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Why Beefmasters?

Our family has been following a very balanced approach to cattle selection for more than 80 years. We call our road map the Six Essentials, and we have tried doggedly to share it with anyone who will listen for three generations. So it’s refreshing to see a renewed interest in practical and productive cattle and a focus on economics rather than aesthetics.

Breeders sometimes ask, “Why Beefmasters?” It’s an important question because these wonderful cattle often don’t get enough credit for all the subtle things they do so magnificently. Following are a few of the things that make Beefmasters truly unique in beef cattle production.

On the Ranch

• Low-maintenance females
• Gentle and responsive handling
• Excellent mother cows
• Heat, disease and insect resistance
• Longevity
• Built-in heterosis
• Outstanding replacements

In the Beef Chain

• High weaning weights
• Fast-growing yearlings
• Low sickness and death loss
• Incredible feed conversion
• Long-feed efficiency
• Grade and yield
• Lean, tender and tasty BEEF

From the Spring 2023 issue of the Isa Informer

Beefmasters grading 94% choice silences critics

By Lorenzo Lasater, President

Isa Beefmasters is pleased to report some exciting results in two separate research projects. The results are a testimony to the investment we have placed in pushing the genetic envelope and making L Bar Beefmaster genetics ever more useful to the beef cattle industry worldwide. I’ll examine in this article the Noble Research Institute study in Ardmore, OK, which focuses on replacement females and carcass data.

When we talk to commercial cattlemen about using Beefmaster bulls in place of their current breed, they often raise two common concerns:

1. Will they color up the calves?

2. Will they grade?

As our customers know, Isa Beefmasters has been working on color-uniformity for most of my career. We have eliminated any kind of paints, brindles or other color patterns the commercial sector dislikes. About 5% of the bulls we sell annually might have a small amount of white on their belly or face, but that is the extent of it. If you breed L Bar bulls to solid black or red cows, you will get solid-colored calves.

This Beefmaster x Angus cross heifer is part of a study at the Noble Research Institute in Ardmore, Oklahoma.

As to the second question, the prevailing thought is the Brahman-influenced or Bos Indicus-influenced cattle will have low-quality grades. This issue is true in some breeds, and certainly true of some genetic lines within breeds. As we’ve heard it said: There is more quality variation within one breed than between quality cattle of different breeds. Overall quality can vary significantly depending on the program and what the herdsman considers important.

At Isa Beefmasters, we believe the success of the commercial beef cattle producers who buy our bulls is important. We want them to provide calving ease, adaptability, growth, and heavy, healthy calves to the weaning pen. We want the feeder steers to gain fast, convert efficiently, be sickness free, and grade and yield well. We want the replacement females to be fertile, early maturing, easy-keeping, gentle, and have long productive lives raising big calves. To me, these things make beautiful and profitable cattle. The loyal customers who buy our bulls feel the same.

In order to answer the quality grade question more directly, we are in the process of feeding several groups of sire-identified calves in order to get the hard data. We have always had customers say, “My calves graded 75%,” so we knew L Bar Beefmasters were not hurting the grade, but those numbers are anecdotal, not scientific.

In 2020, we began a collaboration with Beefmaster Breeders United and the Noble Research Institute. They used two leading Beefmaster bulls (L Bar En Fuego, C988569, raised by Isa Beefmasters and owned by Gene Haymon; and CF Nueces, C1059662, raised by Collier Farms and owned by Jim Colvin). The sires were A.I-bred to Noble’s commercial Angus herd. Noble’s initial intent was to develop and study the replacement females, which is still ongoing.

In 2022, BBU was able to buy, feed and harvest the steers, with some truly fantastic results. As you can see in the chart on p. 1, the steers gained 4.47 pounds per day, finished in 160 days (30 days faster than projected), had 0% death loss, yielded 62.6% and graded 94% choice (industry average 75%). Additionally, West Texas A&M University conducted Warner Bratzler ­­Shear Force (WBSF) tests, and the steers averaged 3.86kg. (Anything under 4.6kg is considered tender.) This phenomenal performance shows what can be achieved utilizing performance Beefmaster genetics in your crossbreeding program.

Cumulative results of the 2020 Beefmaster feeding study

In summary, the fact that these steers graded 94% choice (against an industry average of 75%) clearly answers the “will they grade” question. But we have long maintained that there is more to profitability than just quality grade. These results show that true success lies in a combination of feedlot performance, health, grade and yield, and the critical, but hidden, trait of tenderness. These Beefmaster-sired steers absolutely rang the bell in every phase.

From the Fall 2025 issue of the Isa Informer

Two to Heaven: Honoring Annette and Laurie Lasater—two lives well lived

By Isabel Lasater Hernandez, Vice President

In 1979 Mom penned her memoir, Two to Mexico, capturing the colorful stories of living and ranching in Mexico. This year our family story should be titled Two to Heaven, as Mom and Dad passed away within days of each other.

Their story started many years before Mexico, however, extending back to 1949, when Tom Lasater moved his young Beefmaster herd from Falfurrias, Texas, to Matheson, Colorado. In the tiny town east of Colorado Springs, the Lasaters and Mom’s family, the Nixons, quickly became friends, and Mom and her older sister, Dixie, even babysat the youngest Lasater siblings.

Although they were childhood friends, Mom and Dad went their separate ways for school—Mom to the University of Colorado in Boulder and Dad to Princeton University in New Jersey. They would see each other occasionally on vacations, but both were busy finishing school and launching their careers.

In college, Dad dreamed of moving to Mexico to ranch and expand the Beefmaster footprint. After repeated attempts, he finally convinced Mom to marry him. When she said yes in 1964, she gave up her prized Mustang sports car and her corporate career in Denver in order to follow him to Mexico. Dad always said convincing her to marry him was “the toughest sell of my life.”

Annette Lasater passed away on June 21, 2025, and Laurie Lasater passed away on July 2, 2025.

They began their 50-year career with a wedding gift from Tom and Mary Lasater of 35 Beefmaster cows and two bulls, which became the foundation of the breed in Mexico. Mom managed the business behind the scenes, handling bookkeeping, staff and marketing, all while trying to rein in some of Dad’s wildest ideas.

