How did Elite Pedigree Genetics start?

“We started selling semen in Northern Ireland three years ago, just doing a small number of Limousin and Charolais bulls. Then in the autumn of 2015 we opened a semen store in Co Monaghan, increasing our range of pedigree breeders’ bulls. Initially, we concentrated on Limousin genetics before adding Charolais, Simmental, Belgian Blue and Angus to the range.

‘‘We now cover all of Ireland, along with Scotland, England and Wales, delivering straws directly to breeders.”

What is your business focus?

“All bulls are specifically sourced for, and marketed to pedigree breeders and that’s what differentiates us from other Irish AI companies.

‘‘Our marketing strategy is simple; we attend all of the major shows and sales and talk to the breeders. While word of mouth, service, quality semen and attention to detail have all helped, our best marketing tool is our bulls topping the shows and sales. We don’t purchase any bulls ourselves or get involved in ownership of bulls, meaning we don’t push one bull over another. We just let the bulls sell themselves.”

How do you pick bulls?

“We try to stick to five-star bulls with particular emphasis on calving ease, five-star terminal, five-star replacement and high euro value traits with the invaluable knowledge of how the bulls are breeding in the UK before importing the semen into the Irish market.’’

What are the top-selling and upcoming bulls to watch out for?

“Some of our top-selling Limousin bulls include Ampertaine Foreman, Wilodge Cerberus, Plumtree Fantastic and Ronnick Hawk with Lowerffrydd Empire, Loosebeare Fantastic and Mereside Godolphin among our new up and coming bulls for 2017. These bulls have already proven themselves in both Ireland and the UK.

“Over the past number of years, Elite Pedigree Genetics bulls have bred numerous show champions and sale-topping bulls all over Ireland and the UK and I’m sure they’ll continue to do so for many more years. Our best-selling Charolais bull is Newhouse Bigal, a five-star replacement, five-star milk bull suited to smaller wider cows. Our newest Charolais bull is Goldstar Hugo who himself was junior champion at the Highland Show and has already bred a number of champions and top prices at Dungannon Charolais sales.

“The sales of our Angus bulls are also seeing a massive increase since the introduction of two new bulls. The first is Rawburn Boss Hogg at 2.2% calving and five stars across the board and his son Rawburn Jagger Eric, with five stars and a calving index of 2.09%.

‘‘These two new bulls are already providing a whole new option for easy calving combined with explosive growth while retaining the traditional Angus traits.

What are your future plans?

We aim to continue providing some of the best genetics available to breeders and to keep expanding our range of bulls with particular emphasis on breeding, star ratings and calving ease across all breeds.