A 14-month-old Angus bull recently became the highest-priced bull ever sold at public auction, fetching $800,000 from two ranchers based in Missouri and Oklahoma. The previous record, set just last year, was $750,000.

The bull, SAV Elation 7899, was produced by Schaff Angus Valley of Saint Anthony, N.D. He was purchased by Square B Ranch & Cattle Co. of Warsaw, Mo., and Bogle Ranch LLC of Langley, Okla. The Schaffs retained a 20% ownership interest in the herd bull.

Elation joins a set of elite sires at Square B Ranch that provide the genetic foundation for the Quality Beef program, a Missouri-based network of ranchers whose focus is on improving the quality, consistency and value of cattle.

The Quality Beef program was originally created by the University of Missouri before being acquired by Square B Ranch and owner Brian Bell. The goal of Quality Beef is to capture more value from cattle raised on the same resources.

For instance, in an average pen of feedlot cattle, Quality Beef historically shows a gross value difference of about $1,000 per head, on average, for high-quality feedlot cattle versus their lower-quality, costlier counterparts, Bell said. In other words, he said, it pays to have access to great cattle that work in all phases of production, from pasture to feedyard -– and that’s why the investment in Elation was made.

Elation, born in December 2016, possesses a rare balance of traits that are highly desirable for ranchers: low birth weight, high growth and excellent beef quality, among others. He also descends from one of the great cow families in the beef industry and is a grandson of N Bar Emulation EXT, arguably the greatest Angus bull of the last 25 years.