MONTBELIARDE / HOLSTEIN / VIKING REDVIKING RED / HOLSTEIN / MONTBELIARDE

the best proven crossbreeding program

proven progressive profitable professional

news | no 01 | april 2012 |

VR (Orraryd) x MO (MicMac) x HOL. Owner: Soc. Agr. Locatelli Castelvisconti, Cremona, Italy.

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ProCroSS - a unique cooperation to create the best cow!procross is a unique cooperation between VikingGenetics and coopex Montbeliarde, created to offer a genetic strategy for crossbreeding on a high level. the procross system is unique not only because of the fantastic re-sults in herds world wide – even though that is the real justification of the system. procross is also a unique cooperation between two strong breed-ing companies that are not competing but cooperating to ensure the com-mercial dairy farmer higher profit – and the cooperation also involves our procross distributors world wide that are all dedicated to the system. and not least the dairy farmers who have trusted the system and now enjoy the results. so it is not only three breeds being offered – it is actually four part-ners that makes it happen – the two breeding companies VikingGenetics and coopex Montbeliarde, the local distributor anD the dairy farmer! in this second edition of procross magazine your are welcome to enjoy research and practical results from around the world once again proving that Pro-CROSS is the world’s best proven crossbreeding program!

Sara Wiklert PeterssonGeneral Manager, VGi

Tristan Gaiffeceo, coopex Montbeliarde

proCroSS neWs | no 01 | april 2012 |

PublisherVikingGenetics & coopex Montbeliarde

LayoutMediegruppen a/s, Denmark

Printelbo / Jørn thomsen, Denmark

Editorpoul bech sørensen, VikingGenetics

CoNTENTS3 new Montbeliarde total Merit index - isu 2012

4 california trials confirm advantage of procross

6 open house in california procross herds

7 successful procross days in usa

8 procross success in Mexico

8 eurotier crossbreeding cow is a joy

9 success with procross in saxony, Germany

10 catalan 850-cow herd went 100% procross

12 table for two

13 procross cows at cremona show

14 procross takes off in France!

15 open day at “casa agricola plácidos”

The ProCROSS team from Coopex and VikingGenetics.

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NEw MoNTbEliardE ToTal MEriT iNdEx - iSU 2012More weiGht on Fertility anD uDDer health

It is always important to remember that efficient ProCROSS cows are sired by superior purebred sires. Never forget that genetic progress within pure breeds is fundamental. Pure Montbeliarde, pure VikingRed or pure Holstein breeding programs remain nec-essary to provide continuous genetic improvement. Resulting ProCROSS cows will increase production, reproduction, type and profitability throughout generations.

after 10 years of good results, the French isu index, which all Montbe-liarde sires and females are ranked on, has been remodeled to fit genomic selection. the Montbeliarde population (405,000 cows under test) has been selected for decades through progeny testing - a system that is today amplified by genomic technology.

Keeping in mind the main economical goals, the breed association (os Montbeliarde) decided to enhance the isu index with even more health traits. the introduction of two new composites - reproduction and ud-der health - in the isu has allowed reduced weight on production. Di-rect longevity has also been reduced as reproduction and udder health traits are now directly weighted in isu. Milking speed has been intro-duced to avoid any change as selection for udder health traits could tend to lower milking speed.

what is ViKinGreD?VikingGenetics has the world’s strongest red breeding program – Vikingred. three very im-pressive breeds – Finnish Ayrshire, Swedish Red and Danish Red – share the same selection and breeding goal: the economic cow. For that reason we now list them as being one breed – VikingRed.

the total number of Vikingred cows in milk recording in the three nordic countries is more than 300,000. the high participation in milk recording and unique registrations for health and fertil-ity in the world’s most complete database provides excellent opportunities for efficient selection.

VikingGenetics progeny tests in total 200 red bulls in Finland, sweden and Denmark annu-ally. selection is intense and reliable thanks to genomic testing based on the largest red ref-erence group in the world.

on the conformation side the most recent change (June 2011) has been to increase weight on chest width from 15% to 35% in the body composite index. it confirms the importance of these traits among Montbeliarde breeders. stature, that is not considered economically in-teresting, has been decreased of the same extent.

Reproduction traits composite reproduction composite includes breeding values for:· Fertility of cows (50%)· Fertility of heifers (25%) · interval between calving and first ai (25%)

Udder health compositeudder health composite is a combination of:· somatic cell score (60%)· clinical mastitis (40%).

