Before he left school, Ralph helped to found with other producers, a recordkeeping organization, the Florida Beef Cattle Improvement Association under the oversight of Dr. Marvin Koger, pioneer Cattle Researcher and educator at the University of Florida.  Ralph was eager to implement its programs of Performance Testing; tying the annual production of each cow to its progeny and using this information in making decisions of genetic selection of the herd.

To accomplish this, the calf crop was weighed and graded annually, Extension Beef Cattle Specialist Jim Pace traveled to the Ranch to grade the cattle, returning to Gainesville with data that would be entered and summarized on the University’s mainframe computer.  There are over 60 years of production records on the Treasure Hammock herd.  Marked genetic improvement has occurred as a result of these programs over time and the reputation of sound productivity of the herd has perpetuated throughout the state.