Simply placing European beef cattle (Bos Taurus), highly productive in temperate climates, in Central Brasil, would not produce good results, due to their inability to adapt to a tropical environment. Besides the climate, other factors such as the high occurrence of parasites, diseases and the very low nutritional value of the native forage.

Formation of the breed

The European breed used in the formation of Canchim cattle was Charolais. According to research at that time, Charolais cattle was chosen because of its high yield and for being the only European breed specifically for beef, and to present satisfactory conditions to adapt to Central Brasil. In 1922 the Ministry of Agriculture imported Charolais cattle to the State of Goias, where they remained till 1936, when they were transferred to São Carlos in the State of São Paulo, today the Canchim Farm of the Government Research Station, EMBRAPA. From this herd originated the dams and sires utilized in the program of crossbreeding.

The main Zebu breed which contributed to the formation to the Canchim was the Indubrazil, although Guzerá and Nelore where also used. Preference was given to the Indubrasil breed, due to the ease of obtaining large herds, and reasonable prices, which would have been difficult with Gir, Nelore or Guzerá.
The alternative crossbreeding programs initiated in 1940 by Dr. Antonio Teixeira Viana had the objective of obtaining first, crossbreeds 5/8 Charolais and 3/8 Zebu and second, 3/8 Charolais x 5/8 Zebu, and evaluate which of the two schemes was the most indicated. The total number of Zebu cows utilized to produce the half-breeds was 368, of which 292 were Indubrasil, 44 Guzerá and 32 Nelore.

All the animals produced were reared exclusively on the range. A control of parasites was done every 15 days and the animals were weighed at birth and monthly. The females weighed up to 30 months and the males up to 40 months.

The data collected during various years of work, permitted an evaluation of the various degrees of crossbreeding. The conclusion was that the 5/8 Charolais and 3/8 Zebu was the most suitable, presenting an excellent frame for meat, precocious, resistance to heat and parasites, and a uniform coat.

At present

In the middle of the year 2000 the standards of the breed were renewed, with the aim of the Canchim breed fulfilling the necessary requirements for modern beef cattle.The Breed Standard Canchim 2000 consists of defining breed parameters and standards for selecting male and female Canchim capable of producing Canchim commercial bulls, able to produce early fast growing commercial cattle on the range and the focus of these definitions was the concept of PRECOCIOUS, BRED ON THE RANGE, to be understood as,

Likewise, in 2000, the Association, published, the first summary of Canchim bulls, with their respective EPDs, as part of the CANCHIM BREED IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM in partnership with EMBRAPA-Campo Grande and their GENEPLUS statistical analysis system. Based on information from 1953 to 1999,and 184.881 animals.

The Canchim breed, being a synthetic breed, permits breeders, through the development of new crossbreeding systems, to use the selection of the breeds used to form the Canchim breed, besides the selection of the breed itself, as the most important factor for its development.

There are many Canchim breeders forming new blood lines. Today the Nelore breed totally dominates the Zebu breed in the formation of Canchim. American and French Charolais semen, from carefully selected bulls is also used and recommended by the ABCCAN to form new bloodlines.