Dad’s passion for Beefmasters extended far beyond our own operation. He traveled around the world giving speeches, answering questions, and helping others get started. He would make time to meet and visit with anyone who asked. He considered his writing of The Lasater Philosophy of Cattle Raising, a book which has helped thousands of operators worldwide, the greatest achievement of his career.

While he taught us everything we know about ranching, at home he modeled being a devoted family man and an upstanding person. He never tired of learning and loved discussing world events. A voracious reader, he collected books on ranching, Winston Churchill, Ernest Hemingway, Mount Everest, and African safaris. He taught his children and his grandchildren how to drive and play poker, and he volunteered at a local literacy center, teaching English to native Spanish speakers.

Dad was a fabulous storyteller, and because of his years of living in Mexico and his vast business dealings with so many people around the world, he had ­­­amassed quite an arsenal of stories. Sometimes we would ask him rhetorical questions just to get him going. Half the fun of listening to his tales was watching him relive the story, usually crying laughing by the end.

At home Mom was a Renaissance woman, always busy with multiple projects. An avid reader and seamstress, she reupholstered furniture, made dozens of needlepoint stockings, knitted sweaters, made laundry bags for a girls’ home and gowns for preemies, and sewed my prom dresses and wedding dress. She even designed the building plans for their last two homes.

Mom was intrepid and strong, yet also compassionate and loving. In the many messages we received after her ­­passing, “kind” and “lovely” were repeated over and over. An excellent listener, she made people feel heard and appreciated, earning her the nickname of “Mom A.”

Running a business together was not without its frustrations, and Mom and Dad didn’t try to sugarcoat the challenges for us. But they remained devoted to each other, preferring to spend time together rather than following separate pursuits. In her last weeks, Mom said she thought Dad was waiting for her. Ever the gentleman, he did just that, joining her in heaven 11 days after she died.

On both June 21 and July 2, we had beautiful rains around San Angelo, a rarity during the hot summer months. But it was the perfect ending for these two ranchers, showering us and their beloved Beefmaster cattle with love from the heavens.

Note: Thank you to family friend Thomas Cole for sharing his poignant idea of “Two to Heaven,” which inspired this article.

From the Spring 2025 issue of the Isa Informer

Striking a delicate balance in trait selection

By Lorenzo Lasater, President

Recently I read an article that cut to the essence of Beefmasters’ founding Six Essentials philosophy. In “Robust to the Test” (Working Ranch Magazine, Jan / Feb 2025), author Jaime Pullman describes how the current intense selection for growth and carcass quality has negatively impacted other traits, especially immunity and robustness. We’ve seen this writ large in the increased feedlot death losses in recent years, whether that be from respiratory illness or—incredibly—heart failure.

The article explains that Oklahoma State University is undertaking a study to examine the genetic differences in individual animals in terms of immune response to stress. The premise is that despite improvements in vaccines for prevention and antibiotics for treatment, Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD) continues to be a very costly problem for the beef industry.

Our family’s approach to cattle genetic improvement has always focused on balance. My grandfather Tom Lasater closed his herd to outside genetics in 1937, so we are approaching 90 years of intense selection across four generations of our family and many generations of cattle. By adhering to the Six Essentials, we have steadfastly avoided the fads and single-trait selection that have proved costly to other breeds. The problem lies in that when you over-emphasize a certain trait, it always comes at a cost to others. Examples include choosing color over fertility, rapidly selecting for polled genetics which can lead to prepuce problems, chasing pedigree at the expense of structural correctness, or tolerating bad temperament to achieve some other goal. The industry has chased every imaginable fad when it comes to stature—short, tall, double-muscled. A new one now coming from the show world is insanely long necks. What possible purpose could that serve in cattle production? Pure aesthetics should never dictate selection—only form and function should, which always result in beauty.

These beautiful yearling heifers are thriving despite having access to little grass during a tough Texas summer, ensuring their success in other demanding environments.

This is not to say all those goals don’t warrant emphasis. We simply believe it must be done slowly, methodically and in balance with all the other important traits. Take the polled gene for example. Polled bulls have become very sought-after in our cattle sales. We are moving to increase the numbers of polled calves we produce, but not by accepting lesser bulls or females to accelerate that process. They must check all the other boxes, too—and there are a lot of boxes to check. If they are polled and meet all the other criteria, so much the better. I imagine our herd will be all polled someday, but I expect it will take 50+ years and believe that is the right way to achieve any goal.

Cattle breeding is a brutally slow process. My dad used to say a breeder only gets 40 calf crops in his career. The absolute best a cow can do naturally is produce one calf per year. She can do that for up to 10 or 12 years in a calf-a-year program, but many more fall out in the early years. When we make breeding decisions, it takes at least three years to truly know the outcome. This timeline is hard to accept but important that we do so. Those successful cows imprint critical fertility and longevity into the herd’s DNA.

On the flip side, many programs calve heifers later to avoid calving challenges, but this approach just exacerbates the problem, costing the breeder both in genetic calving ease and fertility. Selection pressure wields a tremendous force in a herd, but we must have the fortitude to stick with it, which is never easy.

Another modern development that can sometimes prove costly is A.I. and embryo transfer. You won’t find a bigger believer in these technologies than me, but they must be deployed judiciously. In other operations, we see a lot of virgin heifers flushed without ever having had a natural calf. What if they are infertile, poor mothers, have a bad bag or raise sorry calves? Just because a heifer cost a lot of money or offers something desirable on paper does not mean she should be reproduced beyond the natural realm. In our program, we look for proven donors that have successfully raised calves, are packed with performance and fit our desired phenotype.

Tom Lasater (pictured in Falfurrias, Texas, in the 1930s and in Matheson, Colorado, in 1975) began developing Beefmasters and his Six Essentials in 1931 when he took over the family ranching operation after his father’s unexpected death. Our family has applied these critical traits, in balance, for nearly 90 years. Click here to learn why Tom believed these six to be the most vital characteristics.­­

The same holds true with semen sires. Ideally, we would want to see their offspring and how they grow out. Young bulls can change a great deal until they mature. The better part of valor is to wait and see what they bring to the table. I believe a lot of structural problems and genetic abnormalities stem from the over-acceleration of untested genetics.

