March 13, 2021, 3:00 pm
The Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF) has released the rankings of bulls that sired the most calves born from July 1, 2020 through to December 31, 2020.
For the second half of 2020, a total of 182,378 head of beef calves (beef sire crossed on a beef dam) were born on Irish farms – which saw 44,367 calves being sired by an AI bull.
The two breeds coming out as dominent in the top 10 ranking are both Charolais and Limousin. The 60:40 ratio sees six Charolais bulls and four Limousin bulls on this list.
These 10 bulls account for 30% of all the AI progeny born in the second half of 2020.
March and into early April is commonly the time when any calf health issues occur on farms.
This is usually because the number of calves on the farm has increased, housing facilities have come under pressure and the bacteria load in the environment is usually at its highest.
Therefore, it is critical that farmers take extra precautions to try and prevent any scour outbreak or other issues occurring during this period.
The first place to start is with the calf housing facilities. Ensure calves have enough space (1.7m² floor space and 10m³ air space) and that pens are not overcrowded.
New beef sires added to Gene Ireland Programme agriland.ie - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from agriland.ie Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
March 7, 2021 2:00 pm
The Gene Ireland Programme is run by the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF) in conjunction with several of the national artificial insemination (AI) companies. The programme was created to provide dairy farmers with the next generation of genetics through the progeny testing of young bulls.
These young bulls – which are supplied by a number of AI companies – are used on good data recording herds, so that ICBF can collect information on these animals and produce high-quality genetic evaluations on these bulls.
This spring, ICBF’s target is to test 100 young genomic bulls and the cost is €12 a straw, up from €8.50 a straw in 2020.
Calf exports running 22% ahead of last year agriland.ie - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from agriland.ie Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.