses characteristics, natural results of the breed morphology ( long body animals, fine skeleton or fine bone structure ) grant a high value to the Blonde d’Aquitaine carcasses, butchers love them.
In cross breeding, all tests show that the Blonde d’Aquitaine breed improves and produces the least fat carcasses.
Quality of the meat
From all times, consumers have appreciated the Blonde d’Aquitaine meat because of the finesse of her texture.
Today, she has another advantage. If we consider her high marble proportion, she is very slim. This is a very important characteristic considering the consumer's high interest in dieting.
Finally, the Blonde d’Aquitaine meat does not raise a problem of preservation ( conservation ) in ( vacuum ) industrial circuit. She is, thus, adapted to the new distribution methods.
Why Blonde?
- is a modern breed with ancient origins.
- is enjoying continuous expansion.
- is a thrifty breed.
- is a high-performance breed.
- has features to satisfy all sectors of the beef industry.