Our L Bar Beefmasters are unique among many seedstock herds in that we employ multiple-sire breeding. We believe it is critical that bulls learn to compete to breed, just as they will in our commercial customers’ herds. If you turn out four bulls on 100 cows, they never breed 25% of the calves individually. One will get 60%, and one might have less than 5%. Guess which one is the best bull? You would never discover this in single-sire program. This selection tool for precocity, fertility and breeding dominance critically impacts the genetic makeup of a herd.

In addition, breeders often overlook a herd’s ability and willingness to travel long distances to graze, water and breed. If an animal has always lived in a 30-acre trap or, worse yet, in a barn on feed, how are they going to do their job in the desert southwest or the tropics of the Gulf Coast? We operate our herd in expansive and totally external environments with minimal pampering. This approach ensures they know how to forage, breed and thrive, regardless of their circumstances. This hardiness is one of these reasons our customers like our cattle so well—our cattle make it work under any difficult circumstance. Cattle are very adaptable—as long as we work to keep them that way.

Another related element of selection is mature size. Cattle have gotten increasingly bigger through the years. Continually selecting for the heaviest weights and highest gains easily increases size, but at what cost? In the end, the females must do a difficult job, often in challenging environments. Making them all giant grain-eaters is not the answer for the ranchers raising calves on grass. Again, a balanced approach should keep mature size in check and cattle fitting their environment, but the easy availability of feed and money has compromised our industry’s willingness to seek moderation.

This issue leads to the concept of sustainability, or doing more with less. The land available for cattle production continues to shrink, along with its quality. We need to breed cattle that can succeed with fewer resources. Often it appears as if segments of the industry have lost sight of this. The current Wagyu fad is a “prime” example of this. In searching for cattle that can grade high, our industry has promoted cattle that require a ton of resources and much more time to do so. This approach does not strike me as sustainable.

At Isa Beefmasters, we have been using sonograms for carcass improvement since the technology first became available in the early 1980s. We have incorporated the technology into our bull selection for over 40 years, resulting in a slow but dramatic improvement in carcass quality. Recently, we had three pens of feeder cattle out of our top sires grade over 85% Choice, with the best pen being 96% Choice. Now, I am not trying to produce genetics that will out-grade a Wagyu. But I do wan­­t our customers’ steers to grade well and still excel at a host of other important things, such as staying healthy, feeding efficiently, yielding better and finishing earlier. Profitability lies in steers that do all those things well simultaneously, and profitable females stem from that as well.

Coming back full circle to the article at the beginning—single-trait selection for grade continues to cause other unforeseen and costly problems. Over-emphasizing traits has always led to problematic results, though the industry frequently overlooks this inevitability. Balance is what makes Beefmasters’ Six Essentials so unique in that they emphasize only ­economically important traits in equal measure. This mindset is not always easy, or sexy, but it is the right approach for the long haul—and we are in it for the long haul.

From the Spring 2025 issue of the Isa Informer

Six Essentials keeps us on the right track

While problems stemming from the hyperfocus on growth become more readily apparent, Beefmaster breeders rest easy knowing our cattle achieve success due to our balanced founding principles. Beefmasters are completely unique in that they are the only beef breed with a guiding production philosophy.

As Tom Lasater said, “I sat down and listed what I thought was essential in a good beef animal. I boiled 25 traits down to six. There’s no way to get along without any one of them.” We talk about the Six Essentials™ a lot, but what do they really mean?

Disposition—Gentle cattle are cheaper to manage, sell better, breed better, feed better and calve easier. Cull any animal displaying problematic behavior and their offspring because this trait is highly heritable. As a result the herd will be gentle, intelligent and responsive.

Fertility—This is the first among equals and the cornerstone of the philosophy. Cows that do not have a calf every single year are not economically viable. The simple way to select for fertility is to have a defined breeding season, and then cull any female that does not breed in that time—every year. A breeding season longer than 90 days makes it impossible for a cow to have a calf and breed back in 365 days.

Weight—Of obvious importance—ranchers sell pounds. Weight is another highly heritable trait. We select for cattle that produce optimum (not necessarily maximum) weight with minimum input.

One of the Six Essentials, milk production ­­is key to growing healthy calves that will be heavy at weaning with minimum inputs.

Conformation—This refers to the visual appraisal of a live animal with regard to carcass merit. We select for long, trim, well-muscled bulls, and smooth, feminine cows that meet industry demands. Cattle must be physiologically equipped to do their job, with proper feet and legs, udders, and the correct size for their environment.

Hardiness—It is critical for cattle to be able to thrive under tough conditions. Beefmasters excel in calf livability, low death loss, low maintenance costs and resistance to disease and parasites. These things give us an important competitive edge over our competition.

Milk Production—Next to genetics, milk production is the single most important factor in weight. When asked to describe the perfect cow, Tom Lasater said, “She’ll look like a cow that gives a hell of a lot of milk.”

From the Fall 2024 Edition of the Isa Informer

Bull buyers should expect wealth of ‘transferable value’

By Lorenzo Lasater, President

My friend Robert Scott and I have a lot of philosophical cattle conversations. A deep thinker about cattle selection, Robert challenged me to write an article about “transferable value.” Honestly, I had to look it up and give it some thought, but I realized his idea was an important one. This concept directly affects why a bull buyer might choose one bull sale over another and what the buyer might receive in return.

In the vast expanse of agricultural economics, cattle hold a significant place not only as a source of food and raw materials but also as an asset embodying substantial transferable value. This value transcends traditional boundaries, encompassing financial, genetic, and economic dimensions, making cattle an integral part of both rural and urban economies worldwide. Cattle, as tangible assets, represent a form of wealth that is both liquid and stable. Unlike some agricultural products that may spoil or degrade over time, cattle can be bought, sold, or traded, providing a reliable source of income.

“Transferable value” refers to the inherent worth or utility of something that can be passed from one entity to another. This concept is relevant in various contexts: economics and finance, business, knowledge and skills. In essence, anything that holds value and can be transferred from one party to another embodies transferable value.

