right on
red sale

John has steam rolled and lit fires where it was needed in this association. His passion for the Red Angus breed is strong, true and tireless. We are lucky to have him as a leader, mentor and friend.

 

 

I began owning and breeding registered seedstock cattle in 1971, when my grandfather gave me my first registered Hereford heifer. My family heritage has been deeply rooted in the Hereford breed for over 60 years under the banner of Spring Pond Farms. Breed improvement of the Hereford breed continues to be a steadfast passion for the Kriese Family demonstrated by the fact that one of their bred and owned bulls (SPF B413 GUARANTEED 11G) was selected for the National Young Sired Testing Program, and is in the top 1% in the entire breed for marbling, but also excels in almost every economically relevant traits in his EPD Profile. In addition, Spring Pond Females are enrolled in the National heifer fertility research project, and the data collected will be used to help validate heifer fertility EPD’s for both the Hereford as well as Red Angus Breeds.

 

John and his wife, Anita moved to Branchport in 1990 and began building their life as cattle breeders together. In 1994, Finger Lakes Cattle Company (owned with Dr. Tim Dennis) was formed, with John and Anita placing their focus on the Red Angus breeding program, and Tim focusing on the Black Angus breeding program.

 

For more than 30 years, Finger Lakes Cattle Company has worked very hard to distinguish themselves as genuine cattle breeders, rather than cattle propagators. Management factors have focused not only on using EPD’s, but also on validating EPD’s through total herd reporting, carcass ultrasound data collection, and submission of DNA for genomic validation. Most importantly, there has never been a hoof trimmer used or hired to trim the feet of brood cows or herd bulls. All “trimming” has been done with a cattle trailer heading to the local sale barn or custom meat processing facility.

John and Anita have focused much energy into developing distinct genetic lines within the breeds they are involved in. Some of the lines are known for ground-pounding weights and carcass merits. The results of these genetic lines have been continually proven at the Penn State Bull Evaluating program, as many of their bulls have earned the top awards for multiple years. Other lines have been developed

with a focus on reduced dry matter intake, longevity, udder quality, and fertility. The continued goal is to create moderate- sized, efficient mother cows who raised big calves…and breed back to maintain a 365 day -calving interval.

 

John retired from his 33 year career as an Ag educator in 2018 and has turned his focus towards helping other like-minded cattle enthusiasts, and the idea of a bull and heifer development program was launched. After several years of working with Jason TenEyck to perfect the development of cattle on high-roughage diets, he’s ready to help others to achieve marketing success through creation of the “Right on Red” Sale which strives to offer Red Angus and Hereford genetics to cattle producers throughout the Northeast.