The New Montbeliarde Total Merit index - ISU 2012 – has more weight on fertility and udder health.

For maximum economical gain in crossbreeding it is important with superior pure breeds with maximum genetic progress. This great Montbeliarde cow is pic-tured this winter in France.

VikingGenetics has the world’s strongest red breeding program – VikingRed. Here is a perfect example of a modern VikingRed cow.

New 2012 Montbeliarde ISU

45 %

18 %

14,5 %

12,5 %

5 % 5 %

New 2012 Montbeliarde ISU

Production

Reproduction Comp.

Udder Health Comp.

Type

Longevity

Milking Speed

45 %

18 %

14,5 %

12,5 %

5 % 5 %

New 2012 Montbeliarde ISU

Production

Reproduction Comp.

Udder Health Comp.

Type

Longevity

Milking Speed

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Dairy producers can improve the survival of cows and profitabil-ity of dairying by crossing pure Holstein cows with Scandinavian Red and Montbeliarde bulls. That is the main conclusion of the completed crossbreeding trials in California.the final results from california crossbreeding trials had become avail-able for wide public distribution, because they were published in the February issue of the Journal of Dairy science – the most respected source of scientific information for the global dairy industry. in the trial, performance of 416 pure holstein cows was compared with that of 503 Montbeliarde x holstein and 321 scandinavian red x holstein cross-breds. scandinavian red was a combination of daughters of four swedish red (50% of cows) and nine norwegian red (50% of cows) bulls. previous results from the california crossbreeding trials focused only on the first lactations of cows, while the final results showed effect of crossbreeding on fertility, somatic cell score, production, survival and profitability throughout their lifetimes.

Better survival, better lifetime productionall crossbred groups had a greater percentage of cows calve a second, third and fourth time than pure holsteins. For example, only 51% of pure holstein cows calved a third time, whereas the corresponding fig-ure was 75% for the Montbeliarde x holstein and 71% for scandina-vian red x holstein crossbreds. as a consequence of greater survival, crossbreds had 3,190 to 4,805 kg (7,032 to 10,593 lb) higher lifetime milk production than pure holsteins. the lifetime production of fat and protein was also highest in the crossbreds.

CaliforNia TrialS CoNfirM advaNTagE of ProCroSSby evgenij telezhenko, VikingGenetics

Fertility and udder healththe crossbred animals were constantly superior to the holsteins for fertility, mainly due to reduced calving difficulty and stillbirth. Moreover, crossbreds had fewer days to first breeding, higher pregnancy rates and fewer days open than the pure holstein cows. somatic cell scores were also lower for the Montbeliarde x holstein and scandinavian red x holstein crossbreds than for pure holsteins.

More lifetime profitMontbeliarde x holstein cows had 50% and scandinavian red x hol-stein cows 44% greater lifetime profit per cow than pure holstein cows. the additional profit per day on an annual basis was $80 for Montbeli-arde x holstein and $55 for scandinavian red x holstein cows com-pared to pure holsteins, resulting for a 300-cow herd in additional an-nual profit of usD24,000 for Montbeliarde x holstein and usD16,500 for scandinavian red x holstein cows. to define lifetime profit, the

“The researchers say that calculated life-time profit for crossbreds might be even higher than estimated, because the data on health costs were not provided by the herd owners in California.”

The California trials show that all crossbred groups have a greater percentage of cows calving a second, third and fourth time than pure Holsteins.

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Table 1. results for Montbeliarde x holstein and scandinavian red x holstein crossbred cows in comparison with pure holstein cows (final california trials)

Trait Holstein Montbeliarde x Holstein Scandinavian Red x Holstein

lifetime milk, kg 28,086 32,891 31,276

lifetime fat, kg 996 1217 1154

lifetime protein, kg 871 1050 1003

Days to first breeding 70 63 66

pregnancy rate, % 14.7 20 17.5

Days open 148 122 136

scs 3.27 2.98 3.12

survival to 4th calving, % 29 55 50

lifetime profit, $ 4,347 6,503 6,272

profit per day, $ 4,17 4,39 4,32

range of different possible revenues and ex-penses were included such as production of milk, fat and protein as well as somatic cell count, reproduction, feed intake, calf value, salvage value, dead cow disposal, fixed costs and interest cost. the researchers say that calculated lifetime profit for crossbreds might be even higher than estimated, because the data on health costs were not provided by the herd owners in california.

