News

After lengthy preparations, last week the first 'methane sniffer' was installed in the milk robot at a Dutch farm. This sniffer establishes the methane concentration in the air exhaled by each cow at each milking session.

For Manfred Lenz (56), farming is not just a job, it is a passion, and he is proud to carry on the family business. Frühlingshof Farm has been in his family since 1791. Full-time employee Lars Germer and trainee Tanja Kribs support Manfred Lenz in his work. His family help as often as they can, especially his 26-year-old daughter Elisabeth. After high school, she trained as a farmer and farm manager, and realised during this time just how much she enjoys working with cows.

The United States is a leading centre of Holstein breeding. CRV operates its own breeding program there, which has resulted in a broad, internationally competitive offering of top-ranked TPI bulls. CRV's bulls are unique thanks to the exclusive breeding values for feed efficiency, CRV Health and CRV Efficiency.

Genomic analysis of female Holstein is used for Precision Breeding. Female genomic testing is the next step in breeding efficient and profitable herds. Genomic breeding values haver higher reliabilities then pedigree indexes. HerdOptimizer Go helps farmers to rank animals and to formulate the best possible breeding goal. With data of the genetic potential of the herd farmers are able to make educated decisions on their breeding strategy (sexed, conventional, beef or embryo) to ensure they only breed with the best existing genetics.

The age of cows on Dutch dairy farms was higher again last year. The average milk production per lactation barely increased, but the increased longevity resulted in higher than ever lifetime production. This has been revealed by the annual milk recording statistics of CRV for the 2020-2021 financial year.

Dairy farmer Hans Janssen wants to maximise the potential of what he has to the full. His land, the milking robots and the forage he grows on his farm. ‘We need cows that convert feed efficiently into milk’ he explains. ‘That is where breeding can also help.’