How would this concept apply to cattle—and more specifically bulls in a production sale? You have heard me talk about our “program,” which are the management policies and procedures that, I believe, sets Isa Beefmasters apart from other breeding establishments. If the program is effective, the buyers of Isa Genetics should be able to reap the rewards of our management. It is our sincere hope that our program adds value to your investment and creates a lasting relationship.This year we are hosting our 63rd bull sale, which, I hope, means we have been able to add value for our customers over these many years and thousands of bulls. I want to walk you through some of the areas where I believe transferable value lies. Some are obvious, some much less so.

The top bull in Isa’s 2023 sale, L Bar 1095 boasts L Bar 5502, L Bar En Fuego, L Bar Essential and L Bar 7499 in his stacked pedigree.

Looking back to the beginning of our family’s cattle enterprise, Great-grandfather Edward Lasater settled in deep south Texas in the 1860s. Around the turn of the century, he began experimenting with crossbreeding Bos Indicus bulls (Gir and Guzerat from India and Nelore from Brazil) on the Hereford, or Bos Taurus, cattle at hand. Hereford was all there was in Texas at the time, but they performed poorly in the difficult environment and struggled with many health problems, especially cancer eye. He could see right away that the crosses were far superior to the purebloods. In essence, our family has been tinkering with heterosis and the power that can be unlocked with Bos Indicus genetics for more than 150 years.

With my son Beau joining the business last year, our family has now been working on this project for five generations. Each generation has contributed to and improved the gene pool. The cattle today are much more refined than what we started with 150 years ago, but it was a team effort to transform them across these generations. The duration of this undertaking is unique amongst breeding establishments of any breed and results in transferable value that others can’t replicate.

FERTILITY

One of the less obvious manifestations of our cattle’s transferable value lies in the genes of their mothers. Since the 1940s we have exposed our heifers at 14 months for a short season (45–60 days currently) to calve at two years old and required them to do so every year. This policy is intertwined in the guiding philosophy of Beefmasters, the Six Essentials. While not uncommon today, it was unheard of in the 1940s. And even today, many breeding establishments calve later and extend the breeding season—or don’t have one at all. While this is obviously easier, it negatively impacts selection for fertility. This consistent application of a simple policy has imprinted remarkable early fertility onto our females, which is passed on today to the daughters of the bulls you buy.

LONGEVITY

Another valuable outcome of our breeding program is longevity, which is critically important to profitability. A cow that lasts 12 years provides a radically different financial outcome than one that lasts five. Requiring every female to wean a calf each year or be removed means that only the genetics that can survive under extreme management will thrive and expand. The same example can be made of disease resistance, productivity and adaptability.

RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

A bull buyer can also reap the rewards of transferable value through Research and Development. Most commercial outfits can’t afford to invest in R&D for important traits like carcass quality and feed efficiency. However, we have invested heavily in these efforts over the years, and the benefits of the research and the improvements that stem from it flow through to our customers. For example, we had two pens of steers in 2023 grade 94% Choice or better. These results did not happen by accident. And that value is there for our customers to take advantage of.

In addition, the data accompanying each bull on sale day allows our customers to make informed choices that will impact their desired genetic direction. Our sale catalog contains 50 data points, including full pedigree, phenotypic data, and both grass and feed gain tests. We sonogram every bull for carcass quality. All data is displayed relative to his peers so a buyer can select the bulls that best meet his needs. We DNA every bull, which guarantees each pedigree is verified and yields Genomic Enhanced EPDs, which improve accuracy. Finally, we have developed our own $Isa index that synthesizes all this data into a single number buyers can use to rank the bulls. We believe there is tremendous transferable value in all of this. Ask yourself if your bull provider has put this muc h effort into making your buying process bomb-proof?

CONSISTENCY

The final concept inherent in our herd’s transferable value is consistency, which in turn improves consistency in our customers’ calves. I wake up every day thinking about making our cattle more consistent in phenotype, muscling, performance, color, style and genetics. It’s the old “peas in a pod” idea, but it is very difficult to achieve. We have been building toward it for five generations, and there is still much work to be done.

I think one of the key components of consistency in our program is linebreeding, which allows the breeder to more quickly move the needle for traits they deem important. The best way to achieve this is to limit the influence of outside genetics, essentially reaping the rewards of our own transferable value. I would not be able to do this as a new breeder but am blessed to build on the labors of preceding generations.

This is not to say we don’t use outside genetics. While the Foundation and Casey herds have been closed for many years, we have bought a lot of outside females over the years to grow numbers, and they play an important role. However, I don’t find many outside sires that can add more value to our herd than what we produce internally. You may think that is ego talking, but I believe wholeheartedly in our program and product.

Pictured at right is the catalog data for the first bull in last year’s sale. His pedigree is heavily loaded with L Bar, but if you go back five generations, it is even more deeply stacked. His Inbreeding Coefficient is 15%, which is pretty high. L Bar 5502 appears three times, and L Bar 7499, Essential and En Fuego are all reflected twice. L Bar 5502 was the first major sire that we bred and raised after I joined the business in 1993, and these sires represent decades of faithfully stacking the sires we believe in on this great L Bar cow herd.

Finally, what does the future hold? In a world of dwindling resources, we know we’ll need to innovate. This means increasing efficiency, finding ways to increase sustainability, and more precisely targeting our management and resources for optimized efficiency. I look forward to striving to meet this challenge and watching my kids and grandkids carry the torch of transferable value forward.

From the Spring 2024 issue of the Isa Informer

Lasater Philosophy celebrates its 52nd year

By Isabel Lasater Hernandez, Vice PresidentEditor’s note: Through various conversations with Mom and Dad, I was able to piece together a time line of The Lasater Philosophy of Cattle Raising journey, which has never been documented.

In February 1971, Laurie Lasater needed a distraction to alleviate the gnawing worry caused by the devastating drought in Coahuila, Mexico. With ranch duties assigned, he came banging in the kitchen door, announcing that he was going to write about his father. Initially, Laurie planned to write a short pamphlet summarizing Tom Lasater’s ideas—he estimated that he would need two pages—and make copies for his family and friends.