For the further investigation of advantages of procross, new research has been initiated, and health costs will be included as well as the comparison of 3-breed crossbreds (pro-cross) with the pure holstein cows.

Summary of articles by B. J Heins, L. B Hansen in Journal of Dairy Science vol. 95 issue 2, February 2012

The crossbred animals were constantly superior to the Holsteins for fertility, fewer days to first breeding, higher pregnancy rates, fewer days open and somatic cell scores were also lower.

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In mid February the annual open house in Oakdale was organ-ized again by Creative Genetics. It is now a tradition since 2005 to gather dairymen from around the US as well as the rest of the world to see the results and benefits of ProCROSS.

this year we had visitors from Germany, France, canada and several of the us states. the crowd was not disappointed! the results in these californian herds are just amazing, with improved calving ease, loco-motion, feed efficiency and higher milk components.

the tour held February 17th included stops at three dairies who have successfully been implementing three-way crossbreeding into their op-erations for the past 12-13 years. Visits were made at prin’s Dairy in Modesto, crane Villa Dairy in oakdale and hoekstra Dairy in oakdale.these pioneer procross herds has been on the program since early 2000, and this year even crosses that are 3rd and 4th generation were displayed. it means that several of the cows were sired by holstein from

oPEN hoUSE iN CaliforNia ProCroSS hErdSby sara wiklert petersson, VikingGenetics international

swedish red x Montbeliarde x holstein dams - so the rotation. some cows were even further in the procross rotation. the cows looked great and the milk production and performance were impressing. Many of the holstein crosses are out of Vikingholstein sires – a good way to keep the high level of functional traits.

a common remark during the three stops by dairymen using this ap-proach is that improvements can be seen in just one generation - much faster genetic progress than the traditional same-breed approach. the crosses further in the rotation confirm these results - and it is clear that procross is in california to stay!

bild – korsnings cirkeln.

A common remark by dairymen during the Open House in three farms in Oakdale, Calif. is that improvements thanks to ProCROSS can be seen in just one generation!

Visitors from Germany, France, Canada and several of the US states stopped by – and they were not disappointed! The results are just amazing, with improved calving ease, locomotion, feed efficiency and higher milk components.

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SUCCESSfUl ProCroSS dayS iN USaby poul bech sørensen, VikingGenetcis

During World Dairy Expo in Madison, USA, October 4th-8th we held a tour for international farmers and distributors to three farms in Minnesota that follow the ProCROSS concept. The im-pressions of the ProCROSS cows and comments from the owners and visitors were very positive.

the tour to the first three farms was organized jointly with the univer-sity of Minnesota, creative Genetics of california, Minnesota select sires, coopex Montbeliarde and VikingGenetics international. partici-pants in the procross tour came from italy, portugal, costa rica and colombia.

these three herds are all participating in the crossbreeding trial. at the herds daughters from Micmac, sorby, Masolino, orraryd, botans, pat-inage, plumitif, o brolin and b Jurist were displayed. overall our im-pression was that the cows were extremely robust with good udders and strong feet & legs.

Extensive ProCROSS trial in Minnesotauniversity of Minnesota runs an eight-year crossbreeding trial with 10 large commercial herds participating. the project will compare pure holsteins to crossbreds in a three-breed rotational system using the holstein, Montbeliarde and swedish red breeds. only the best sires within the three breeds are being used with matings being planned by Minnesota select sires.

only pure holsteins were enrolled by university of Minnesota research-ers in the project as foundation cattle, and 4185 heifers and cows were initially enrolled between april 2008 and october 2008 in 10 dairies. over the eight years data about production, reproduction, health and type from the herds is regularly collected under the inspection of re-searchers from university of Minnesota.

approximately 40% of the foundation pure holsteins will continue to be bred to holstein a.i. bulls in successive generations across the years of the study. the other 60% of the foundation heifers and cows will be mated to Montbeliarde and swedish red a.i. bulls – exactly one half to bulls from each breed.

the 10 dairies located throughout Minnesota currently range in size from 250 to 2000 milking cows and are among the top managed dair-ies in the state.

the trial continues through 2016, at which time there will be large numbers of two- and three-breed crossbreds as well as holstein-sired fourth generation crossbred cows to compare to pure holstein contem-poraries.

