Charolais

Charolais come from the Charolles district of Burgundy, where they were worked as draft animals before anyone bred them for beef. They are white to cream, large-framed, and heavily muscled through the hindquarter.

In North America they are mainly a terminal sire breed. A Charolais bull on British-breed cows produces calves that grow fast, convert feed efficiently and hang a heavy, high-yielding carcass. That is a specific job and they do it better than almost anything.

They came to the continent through Mexico in the 1930s, since direct imports from France were closed by disease restrictions.

The trade is birth weight and marbling. Charolais calves are big at birth, so a Charolais bull is the wrong choice on heifers without careful sire selection, and the carcass marbles less than an Angus one, which matters if you are aiming at a quality grid.