As Laurie began writing about the Six Essentials, he thought of more of Tom’s ideas that he wanted to include. With the encouragement of friends and family, the article became several chapters that eventually became a book.

Laurie worked on his first draft from February to May, waiting for the drought to end and their second child to be born. In June, Laurie and Annette spent three weeks in Eagle Pass and Del Rio, Texas border cities near the hospital in Piedras Negras, making sure they were close to the doctor. Annette used the monotonous days to retype and finalize Laurie’s manuscript.

Laurie, Annette, Lorenzo and Isabel at Rancho Santa Cruz in 1972, the year The Lasater Philosophy was first published.

The rain began falling in Piedras Negras when Annette was in the hospital. She and Laurie hoped it was raining at Rancho Santa Cruz, their home nearly three hours away. Little did they know that the ranch was in deluge that would total more than 30 inches of rain. When they flew home several days later, the ranch was unrecognizable from the air, with landmarks and fences washed away and debris scattered everywhere. Laurie had managed to finish his manuscript just as the historic drought ended.

During a trip to Albany, Texas, to visit family at Lambshead Ranch, Laurie’s grandmother Ethel Matthews Casey suggested he contact Carl Hertzog, founder of Texas Western Press, about his book. An award-winning book designer, Carl had created a new edition in 1958 of Interwoven, written by Laurie’s great-grandmother Sallie Reynolds Matthews. According to an article by the Texas State Historical Association, Interwoven was Carl’s “sentimental favorite above all others.”Laurie told Carl about his manuscript, but initially Texas Western Press passed on the project as they wanted to focus more on history books. However, Carl later decided to take on the ranching book. Carl expanded the project further, designing a limited, boxed hardcover edition of 295 copies, followed by a hardcover version and eventually a paperback. The boxed books, released in 1972, were signed by Laurie, Carl and Tom Lasater, making them especially unique.

Texas­­­­ Western Press continued publishing the paperback edition of The Lasater Philosophy of Cattle Raising until 1992, calling it one of TWP’s “all-time bestselling books” on the back cover.

Twenty years is an incredible run for any book, but The Lasater Philosophy’s story was not finished. In the mid-1990s the book’s rights reverted back to Laurie, and during a visit to San Angelo, Marcos Giménez Zapiola, a rancher from Argentina, suggested they translate the book into Spanish. The two men decided to collaborate on an expanded edition. Leaving the original manuscript largely unchanged, they added a new section which featured a selection of Laurie’s speeches given between 1982 and 1993. These writings addressed current challenges of the cattle industry and almost doubled the size of the book.

Marcos edited the new section and then translated the book into Spanish, making the first-ever Spanish edition in 1999. He then translated it back into English to create an expanded, Millennium Edition that was first published in 2000.

Today, older editions are traded in collector book circles, with early copies listed for upwards of $400. The Lasater Philosophy has been featured in university agriculture curriculums, and every week the Isa Beefmasters store ships orders as far away as New Zealand and Thailand.

This year marks the 52nd anniversary of The Lasater Philosophy’s publishing with its 17th edition. Rarely does a book enjoy a successful run spanning so many decades. The book’s continued longevity proves that Tom Lasater’s ideas remain as relevant today as they were groundbreaking during his career. In his preface, Laurie writes about the book: “After my family, and in spite of my dreams of ‘empire building,’ it has probably been the great accomplishment of my career.” In a 50-year career with many highlights, that is high praise indeed.

2024 bull sale averages $7434

Press release

Isa Beefmasters LLC’s 63rd Beefmaster bull sale was held October 5th in San Angelo, Texas. It was an excellent sale, with 29 buyers from six U.S. states and Mexico taking home 82 Beefmaster bulls at an average of $7434. Isa President Lorenzo Lasater stated the sale was their highest average to date, with excellent demand for good Beefmaster genetics. Auctioneer Joe Goggins of Billings, MT, sold the 82 bulls in the blistering time of 1 hour, 40 minutes.

The high-selling bull, L Bar 3129, sold to San Pedro Beefmasters of Texas for $25,000. This awesome young herd-sire prospect is the son of L Bar 7301 and L Bar 1205 and was one of the overall top performers in the offering.  He is headed for immediate collection at Elgin Breeding Service.

L Bar 2081 was one of the high-selling bulls in the company’s 63rd bull sale.

The second high-selling bull, L Bar 2503, sold to Marcelo Madro of Mexico for $17,000. This excellent bull was another top performer and sired by L Bar 9456. It is worth noting that both high sellers are sons or grandsons of the great L Bar En Fuego, who sold in this sale in 2011. He has sired many high sellers since, and now his descendants are ringing the bell. A truly remarkable genetic line.

Volume buyers included: Diamond and a Half, NM – 9; Jody Wedgeworth, TX – 9; Seminole Tribe, FL – 7; Kellis Ranch, AZ – 7; Lykes Brothers, FL – 6; Rafter T, FL – 6.

Current Isa president Lorenzo Lasater and his sister and partner, Isabel Hernandez, represent the fourth generation of the family dedicated to breeding performance Beefmaster genetics. The breed was founded by their grandfather, Tom Lasater, in 1937.  This year marks the 87th anniversary of the breed. It is also the 132nd anniversary of the L Bar brand, which was first used by Ed Lasater in 1892 in South Texas. It has been used continuously since by five generations of the family in Texas and Mexico.

According to Lorenzo, “This set of bulls represents over 87 years of consistent, balanced selection for economically viable cattle. These bulls will produce excellent feeder calves and replacement heifers in any environment, but especially the tougher ones. With more pounds at weaning, lower input costs, more longevity and the best mother-cow on the planet, Beefmasters can’t be beat.”

Beau Lasater, Lorenzo Lasater and ranch foreman Todd Bannert

From the Spring 2024 issue of the Isa Informer

Harnessing the power of ranching’s new A.I.

By Lorenzo Lasater, President

Full disclosure: I asked Chat GPT (A.I.) to research this article. If you haven’t tried it out, do so. It provides information similar to a Google search, without the dozens of ads you have to sift through to find the answer.

