[11] Furthermore, the vast majority of Limousin breeders could not afford to raise livestock in addition to their working animals, as was the case on larger properties that practiced crossing with Durham cattle.

The decline of Anglomania in favour of economic pragmatism, and the criticism and fall of the aristocracy[note 2] aided the development of Limousin cattle.

[note 4][16] whereas other studies[17][18] indicated that a closer genetic relationship exists between Limousin, Gasconne, Aubrac, Bazadais, Salers, and Blonde d'Aquitaine cattle.

The grey Gasconne breed with which Limousin cattle have a close genetic relationship is also reported to have arrived in the south-west of France with the Visigoths also around the fifth century AD.

[27] EU legislation, pressure from French breeders of polled stock, and other developments, including requirements of European Limousin associations (the 11 countries of EUROLIM), contributed to a restructuring of the herd-book that commenced in July 2007.

Base animals selected for the two-stage grading up process to any EU herd book purebred class require a minimum of 3/4 Limousin content.

[24][note 7] Graded up females using the two-stage process then become eligible for entry into the main section of all EU herd book purebred classes as initial registration (or T.I.)

[34] Currently, only cattle recorded in the French Limousin Certified Purebred sub-class 2 and Registered Purebred class satisfy the requirements of EU law on herd books and can be transferred as Limousins, including indirectly through their genetics (for example semen and embryos), to other EU countries and recorded in the respective herd books.

[27] Immediately prior to the restructuring of the herd-book in 2008, French breeders had two months to nominate the class (Pureblood or Purebred) in which they wanted their cattle to be registered.

[23] USA, Australian and New Zealand breed association regulations also allow graded up animals to be registered in their herd books as purebreds without a requirement to comply with a minimum French Limousin content.

Annually in excess of about 700 bull calves are then selected to enter the national evaluation station at Lanaud [fr], close to Limoges, just after weaning, when they are about seven months old.

The best bulls identified in progeny testing are formally given the award Young Beef Cattle (in French Viande Jeunes Bovins, abbreviated to JB).

Studies of double-muscled cattle[49][50] identified natural mutations of the myostatin gene which produce inactivated proteins that are unable to control muscle development.

A second backcross study conducted in Japan of Limousin and Japanese Black breeds identified similar changes to meat and fat quantities in cattle homozygous for the F94L mutation.

[55] Test results of approximately 1,100 cattle recorded in the North American Limousin Foundation herd book[56] show the following distributions for three classes of animal.

Test results[57] of 1028 cattle recorded in the Australian and New Zealand herd book indicate that 96.7% of Fullbloods (known in Australia as French Pure), 88.0% of purebreds, and 33.3% of a limited sample of Lim-Flex were homozygous for the F94L mutation.

[54] This difference, which is unpredictable without DNA testing, is nearly four times the possible change value for a 0% BIF accuracy, reported to be 0.46in2 for the rib eye EPD.

This arose because saleable meat yield expressed as percentage of live weight was significantly higher in Limousins than in most other cattle breeds.

Limousin saleable meat gain averaged 585g/day, with the balance being 687g/day of low value or waste product, such as bone, trimmed fat, internal organs, and hide.

The other continental European breeds produced on average less saleable meat (556g/day) and more low cost product (819g/day) while consuming about 25% more feed than the Limousins.

However, feed conversion to saleable meat for Limousins for the six reported market end points still exceeded the average of the other two breed groups by up to one-fifth.

Crossbreeding increases production efficiency because of hybrid vigour, and allows complementary traits of parents to be combined to produce progeny better suited to different environments or markets.

[79] Crossbreeding through the use of Limousin terminal sires in purebred British breed cow herds allows the complementary traits of higher marbling and fat cover provided by the British breed cows, and required or preferred by some markets,[74][75] to be combined with the higher yield and feed conversion efficiency of Limousin sires.

Crossbred cows produce up to, and in some cases in excess of, 20% more weaned calf weight as a result of increased reproductive performance and maternal ability.

However, breeding using heterozygous animals as parents, which could include purebred Limousins of low percentage Full French content,[note 9] and Lim-Flex and Brahmousin hybrids that have not been bred to a uniform (homozygous) standard over several generations, would produce progeny with inconsistent carcase characteristics and production value depending upon whether or not the F94L mutation was inherited.

The use of Lim-Flex and Brahmousin sires over a third breed of cow would benefit most from increased hybrid vigour, which should minimise any reduction in carcase value arising from the loss of the F94L mutation.

Further crosses over a broader base led to the production of the 5/8 Limousin – 3/8 Brahman Brahmousin purebred, a mix which has been found to be the most widely accepted and most useful for the majority of the US.

Limousins were reintroduced in Argentina (1966) and Brazil (1978), and imported to other European countries such as Spain (1965), Italy (1968), the Netherlands (1969), Denmark (1970), and the United Kingdom (1971).

Conversely, the genetic contribution of North American Limousins to European countries has increased since the late 1990s, which has occurred because of their use in breeding programmes to introduce the polled gene.

[97] International Limousin genetics are now widely available in many countries for use in artificial insemination programmes, which has been facilitated by a large number of companies that specialise in the export and import of semen.