The American Angus is an American breed of

beef cattle Beef cattle are cattle raised for meat production (as distinguished from dairy cattle, used for milk production). The meat of mature or almost mature cattle is mostly known as beef. In beef production there are three main stages: cow-calf opera ...

. It derives from the Scottish

Aberdeen Angus The Aberdeen Angus, sometimes simply Angus, is a Scottish breed of small beef cattle. It derives from cattle native to the counties of Aberdeen, Banff, Kincardine and Angus in north-eastern Scotland. In 2018 the breed accounted for over ...

population, but may only be black. Red-coated individuals may not be registered with the American Angus Association, but can be registered as

Red Angus The Red Angus is an international breed of beef cattle characterised by a reddish-brown coat colour. It derives from the Scottish Aberdeen Angus population and, apart from the coat colour, is identical to it. Red Angus are registered separatel ...

History

In 1883 a

breeders' association Breed clubs are associations or clubs with activities centered on a single, specific breed of a particular species of domesticated animal. The purpose of the association will vary with the species of animal and the goals and needs of the members o ...

, the American Aberdeen-Angus Breeders' Association, was established in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, with 60 members; the name was shortened to American Angus Association in the 1950s. Until 1917 both black and red cattle could be registered in the

herd-book A breed registry, also known as a herdbook, studbook or register, in animal husbandry and the hobby of animal fancy, is an official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known. Animals are usually registered by their breeders ...

of the association; thereafter, red-coated individuals were barred from registration. The registered population in 2010 numbered about head, with almost breeding cows and over registered bulls, making it the most numerous beef breed of the United States. In 2021 the

conservation status The conservation status of a group of organisms (for instance, a species) indicates whether the group still exists and how likely the group is to become extinct in the near future. Many factors are taken into account when assessing conservation ...

of the breed was reported to

DAD-IS DAD-IS is the acronym of the worldwide Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, within the FAO's management of animal genetic resources programme.Domestic Animal Diversity Infor ...

as "not at risk".

Use

The American Angus is a

beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). In prehistoric times, humankind hunted aurochs and later domesticated them. Since that time, numerous breeds of cattle have been bred specifically for the quality or quantit ...

breed, and is reared only for that purpose. Comparative trials have not identified any commerciallysignificant difference between it and the

. Since 1978, beef meeting certain criteria may be marketed as "Certified Angus Beef", a quality mark of the American Angus Association; provenance from purebred American Angus cattle is not a requirement. Bulls have been used as sires for

crossbreeding A crossbreed is an organism with purebred parents of two different breeds, varieties, or populations. ''Crossbreeding'', sometimes called "designer crossbreeding", is the process of breeding such an organism, While crossbreeding is used to main ...

. The breed has contributed to the creation of various hybrid breeds including the Amerifax.

References

{{Cattle breeds of the United States Cattle breeds Cattle breeds originating in the United States