Overview

This breed was developed in Scotland in the 1700s, when large red English longhorn cattle were bred to native black Angus cattle to produce animals heavy enough to be used as draft animals.

Details

One in four resulting calves were red. Both black and red offspring were initially considered purebred, but reds were banned from registration in 1917. In the 1940s, American cattle producers started breeding reds cropped from the best Angus herds and formed their own breed, which aside from color, has the same features and benefits as black Angus. Today, red Angus is the leading U.S. beef breed used in artificial insemination around the world.