New Sire Selection Tool Introduced at Select's Evaluators' Conference
PLAIN CITY, Ohio, June 9, 2009 — More than 100 professional Select Mating Service™ (SMS™) genetic consultants
from Select Sires' member organizations and from twelve different countries recently met at the annual Evaluators'
Conference, which was hosted by Minnesota/Select Sires, St. Cloud, Minn. The group discussed the latest in the Program
for Genetic Advancement™ (PGA™), commercial sire demands from large dairies and new enhancements to the SMS program that are now available.
"The innovative high-ranking feature in SMS is a new tool available to our genetic consultants," said Lon Peters, vice
president dairy sire product services and international for Select Sires. "This option allows our consultant staff the
ability to rank cows or heifers for special mating. One example would be if a producer wanted to use sexed semen on only
the top 25 percent of his heifers. Ranked on the pedigree are particular criteria important to the goals of each dairy –
like specific type traits, net merit dollars, health traits, fertility traits or production traits – one can assign a
weight to each trait in order to create their own, customized index. This new tool allows genetic consultants an extra
option to provide the results necessary in these tough economic times."
In addition, a new sire selection index tool was introduced during the first day's educational seminars. This exciting
tool provides Select's customers a system for which to sort bulls specifically for their markets and genetic demands.
Presentations from Select's sire department and marketing staff brought all attendees up to date with the latest genomic
technology and the group discussed daughters of second-crop sires and potential new graduates. The following three days
involved sessions focused on discussing specific linear traits as well as consistency among genetic consultants ranking
those linear traits.
"This year's conference was an outstanding display of Select Sires genetics on each and every dairy farm we visited and
a perfect testimonial for the value of SMS in herds of all sizes," Peters said. "Select's genetic consultant staff will
be able to take the knowledge they learned during this conference and apply it to each of their customer's herds
throughout the United States and the world."
During the farm tour the attendees viewed Select-sired daughters on 15 different Minnesota dairies, which included
Emerald Spring Dairy, Plainview; Speedling Graner Farms, Kellogg; Badger-Bluff Registered Holsteins, Elgin;
Kahn Dairy, Rochester; Sheeknoll Farms, Rochester; Breezy Willows Dairy, Dover; Voth Family Dairy, Lewiston;
Metz's Hart-Land Dairy, Rushford; Barbara and Fred Arnold, Caledonia; Hendel Farms, Caledonia; Macland Holsteins,
Pine Island; Kitzman Farm, Elgin; Schumacher Farms, Elgin; Daley Farms, Pine Island; Bombay Dairy, Kenyon; and
Courtlane Holsteins, Ridgeway, Iowa.
Based in Plain City, Ohio, Select Sires Inc., is North America's largest A.I. organization and is comprised of
10 farmer-owned and -controlled cooperatives. As the industry leader, it provides highly fertile semen as well
as excellence in service and programs to achieve its basic objective of supplying dairy and beef producers with
North America's best genetics at a reasonable price.
Photo caption: More than 100 Select Sires professional Select Mating Service (SMS) genetic consultants from
twelve different countries attended this year's Evaluators' Conference, hosted by Minnesota/Select Sires.
™Select Mating Service, SMS, Program for Genetic Advancement and PGA are trademarks of Select Sires Inc.
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