A near-perfect storm has created an opportunity to add value to dairy calves not destined for the milking string. While dairy herd numbers remain fairly steady, improved milk production efficiencies have reduced the pace of replacement animals entering the herd.

When genomic testing was first introduced to the dairy industry in 2009, there was considerable debate and pushback about the value and reliability of the information. At first, the industry was focused on determining if we could choose bulls without progeny testing – a sea change for the A.I. industry.

Prior to the April genetic evaluations, model changes were announced for both calving ease and stillbirth. These changes considerably improved the accuracy of the traits and improved the stability of the evaluations.

“Knowledge is power” is a commonly used phrase, and in the dairy genetics business today, there is no shortage of information available for dairy farmers to use to try to breed a more profitable herd of cows.

The April 2020 sire evaluation had more changes than usual. This is not coincidental. The most noticeable of changes was the genetic base change.

The Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding (CDCB) released information about the stepwise genetic base change that happens at five-year intervals. The April 2020 genetic evaluations of bulls and cows will reflect the most recent genetic base change.

Some dairy producers who are breeding for beef crossbreds are only looking at two things: the price of semen and getting an animal that is as black as possible.

Beta-casein gene influences production of milk protein casein which has A1 & A2 variants.