Participants in the US ProCROSS tour at Gar-Lin Dairy Farm.

MO x HOL and VR x HOL cows at Emerald Spring Dairy, Minnesota. Today milking 475 pure Holsteins and 106 crossbreds.

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at the eurotier show 2010 we showed cows for the first time. in this show was also the cross bred cow hummel (swedish red x holstein) that already then impressed with fantastic conformation and high production. Georg adelhorn from Diepholz in nieder-sachsen in Germany learned about hummel from crV staff and bought the orraryd daughter even before the show. unseen and by phone!

after the show disappointment was great: the cow was not as all parties had thought, pregnant and with cysts. however, the joy soon came back: she was treated and got pregnant from second insemination with Masolino (Montbeliarde). she ended her sec-ond lactation with impressive 13,628 kg 4.06% F 3.55% p, in 32nd place in top 50 of the Mittelweser milk recording associa-tion.

Mid november she gave birth to her third calf, and her production once again impressed. by her milk recording late February she produced 51.5 kg 3.53% F 3.25% p. „in addition she is a beau-tiful cow and gives no problems. not to our vet or to us” Georg smiles. hummel obviously has taken a place in his heart. “From muzzle to tail she is a great cow” says the happy owner.

at the farm ex. hDa san sebastian in Mexico they have 2,450 cows – 1,900 in milk – and mainly using procross in rotation. the results are very satisfying and the figures are fully in line with those in usa and europe.

the procross cows are functional with super fertility. the cows are milked three times a day with good results and the staff enjoys han-dling and milking the cows.

in the selection they focus on improving the udders no matter if it is the holstein, Montbeliarde or Vikingred sires in the rotation.

at the moment the cows stay 2.5 lactations in the herd, but when pro-cross is fully implemented the longevity is expected to increase. also the number of doses per pregnancy is falling as well as easier calvings. all in all the procross cows show significantly better reproduction than the pure holsteins.

ProCroSS SUCCESS iN MExiCoby anders andersen, VikingGenetics international

FarM Data250 ha2,450 cows average prod. 10,500 kg milkaverage 2.5 lactations2.6 doses per pregnancy

At the farm Ex. HDA San Sebas-tian they have 2,450 cows – 1,900 in milk – and mainly using ProCROSS in rotation.

The managing team at Ex. HDA San Sebastian in Mexico is very satisfied with their ProCROSS cows.

EUroTiEr CroSSbrEEdiNg Cow iS a joyby steffen schmottlach, crV Germany

The SRB x HOL crossbreeding cow Hummel is in her third lactation and in 78 days‘ production she already gave 3,878 kg milk and 120 kg protein.

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SUCCESS wiTh ProCroSS iN SaxoNy, gErMaNyby liane Krauter, crV Germany

since 1991 heinz weidemüller has been manager of the agrargenos-senschaft (agricultural cooperation) nischwitz, which is located in ni-schwitz, a small village in saxony in the former east Germany. together with his wife waltraud, his son henning and 20 workers he manages a farm with 450 dairy cows, including young stock, 900 pigs for fattening and 978 ha ground.

son henning is responsible for the milk production. 70% of the herd is pure holstein, 30% is crossbred with the procross system. in 2005 they started to inseminate a part of the herd with swedish red and short-ly after another part with Montbeliarde. the crossbred young stock is mated with the other breed and the F2-generation with holstein again. at the moment the first calves from the new holstein generation are born.

Years of experience with crossbreeding that crossbreeding system works well, heinz weidemüller knows al-ready from the past. in the German Democratic republic they made experience with the sMr, a cross between original German black and white, holstein and Jersey. after 1990 the old sMr breed disappeared and most of the farms started with holstein.ProCROSS – better fertility and health90% of the procross progeny fits with the expectations. they are in-conspicuous, fertile animals with healthy udders and sound hooves. the amount of milk is a little bit lower, however the components and persistence are higher and the feed utilization is better. the average of the whole herd is 8,486 kg milk with 4.10% fat and 3.48% protein. the age of first calving is 22.2 months and the time between calving is 385 days. to protect still birth on heifers, they use sexed semen for the first insemination. the results are pretty good and the farm is able to sell 30 female young cattle every year.

PC tour to California and Italyin February 2012 heinz and waltraud joined the procross tour in cal-ifornia. it was very impressive to see how procross works in other countries. in 2008 heinz weidemüller participated in a trip to pro-cross farms in italy.