I’ve written a lot about A.I. (artificial insemination) through the years, but the other A.I.—or artificial intelligence—is all the buzz lately. But what does it mean for an ancient craft like cattle raising? That’s still a bit fuzzy, but the possibilities are intriguing.

A.I. excels at analyzing tons of data and spotting trends, irregularities or anomalies. It can complete this analysis very quickly, and that information can then be harnessed to make routine decisions or anticipate trends or automate processes that used to require a person. As you can tell from past discussions on technology, I am a huge fan of using available tools to improve processes and move things more efficiently. But A.I. is still in its infancy and hard to wrap our minds around.

What do possible applications look like for the cattle rancher in the future? Following is a list of ways that A.I. could assist in herd management:

• EPD analysis
• Genomic selection
• Grazing management
• Counting and tracking cattle
• Analyzing customer buying habits
• Anticipating market trends
• Health management
• Optimizing nutrition levels and feeding schedules
• Weather and environmental data to anticipate drought
­­­­• Automated sorting for weight and finish
• Drone cameras
• Heat detection and breeding timing
• Pregnancy detection, including fetal age and sex
• Analyzing herd historical records to find outliers

I created this robot cow graphic using A.I. on www.copilot.microsoft.com. I literally said “draw a robot cow” and got this image 12 seconds later.

Cool, huh? But what about its actual uses today? Following are some real-world A.I. examples Isa Beefmasters employs:

We began using Ranchbot (www.ranch-bot.com) remote water monitoring devices last year and love the technology. The windmill in the image is about an hour and a half from my house, at the absolute back of the ranch over rough ranch roads. Someone must drive all the way back there several times a week, just to be sure it is pumping. Now, we get an automated alert if it falls below a critical level (indicating windmill down) or falls rapidly (leak). We can also utilize the technology to switch pumps on and off automatically at predetermined levels. It also functions as a rain gauge. Checking rainfall from my bed is a new favorite!

At the recent NCBA convention in Florida, we visited the 701X booth (www.701x.com). They have developed GPS tags specifically for bulls. The tag tracks their location, movement, and breeding information. It uses accelerometers to know when a bull mounts, so you can see remotely which bulls are working and which are not. If they stop moving you are alerted to a problem immediately, and if they get out of the pasture, you can find them more easily. We will be implementing this technology for the spring breeding season. Watch for updates!

Additionally, we use CattleMax software (www.cattlemax.com) for managing our herd inventory. I put a lot of thought into herd information and collect a lot of data on each calf crop, but then we file those spreadsheets away at weaning. Traditionally, there was not a connection between the years. Cattlemax reporting has helped us deep-dive into the historical data to highlight trends in growth and fertility, as well as identify outliers in the cow herd.

Ranchbot remote water monitoring provides us with real-time readings for our hard-to-reach tanks.

Drovers magazine recently published an interesting piece on using facial-recognition cameras to predict pinkeye in confinement cattle 99.4% of the time and several days before veterinarians were able to detect symptoms. (Editor’s note: Beefmasters have a natural resistance to pinkeye.)

According to Mike Clawson, a USDA Agricultural Research Service molecular biologist and project researcher, “Early detection of disease is critical to healthy herd management—giving producers the chance to separate sick animals, control spread and judiciously use antibiotics before a large outbreak occurs.” You can read the complete story on www.drovers.com in the article titled “Study Confirms Facial Recognition Technology’s Success in Disease Prediction.”

Artificial intelligence is the new frontier in data management. While still in the very early stages, this incredible technology can wield much power in beef cattle production. Isa Beefmasters is proud to be “early ­­­adopters” of new technology, and we look forward to seeing what the future holds. The possibilities are limitless, and I think the Beef industry needs to embrace the change to remain competitive.

From the Fall 2023 issue of the Isa Informer

Building on a Beefmaster legacy

By Isabel Lasater Hernandez, Vice President

A 1994 article in The Cattleman magazine called our dad, Laurie, “the Conservative Keeper of the Flame.” An interesting premise at the time, the term has gained even more significance in the ensuing 30 years as our family has worked tirelessly to expand upon the legacy of our predecessors.

120 Years Ago  

In the late 1800s, our great-grandfather Ed C. Lasater began amassing land and cattle in the rugged brush country of South Texas. He helped establish Brooks County and the town of Falfurrias and was one of the first cattlemen in Texas to use Bos Indicus cattle. Eventually he owned 380,000 acres of ranchland, approximately 20,000 registered Hereford cattle and at one point the largest herd of Jersey cattle in the world.

In addition to ranching, he served as president of TSCRA in 1911–1912 and frequently traveled to Washington, DC, to lobby for the beef industry.

Sadly, much of Ed’s business was lost when he died in 1930 and the ranch suffered during the Great Depression.

90 Years Ago

After Ed Lasater’s death, our grandfather Tom Lasater withdrew from Princeton University in 1931 and returned home to the Lasater Ranch in Texas to begin picking up the pieces of the family business.

In 1932, Tom initiated his crossbreeding program that would eventually lead to Beefmasters: He crossed his father’s Brahman herd with the Hereford herd, as well as with Shorthorn cattle Tom had purchased. He then crossed those two F1 herds and quickly discovered that the three-way Brahman/Hereford/Shorthorn composite outperformed the two-way crosses. Tom closed his herd to outside genetics in 1937 and christened his breed of efficient cattle Beefmasters.

A 1956 article in The Farm Quarterly called Tom a “straight-talking, controversial figure in cattle circles with a bagful of off-beat ideas that leave the conventional cattle breeder in a state of shock.” I’d like to think Granddad would have laughed when he read that description. We in the Beefmaster breed know that regardless of public opinion, Tom unapologetically stuck to his (then) unorthodox ideas: ruthless culling, competitive multi-sire breeding, defined breeding seasons, performance testing, weighing calves and, of course, his cornerstone principles, the Six Essentials.

