The issue has been taken up by a new body, the Genetic Improvement Group (GIG), which is chaired by Jim Litchfield, of Hazeldean Angus, and includes breed heavyweights such as Te Mania and Lawsons Angus.

Mr Litchfield said GIG was not intended to be breed- or even species-specific, but was formed "to bridge the gap between producers and those providing their genetic information".

GIG said on Sunday that three of the new Angus indexes – "short fed, heavy grass fed and terminal" – skewed the breeding emphasis from marbling to growth.

"In each case the $index will be rewarding cattle with below-breed average marbling, and this is unacceptable," it said. "There is little future for premiums for Angus cattle that are producing 'me too' marble score zero, tender and tasteless beef."

Mr Litchfield told The Land the grassfed index might become important to a breed strongly driven by the feeder market.

Everybody was looking at the way the cost of grain was climbing, "and feeding grain to cattle is something there will possibly be less of, although there's no certainty yet".

Fellow GIG member, Lucinda Corrigan, Rennylea Angus, Bowna, said the general feeling among Angus breeders at the Holbrook presentation of the new indices was that more work was needed.

"The big question is why the new grassfed index for self-replacing herds would focus on lean cattle without any meat quality focus," Mrs Corrigan said.

"We all know after the past three years that we can't get lean cows pregnant."

Angus Australia director, Mark Gubbins, said the new indexes better reflected input costs.

"The new grassfed index is much like the old supermarket index – there's no difference in emphasis on marbling, just more emphasis on grass-feeding costs," he said.

"But if our members want it changed, that's what we have to do."

*Extract from an article in this week's The Land, Thursday, May 29.