Sires that fit the goalin the mating henning weidemüller looks for milking speed, udder, feet & legs, protein, healthy hooves and durability. they are very enthusias-tic about the offspring from peterslund. also the daughters from lang-bo and J Valon do a good job on the farm. From the Montbeliarde the patinage and plumitif crosses fit very well. the next project from the weidemüller family is to breed a few cows with the swedish Fjäll cattle. “we do not know if we use the Fjäll crosses for milking or just for fun. we have seen some Fjall cattle and we fell in love with them.”

Stefan Schmaul with Henning Weidemüller who is responsible for the milk production at the great Saxonian dairy farm. 70% of the herd is pure Holstein - 30% is crossbred with the ProCROSS system.

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CaTalaN 850-Cow hErd wENT 100% ProCroSSby stephane Fitamants, coopex

Last October, a group of ProCROSS interested producers from France, Belgium and western and central Spain gathered in Plà de Vencillo herd in Catalonia, Spain.

thanks to Global Genetics (Viking and coopex distributors in spain) this visit featured owners Fernando and cousin Jose ramon sainz de la Maza along with the herd vet, Josep torra, who could present informa-tion after six years into the procross system.

Fernando sainz de la Maza commented that everything started in 2005, when visiting procross dairy herds in oakdale, california. Fer-nando adds: “our holstein herd was genetically followed by spanish holstein association for herd production, type scoring and received adapted matings in order to improve production and type. special at-tention was already taken for inbreeding and functionality of our cows”. but, seeing the “californian experience” has been a revelation, we got the improvement we were looking for in just one generation. “so we switched 100% our breeding program to the procross system and the first calves were born in summer 2006”.

today, nearly 600 F1 cows are producing along with over 200 remain-ing pure holsteins. around 80 procross second generation have en-tered production since 2010.

Feeding: “We’ve been adjusting our ration to a higher forage %, as we produce it on our land. Those crosses easily manage 15% lower energy in the ration which lower our feed cost”.

Nearly 600 F1 cows are producing along with over 200 remaining pure Holsteins. Around 80 ProCROSS second generation have entered production since 2010.

Second generation ProCROSS cow.

Fernando’s conclusion with ProCROSS cows: the same production, higher milk price, easier calvings, better fertility, less feed costs and more surplus heifers to sell. ProCROSS was a drastic but wise business decision!

Longevity: “We never had that many adult cows (3rd lact and over) giving us possibility of heifer sales. Our barns are probably over-crowded (850 cows for less space) and our heifer numbers have been growing steadily, allowing us to sell surplus heifers into the market (more than 100 heads over the last 15 months)”.

Main results from the switchto the question of the main results of the switch to procross Fernan-do’s answer is: “there are almost too many good points to tell but we can summarize what we are seeing from our own figures”. table 1 shows clear improvements on components, fertility, calving age, calv-ings and still births.

Fernando Sainz de la Maza started with the ProCROSS concept in 2005, when visiting ProCROSS dairy herds in Oakdale, California. The first calves were born in summer of 2006.

Group at Open House Catalonia.

Table 1. results in the plà de Vencillo herd, spain

Traits/Breeds ProCROSS cows Pure Holsteins

production 305-d 9,930 kg 3.70% F 3.42%p707 kg Milk solids

10,500 kg 3.50% F 3.30%p714 kg Milk solids

Fertility 127 open days; 2.40 dosis/conc. 147 open days; 3.50 dosis/conc.

calving age 23.5 months 24.8 months

calving Diff. / stillbirth 6.37% / 7.15% 11.85% / 13.8 %

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The province of Modena is mostly known because it houses the magnificent headquarters and the factory where the 4-wheel dreams are made: Ferrari cars.

in italy Modena is also famous for others products, like the balsamic vinegar. in the dairy industry Modena is in the area of the parmesan cheese and therefore much attention is given to high fat and protein in the milk in general and to casein in particular. holsteins are frequently sired by bulls carrying the bb genotype for k-casein and in general it is difficult here to sell bulls with negative fat and protein percentages.Feeding the cows here is a matter of providing excellent quality hay, both from grass or alfa-alfa. but yet the cost of feeding close to 6 euro per cow/day, so farmers are always looking to cut their costs.

