About MBJ Ranch

Over the years, the late Ed Mears worked to produce top-quality Red Brangus by combining "high selected" Nelore bulls with his outstanding Leachman-bred and McFee-bred Red Angus females. In addition, he used the genetics of the outstanding half-blood bull, Copper Nine, and his son, El Cid.

In 1995, Ed's longtime friend, Marcos Machado Borges Jr, purchased a group of highly selected Red Brangus females females from the Mears herd to start the Red Brangus operation, MBJ Ranch.

In 2008, MBJ Ranch partnered with Fagan Ranch in a joint embryo program. Fagan Ranch has probably one of the best herds in the country. Their acquisition of 65 foundation females from Sureway Farms made them a leading source of superior genetics.

Throughout the years, from one generation to the next, we have placed the highest priority on breeding performance-oriented cattle, making sure that our cattle could adapt and do well in all environments. To raise our program to the next level, in the past five years we have made a concerted effort to build and refine our elite herd. These cattle and pedigrees have provided us with an additional purebred customer segment and appeal in the breed. The MBJ Performance and Elite herds will meet just about every objective from raising bulls for the commercial cattleman to registered replacement heifers to a competitive show heifer.

We selected our core herd based on the following selection criteria first: performance of the females, calving intervals, and average weaning weights. By selecting for reproductive efficiency, we established our program with problem-free females. From this solid base, we improved the performance curves of each generation without sacrificing trait balance.

Most of our MBJ animals have been produced through our artificial insemination and embryo transfer program. The MBJ donors have generations of offspring in our registered herd; and you will find their genetics behind many of the powerful Red Brangus cattle in the U.S., Mexico, and around the Brangus world. With MBJ genetics, you will find a wide variety of pedigrees that will enhance your program with outcross bloodlines and bred-in productivity.

A key aspect of our approach to the development of our genetics has been the pinpointing and inclusion of bloodlines from across the breed that we believe will compliment and improve our cattle. We selected and acquired genetics from many respected U.S herds like Sureway Farms, Cox Excalibur, TRIO Cattle & Genetics, Dos XX, BKC, Triangle K, Fagan Ranch, -C- Red Brangus, Markham Cattle, McDonald Ranches, Buffaloe Cattle, Oak Creek, Triple JR, Broken A Ranch, and others. We are always searching for the top trait leaders from each breeder that complemented our program.

We are proud to say that our program is one of the largest owners of the Sureway line. The maternal ability of the MBJ and Sureway bloodlines blended with the genetics from CX, TRIO and the brands mentioned give us the experience and confidence to state that you will see outstanding cattle in this sale.

We are also proud of the cows, maternal families, and sire lines presented on the following pages. They have quietly improved the lives of our family and the families that choose to use our genetics.

MBJ Ranch is located in the Wharton area, Lane City, Texas, to be precise.


Marcos Borges

Marcos Machado Borges Jr. is an economist, an animal scientist, and a descendent of the Machado Borges and Lamartine Mendes families, both of whom have been pillars of the Zebu breeds in Brazil for many decades. Borges carries on the trailblazing spirit of the pioneers that first imported the Zebu to Brazilian soil with determination.

A citizen of the United States for the past 23 years, Borges has taken on the responsibility of disseminating the Red Brangus breed and its composites throughout various other countries in the Americas, such as Mexico, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Venezuela and Colombia. He makes presentations and participates in Brangus-focused conferences as a way to support its genetic improvement. His work is not limited, however, to the American continent; he has, also, traveled to Thailand, South Africa, Turkey, Australia and others.

Borges never forgets his heritage, and he constantly spreads the word about Uberaba, Minas Gerais, the center of Brazilian Zebu, its history, and the difficulties overcome by and the dedication of those who imported the first Zebus to Brazil. He participates in livestock shows and in innovative scientific research that highlights the advantages of the Brangus breed with respect to its reproductive efficiency and its carcass quality. The pioneering spirit of his ancestors is, also, with him in his travels, particularly in some of the more hazardous situations he has faced on occasion in countries where conflicts and guerrillas are a fact of life.

Proof that Marcos's work is fundamental in opening new markets is the fact that he is the first Brazilian to open a cattle ranch in Mexico. Mexico's market is highly competitive and difficult to enter. Along with another well-known cattleman, Rubens de Carvalho, they were the first Brazilians to participate in livestock shows in the United States. Borges and Carvalho, also, introduced Texas A&M University to Nelore cattle. Today, Texas A&M has one of the most respected Nelore herds in the U.S. Marcos represented OB Ranch Company, which was started by Uberaba visionaries, Ovidio and Paulo Brito. During its 23 years in the U.S. market, the OB Ranch has demonstrated the potential of the Nelore and Red Brangus breeds, and it has demystified the erroneous idea that beef from Zebu breeds is not comparable to those of European breeds. Borges's research, in cooperation with Texas Connection and Texas A&M, has proved that the carcass quality of some Nelore lineages is actually superior to the meat of the average Angus animal, which is considered to be the best beef in the United States.

Borges has served the International Red Brangus Breeders Association (IRBBA) Board of Directors since 1997. In 2004, he took over as president of the IRRBA. He, also, served as a director for the International Brangus Breeders Association and as vice president for the Texas Brangus Breeders Association.

Contributions & Accomplishments:

1998
Borges was awarded the International Brangus Breeder International Merit Award.

2003
Borges was awarded the Brazilian Association of Zebu Breeders International Merit Award during Expozebu, the worlds largest Zebu Livestock Show.

2004
Borges was awarded the IRBBA Breeder & Member of the Year awards.

2008 – 2017
Borges served as a founder of the Federation of International Brangus Associations.

2014
International Brangus Merit – World Brangus Congress 2014 - Asociación de Criadores del estado de Yucatan.

2017
Borges was awarded the IRBBA Breeder of the Year award.

Thank you for your support of our program, our cattle and our families over the years.

Looking and moving positively forward,
Marcos Borges Jr.


About Red Brangus Cattle

Red Brangus Cattle have genetics that are ideal for tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world. Red Brangus Cattle combine the hardiness, disease resistance and unmatched maternal instincts of the Brahman breed with the superior carcass quality, fertility, maternal and milking ability of the Angus. Red Brangus calves are small at birth, averaging 70 to 75 pounds, but yield high weaning weights. These calves continue to gain efficiently in the feedlot and yield the lean and tasty Yield Grade 2, Choice carcasses the consumer demands.

In addition, Red Brangus exhibit early puberty, with heifers ready to breed at about 14 months and calve on or before their second birthdays, and bulls are ready for light service as early as 14 months. Both bulls and females retain their productivity well past many other breeds, with females still producing at 14 to 15 years of age and bulls in service at age 10 and older.

Red Brangus are a moderate size with mature females weighing in the range of 1,100 pounds and mature bulls weighing in the 2,000 pound range. Their red color is not only pleasing to many cattlemen, but eliminates pink eye and sunburned udders and allows the cattle to forage under extreme heat conditions while others are seeking shade or tanks. Their disposition makes them ideal for the wide open spaces of the western ranges and safe for the week-end rancher. The natural polling of Red Brangus eliminates the danger of horns and the management chore of dehorning.

MBJ Ranch Company

11840 S SH 60 Hwy., Wharton, TX 77488
(10 Minutes from OB Ranch towards Bay City, Texas)

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These characteristics put Red Brangus in the category of truly great cattle.