60 Years Ago

While Tom forged a new path in his quest for highly efficient cattle, his oldest son, Laurie, blazed new trails in expanding Beefmasters’ reach. Nearly 60 years ago, our parents, Laurie and Annette, began their Beefmaster career in Mexico with a wedding gift of 35 Beefmaster cows and two bulls from the Foundation herd. Laurie’s dream was to carve out his own niche and establish a market for purebred Beefmaster cattle in Mexico. Today Beefmasters have the highest number of registrations of any beef breed in that country.

In addition to opening new markets, Laurie wrote The Lasater Philosophy of Cattle Raising in 1971. He started writing during a drought when he needed a distraction to occupy his mind. The book, which explains the family’s cattle-raising ideas, still sells 50 years later, and in the book’s preface Laurie calls it the “great accomplishment of my career.”

30 Years Ago

Thirty years ago our family experienced a banner year of celebration and change. In May 1993 we gathered for two graduations and one wedding: I graduated from Vanderbilt University, the next week Lorenzo graduated from TCU Ranch Management School, and a week later he and Leslie married. It was certainly a whirlwind month!

With our newly minted degrees, Lorenzo and I both assumed new roles in the company: I took over the advertising for Mom, and Lorenzo, full of new ideas from Ranch Management, joined as the Vice President of Operations.

During his 30 years, Lorenzo’s role has evolved with his goal of expanding the Beefmaster footprint worldwide. He has traveled to six continents and 15 countries to promote Beefmasters and educate cattlemen around the world. Today, there are L Bar Beefmaster genetics in at least 25 countries.

Tom Lasater remained laser-focused on innovation and improvement throughout his career, and his generation did the tough work of creating and refining Beefmasters into the high-performing animals they are today. Building on those successes, Lorenzo has worked to increase our herd’s uniformity. For the past 20 years, he has streamlined our herd by eliminating the off colors frowned upon by the beef industry and ensuring our customers’ feeder cattle will grade well, all within the demanding focus of the Six Essentials.

Of all his initiatives, Lorenzo is most excited about seeing the Beefmaster breed expand and gain respect worldwide.

Today

Exactly 30 years after Lorenzo and I started at Isa Beefmasters, we are excited to announce another milestone for the company: Lorenzo’s son, Beau, has joined the operation, taking the reins for the fifth generation.

After graduating from TCU, Beau worked at American Airlines and Aldi Grocery Stores, gaining invaluable and diverse corporate experience. He then decided he was ready to return to his childhood roots. The sixth generation is also on the ground in Beau’s and Paige’s children, Jaxon and Ellie.

While we are proud of our family’s 131-year Legacy and Longevity, we are most excited to look to the future with the next generation in place.

L Bar Beef now available in San Angelo

For years people have been asking where they can buy our delicious Beefmaster beef. We’re excited to announce our local friends can now purchase the same Beefmaster meat that our family has been enjoying for generations! A Quarter of Beef is $4.99 per pound. (Hanging weight is approx. 200 lbs.) and includes a variety of cuts (see below). Contact us about other delivery options.

2023 bull sale averages $6101

Press release

Isa Beefmasters LLC’s 62nd Beefmaster Bull Sale was held on Oct. 7, 2023, in San Angelo, Texas, with 37 buyers from 11 U.S. states and five states in Mexico taking home 122 Beefmaster bulls at an average of $6101. Isa’s President, Lorenzo Lasater, stated the sale was their highest average to date, with excellent demand for good Beefmaster genetics. Auctioneer Joe Goggins of Billings, MT, sold the 122 bulls in the blistering time of 2 hours, 15 minutes.

The high-selling bull, L Bar 1098, sold to Jose Rodriguez of Aguas Calientes, Mexico, for $16,000. This awesome young herd sire prospect is the son of L Bar Momentum and L Bar 3404 and was one of at the top performers in the offering. He is headed for immediate collection at Elgin Breeding Service before being exported to Mexico.

Jose Rodriguez of Mexico bought the 2023 high-selling bull, L Bar 1098.

The second high-selling bull, L Bar 1095, sold to Holmes Ranch of Decatur, TX, for $12,500. This excellent bull was another top performer and sired by L Bar 4519. It is worth noting that both high sellers are sons or grandsons of the great L Bar En Fuego, who sold in this sale in 2011. He has sired many high sellers since, and now his descendants are ringing the bell. A truly remarkable genetic line.

Volume buyers included: Corona Ranch, FL—17, Diamond and a Half, NM—12, Wedgeworth Clan, TX—9, Alamo Ranch, NM—8, Lykes Brothers, FL—8, A. Duda and Sons, FL—8.

Semen and Embryo agreements were also made with buyers from Mexico, Costa Rica and Venezuela. Additionally, private treaty females were purchased by buyers in two Mexican states.

Current Isa president, Lorenzo Lasater, and his sister and partner, Isabel Hernandez, represent the fourth generation of the family dedicated to breeding performance Beefmaster genetics. The breed was founded by their grandfather Tom Lasater in 1937. This year marks the 86th anniversary of the breed. It is also the 131st anniversary of the L Bar brand, first used by Ed Lasater in 1892 in South Texas. It has been used continuously since then by five generations of the family in Texas and Mexico.

Isa Beefmasters is very proud to announce that Lorenzo’s son Beau Lasater has joined the team. The fifth generation of the family’s Beefmaster project is in place, and the sixth generation is on the ground.

According to Lorenzo, “This set of bulls represents over 80 years of consistent, balanced selection for economically viable cattle. These bulls will produce excellent feeder calves and replacement heifers in any environment, but especially the tougher ones. With more pounds at weaning, lower input costs, more longevity and the best mother-cow on the planet, Beefmasters can’t be beat.”

Beau Lasater, Lorenzo Lasater and ranch foreman Todd Bannert

The Lasater family would like to extend their heartfelt thanks to everyone in attendance, especially the many repeat customers, including several second-generation buyers. We are already working hard to bring you our 63rd set of Beefmaster bulls on October 5, 2024.

Announcing a historic Beefmaster offering

September 20, 2023

Dear Friends,

We have made a deal to market the bulls from the Foundation herd of the Beefmaster breed. This is the herd that our grandfather Tom Lasater closed in 1937—and it remains closed today. It is thought to be the oldest closed herd in the world.