The OPPIO Farm goes ProCROSSin this area, there’s one of our biggest clients, the oppio Farm who is one of five farms of a big coop. the whole milk goes to the parmesan cheese factory. at oppio they milk 650 cows, mostly holsteins. they have been using the best holstein sires (both italian and foreign) for a long time, but about six years ago they were intrigued by crossbreeding results and therefore decided to give it a try.

procross was the obvious decision due to it’s scientifically back-ground and the 3-breeds rotation plan. heterosis they would gain right away, and even if some skepticism was yet in place among the team, they started off with some low profile srb bulls: Flaka, bredaker and J Valle and later b Jurist, orraryd and peterslund. today they milk 180

procross cows, including mostly F1 srb x hol, some F1 Mb x hol and some F2. the majority of the cows are 1st and 2nd lactation.

Results beyond expectationsthe results of the crosses are far beyond the expectations and so they decided to make an interesting experiment : since 4th January they have “created” 2 identical barns, face to face, that differ only by the genetic composition of the cattle : one barn host 160 procross cows, while the other is made of 160 holsteins. the holsteins have not been selected to correspond by age and lactation, but more or less they can be compared.

the herd manager saverio bacchelli explains: “we’ve noticed that crossbred cows have a somewhat different way of producing with com-pletely different lactation curve as they have less problems after calving and much shorter days open compared to holsteins. we also noticed that the body condition scores (bcs) were definitely higher for cross-

TablE for Twoby claudio Mariani, Genesi project

“Crossbreeding means nearly 40,000 Euro less feed costs per year. And this saving does not cost any specific investment; you just need to change the breed you are inseminating your cows to!”

At the OPPIO Farm they milk 650 cows. Six years ago they started crossbreeding using the ProCROSS concept. Today they milk 180 ProCROSS cows, including mostly F1 SRB x HOL, some F1 MB x HOL and some F2. The majority of the cows are 1st and 2nd lactation.

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breds, so we thought we might keep the cows separately and observe feed efficiency by the way they use tMr.

the experiment is almost done now and by the end of March we will put the cows back as normally. as temperatures rise, we need to re-build the groups of fresh cows, 1st calvers, etc…. it is a matter of bet-ter management, but we think we found something interesting.

Crossbreds have better feed efficiency when we started the two barns of 160 cows each, we fed them exactly the same and as we normally do with holsteins we gave 180 “portions” for 160 cows. we soon realized that we could lower the “portions” given to crossbreds. week after week we came closer to 160 “portions” to the crossbreds, while the holsteins are still at 180 portions.

the good thing is the milk production of crossbreds did not change in the meantime, so we had the first proof that we tend to overfeed cross-

Table 1. the difference of the two farms.

Feed costs per day

Day cost Cross Hol Diff. Euro

€ur 5.83 160 180

933 1049 117 day

816 week

3,265 month

39,178 year

breds, because all the feeding methodology has been studied for hol-steins - cows with a higher peak of lactation indeed, but with energy balance normally negative.

crossbreds are totally different. they seem to have much better ability in converting forage into milk.

but what does this means economically? it’s an easy answer. in the oppio Farm the pure cost for feeding one cow is 5.83 euro per day.

nearly 40,000 euro less feed costs per year….how does this sound for you? and this saving does not cost any specific investment; you just need to change the breed you are inseminating your cows to.

we think that feed efficiency will be one of the topics in future studies on crossbreeding. we know that it is already being further investigated in the new cross breeding trial done by university of Minnesota, usa. we just want to bring our small brick to this new building.

Post Scriptum 1: the holsteins are slightly overtaking the crossbreds for kg milk …. but they are far behind for components - especially the casein that makes more cheese per ton of milk. the experiment in-cludes separating the milk from the two “farms”, so we get an idea about how much difference there is in cheese yield.

Post Scriptum 2: the crossbred farms are much lower in pharmaceu-tical costs. at the end of the experiment those figures will be revealed.

ProCroSS CowS aT CrEMoNa Showsix procross cows were displayed at the booth of Gen-esi project at the italian show in cremona late october last year. the six cows were great representatives for the crossbreeding concept, all of them high yielding, fertile and healthy cows. the group was very homogeneous with good udders and excellent feet and legs. Four of the cows were first cross Vikingred over holstein, one o brolin, one orraryd, one b Jurist and one peterslund daughter. two of the cows were the second cross: one MicMac (Montbeliarde) out of a Gardö (srb) x holstein and one orraryd (srb) out of a MicMac (Mo) x holstein. the cows drew a lot of attention from curious visitors, and created many positive discussions about the cross-breeding concept procross.

