New genetic evaluations for July 2021 were released on Tuesday for all dairy and beef animals. The information has been updated in the ICBF Animal Search, Active Bull Lists and Stock Bull Finder. The ICBF states that farmers who are subscribed to its HerdPlus service can also view the latest evaluation figures through its various relevant online profiles.

It says that reports such as the Economic Breeding Index (EBI), Euro-Star and Beef Data and Genomics Programme (BDGP) will be updated in the coming weeks and farmers will be notified by text as soon as the reports are available online.

The July evaluation on the dairy side includes 781,337 additional milk production records, representing an increase of 1.9% on existing records, which now total 41,057,456. There were also an additional 742,038 extra calving interval records and increases of 27,802 and 25,401 for lameness and mastitis, respectively.

On the beef side, there were some 57,696 additional cow liveweights and some 10,991 additional maternal weaning weights added to the July evaluation. The beef calving interval added a further 394,514 records to this evaluation.

Some 11,869 additional liver fluke records were added to the July evaluation, which is an addition of 2.6% extra records, bringing total liver fluke records to 464,898.

There were 225,438 genotypes included in the July evaluation, with a high percentage of these stemming from farmers participating in BDGP. There are now 2,476,754 genotypes included in the database. The next evaluation publication date is set for 28 September 2021, but it is important to note that genotypes and relevant information must be submitted by a certain date to be included.

It is too late to include DNA samples for the 2021 September evaluation, due for publication on 28 September, with the cut-off date being 7 July 2021. The last day for data to be recorded for inclusion in the evaluations is 6 August.

For the November 2021 evaluations, due to be published on 23 November 2021, the final date for submission of DNA samples is 1 September 2021. The ICBF has previously stated that the results of this evaluation can be used to contribute to the BDGP target of having 50% of females in the herd genotyped as four or five stars on the replacement index on 31 October 2021.

This is a word of caution for those relying on this evaluation, particularly if animals are the progeny of sires or dams with low levels of reliability, or if there is any possible question mark surrounding parentage. The final date for submitting all data for the November 2021 evaluation is 1 October 2021.

For any queries on evaluation figures, ICBF can be contacted on 023-882 0452 or by emailing query@icbf.com.