The ICBF has dismissed speculation it is planning to overhaul how it ranks beef bulls and replace the Active Beef Bull List.
Dr Andrew Cromie said there will be no change to the ICBF procedure for ranking beef sires, although there is “some discussion” surrounding the inclusion of rarely used bulls in the Active Bull List.
“We have had some feedback on how we might make the list more relevant,” Dr Cromie has told the Irish Farmers Journal. “For example, is it in commercial beef farmers’ best interest to have bulls at the top of the list that are too expensive to be used on commercial beef cows and as a result are not getting used?
“We would like to start this conversation with the beef industry, especially the AI companies, so that we can have the most relevant listing for commercial beef farmers when we publish it in 2018.”
However, he insisted: “This will not be about the process of ranking bulls (which is the €uro-Stars), but rather the criteria that a bull must achieve to be included on the Active Bull List.”
Responding to breeder concerns about the level of data behind the number one beef sire in the current list, Beguin, Dr Cromie said the bull had French data included, which places him in the top 3% of his breed. This data, when converted, helped him rank very highly in Ireland.
However, he added that Beguin’s semen is both expensive and requires pre-ordering, which is limiting his use in Ireland.
Read more
Breeders cry bull in numbers game
ICBF launches new COW profile
The ICBF has dismissed speculation it is planning to overhaul how it ranks beef bulls and replace the Active Beef Bull List.
Dr Andrew Cromie said there will be no change to the ICBF procedure for ranking beef sires, although there is “some discussion” surrounding the inclusion of rarely used bulls in the Active Bull List.
“We have had some feedback on how we might make the list more relevant,” Dr Cromie has told the Irish Farmers Journal. “For example, is it in commercial beef farmers’ best interest to have bulls at the top of the list that are too expensive to be used on commercial beef cows and as a result are not getting used?
“We would like to start this conversation with the beef industry, especially the AI companies, so that we can have the most relevant listing for commercial beef farmers when we publish it in 2018.”
However, he insisted: “This will not be about the process of ranking bulls (which is the €uro-Stars), but rather the criteria that a bull must achieve to be included on the Active Bull List.”
Responding to breeder concerns about the level of data behind the number one beef sire in the current list, Beguin, Dr Cromie said the bull had French data included, which places him in the top 3% of his breed. This data, when converted, helped him rank very highly in Ireland.
However, he added that Beguin’s semen is both expensive and requires pre-ordering, which is limiting his use in Ireland.
Read more
Breeders cry bull in numbers game
ICBF launches new COW profile
SHARING OPTIONS