Six ProCROSS cows were displayed at the booth of Genesi Project at the Italian show in Cremona late October last year. The six cows were great representatives for the crossbreeding concept, all of them high yielding, fertile and healthy cows.

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For several years French breeders have crossed their holsteins with Montbeliarde semen. to those who ask themselves what to inseminate their F1’s to, the procross program seems to be the answer. since august 2010 pass has distributed the Vikingred sires in association with uMotest Montbéliarde genetics who promotes the 3-way-cross.under detached flag procross, the pass company was present in the two biggest events in France: siMaGena in paris and space in rennes.

ProCroSS TakES off iN fraNCE!by Jean poul brunn, coopex

nearly 20,000 F1 Mo/ho calves are born annually - and it increases each year. the first Vikingred is used on these F1. also a lot of French breeders are interested in using Vikingred for crossing their holstein heifers to benefit the extraordinary calving ease of Vikingred. the first crossing on the cows is typically done with Montbeliarde semen.

certainly procross has a bright future because it brings a strategy to breeders who are convinced by the testimonies of their neighbors about the economic benefits of crossbreeding.

the owner Mr. serge hellot is one of the first breeders in France to use the 3-way crossing. “since i started to cross, my calves are stronger, my cows gained longevity and the production was not impacted. the average production of my 105 dairy cows is 9,571 kg milk (305d)”.

ProCROSS cow (VR (Peterslund) x MO x HOL) in France.

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The dairy farm ”Casa Agricola Plácidos” in Portugal has a mixed herd with 50 ProCROSS cows and 128 pure Holsteins. Therefore it is obvious to compare the two groups.

in the beginning of March “casa agricola plácidos” arranged an open day event in connection with the regional agricultural show in the small town of trofa located in rates-povoa do Varzim north of porto.

saturday morning we organized a visit to this farm which is one of more with procross cows in production in the north of portugal. the open day was very successful with 35 farmers coming to look at and hear about procross cows – many for the first time!

it is very clear that the procross cows have significantly better repro-duction with 72 days less open, 1.05 less doses per pregnancy and 9% less cows with reproductive problems. on top of that the procross cows have good udder health and strong feet & legs.

the family at casa agricola plácidos is confident with the procross product and recommends other farmers in the region to start crossing their holsteins cows with Montbeliarde and Vikingred to obtain im-proved reproduction, heartier cows and better longevity.

oPEN day aT “CaSa agriCola PláCidoS”

herD Datapure holsteins: 128Days open: 162 Doses /cow pregnant: 2.63

procross cows: 50 animalsDays open: 90 Doses /cow pregnant: 1.58

cows with reproductive problems:pure holsteins 15%procross 6%

production average per day: 32 kg milk

The dairy farm “Casa Agricola Plácidos” in Portugal has a mixed herd with 50 Pro-CROSS cows and 128 pure Holsteins.

The family at Casa Agricola Plácidos is confident with the ProCROSS product and recommends other farmers in the region to start crossing their Holstein cows with Montbeliarde and VikingRed.

The ProCROSS cows at “Casa Agricola Plácidos” have significantly better reproduc-tion with 72 days less open, 1.05 less doses per pregnancy and 9% less cows with reproductive problems.

The open day was very successful with 35 farmers coming to look at and hear about ProCROSS cows – many for the first time!

This ProCROSS cow (MO (MicMac) x VR (Gardo) x HOL) was presented at the Cremona Show. Owner: Soc. Agr. Locatelli, Castelvisconti, Italy.

tel.: +33 3 81632827Fax: +33 3 81632323export@coopex.com

www.coopex.com

tel.: +46 51126700Fax: +46511 26707

export@vikinggenetics.comwww.vikinggenetics.com

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MONTBELIARDE / HOLSTEIN / VIKING REDVIKING RED / HOLSTEIN / MONTBELIARDE

ProCROSS is longterm crossbreeding management system

ProCROSS means more healthy cows, less medicine costs, and less time lost with sick cows

ProCROSS means more pregnancies, higher 21-day pregnancy rate and more options to cull more low-end cows

ProCROSS means more financial return per cow