Pat Flynn of Kilworth, Co Cork, is the top of the list again with his herd of pedigree British Friesian cows. He has an EBI worth €234, with €30 coming from milk sub-index and €174 from fertility.

Pat initially emerged as number one in October 2014, jumping 13 places to earn the top spot.

Liam O’Leary, Conna (EBI €227) came in second and Martin Kinane, Ballyglass (EBI €222) is third.

The average EBI of th best herds is €188 with €57 coming from milk and €101 from fertility. There are 21 herds over the €200 mark and 12 new herds since the last evaluation in September.

The national average EBI is €125 (milk €36, fertility €75).

The Farmers Journal's own Peter Young made the list at 79.

Cork farmer Pat Flynn explains how his dairy herd came to be the highest rated in Ireland