Our 62nd sale on October 7, 2023, will feature approximately 35 of the top end of these bulls. The Foundation herd is truly the embodiment of the Six Essentials, having been strictly managed according to these principles for over 86 years.

This will be the first time ever that the two historic Lasater herds have been offered together in one location—on one day. Please make plans to join us in San Angelo. We look forward to having you be a part of it!

—Lorenzo Lasater, President

Click here to learn more about our bull sale

From the Spring 2023 issue of the Isa Informer

Study finds Beefmasters thrive in tropics

By Roderick Gonzalez Murray, Ph.D., IDIAP* Panama
and Sergio Riveron Ponomarenko, Isa Beefmasters

The Beefmaster breed has proven through various studies to be the most efficient breed for beef cattle production in the many diverse ecosystems of the United States—from the arid desert to subtropical Florida, to the northern states with their harsh winters. But a new study in Panama shows Beefmasters achieving excellent results in the hot and humid tropics, one of the most difficult environments for cattle production.

A Beefmaster-cross cow in Panama.

The Institute of Agricultural Innovation of Panama of Panama (IDIAP), at its Gualaca Research Station located in the province of Chiriquí, ­carried out a research project between 2000 and 2022. Researchers studied the effect of crossbreeding 14 different beef breeds on IDIAP’s herd of crossbred commercial cows. Scientists recorded 2,843 data points to evaluate the Age at First Calf (AFC), Calving Interval (CI), Birthweight (BW) and Weaning Weight (WW) performance.
We are pleased to report the excellent results of Beefmaster production in the tropics, as well as the specific performance of Isa Beefmaster’s herdsire L Bar En Fuego in this study (results outlined at right).

After analyzing the results, IDIAP researchers concluded that 50% crossbreeding of Beefmasters in commercial herds has a positive influence on the indices studied. They also found that as the percent of Beefmaster blood increases in the same commercial herds, reaching 75%, the improvement of all the indices is much higher.

This study is the first to evaluate the impact of Beefmaster genetics on beef cattle production in the tropics. The cattle clearly performed well in all the phases most relevant to profitability. These results demonstrate that the Lasater Philosophy, with its Six Essentials, is the best method to maximize economically important traits in any environment.

* Institute of Agricultural Innovation of Panama

From the Fall 2022 issue of the Isa Informer

Artificial insemination: a natural winner

By Lorenzo Lasater, President

One of the most valuable genetic tools available to ranchers is artificial insemination, or A.I. In fact, there are so many benefits, using A.I. is a natural choice, even in a commercial operation. For example, A.I. allows the use of the very top genetics, it groups the calves closer in age and front-loads the calving period, and it means fewer bulls have to be turned out.

In addition to these advantages, A.I. enables an operator to multiply the influence of a top sire—beyond what that bull could contribute naturally, and maybe best of all, operators gain more predicable genetic movement using higher-accuracy EPDs.

At Isa Beefmasters, we have been incorporating A.I. into our herd planning for decades. Dad first learned the technique in 1964 at the Graham School in Garnett, Kansas. He began using A.I. in our registered herd in Mexico in 1965. This year marks 57 years of continuous use of this incredible technology!

Thisbeautiful A.I. daughter of L Bar Momentum recently sold for a premium at the Red River Performance Group Heifer Sale.

To quantify our R.O.I. on A.I., I did a little analysis on two groups of cattle, recently sold, in which Isa Beefmasters was involved.

The first sale occurred at the Red River Performance Group Heifer Sale held May 21, 2022. We were pleased to consign three L Bar heifers to the sale, which featured 76 excellent quality, performance-tested open heifers. The sale averaged $3567, a tremendous price for that number of open heifers. The high seller brought only $7300, making this an honest average.

In a previous article published in the Fall 2020 Isa Informer, I estimated that it costs around $82 to A.I. a registered cow, including semen. In this case, that was $82 well spent, yielding a net gain of $116 on the heifers on the sale. L Bar-sired heifers fared even better, netting an additional $494 over the sale average after the cost of the A.I.

LBarMomentum brings extremely balanced EPD power to his progeny. A.I. allows any-sized operator to harness the same genetic power that large seedstock producers use.

I want to congratulate the Red River Group on their “Genetic Partnership,” in which they have partnered with breeders who have semen sires they believe will help the program and have made the semen available at a discounted price to their members. Isa Beefmasters is proud to have L Bar En Fuego and L Bar Momentum included in the partnership. Red River encourages their members to A.I., which in turn improves the quality and consistency of the bulls and heifers sold. That value extends to their own replacement heifers, with the accuracy and quality of their herd EPDs increasing rapidly. To learn more about the program, visit: www.redriverbeefmastersale.com

We experience a similar financial boost in our own annual bull sale. At Isa Beefmasters, all our cattle are generically named L Bar plus a 4-digit number (e.g., L Bar 2104). We only name the semen sires, so they are easily identifiable. Though most of the bulls we sell each fall go into commercial operations, the buyers recognize the additional value and predictability of those A.I.-sired bulls and will pay more for them.

The chart at right details our 2021 bull sale results. You can see a $484-per-head advantage for the A.I.-sired calves, which is a welcome boost to the bottom line.

Bullbuyers recognize the value of A.I.-sired bulls and are willing to pay more to gain the genetic insights and predictability that A.I. offers.

Producers often cite cost, labor and facilities as the usual reasons why they do not use A.I. I will admit that it is a bit labor intensive, with most protocols requiring three or four trips down the chute. But the rewards far outweigh the work, and you will likely be working them at least once pre-breeding anyway. At $82 per head, the cost is manageable, especially when you crunch the numbers.

A.I. is a tremendous tool for making faster genetic progress in any operation that is willing to put in the extra effort. You will be able to use superior genetics, tighten your calving window, increase your pregnancy rates and reduce your bull needs. It is not without some extra labor and expense, but it really is a winning strategy that more than pays for itself and yields many important benefits. In these two examples, you can see how the effort was well rewarded, adding significant value the final product—a financial boost I will gladly pocket any year.