Let’s talk about breed societies

“I am a firm believer in the value of registering cattle but I find myself wondering if now is an opportune time to consider the future direction of all of our breed societies,” he said.

“I no longer believe it is a battle of one breed against another but rather more of a battle to maintain the relevance and importance of all registered pure bred dairy cattle and to promote these advantages to the broader dairy community.”

Scott said with the changing face of dairy and a reduction in family farm numbers, he believes there could be some significant advantages, especially around cost savings if the breed societies were to combine resources.

“There could be a central office preferably in a more easily accessible and cheaper regional area with one CEO or manager overlooking all the breeds.

“You would only need a single team of registration and classification staff, one judging panel and one membership for people with multiple breeds.

“The organisation would have the ability to deal with disciplinary issues and enforce the code of ethics and perhaps combined resources would give the body more clout when applying for government grants or fighting for industry matters.”

Scott said it was important each breed continue to maintain their own herd book, identity and history within the association.

“There would also be a broader pool to draw from to find board members and fill committee positions.

“Imagine having one association which could promote our great dairy cows to the world — we have world class cattle here.”

He would also like to see research into the benefits that come from having trouble-free older cows.

“There is the advantage of higher production lactations once a cow reaches full maturity but also with the cut back in the number of replacements needed to maintain herd numbers annually you can market more cows.

“These days you are looking at a heifer costing you around $3000 to $4000 to rear through to calving so the less replacements you need the more excess you have to market.”

Scott said he was disappointed by the direction the Holstein association had been headed in for some time, believing they have lost sight of what the wishes are of their core membership — the true passionate breeder.

“I know I could be over-simplifying how this combining the breeds could work but I think there is definitely at least room for some sort of discussion — there is so much overlapping when it comes to registrations and administration.”

He said so many farmers no longer focus on one particular breed and quite often have a few different ones in their herd.

“One of the biggest advantages I see is, it would make people who have small numbers register their cows across multiple breeds. A lot of people say to me they can’t afford to be members across different breed societies.”

Emily Brown from Linderlan and Sherbrooke Brown Swiss said the registration, classification and administration for Brown Swiss Australia is working well with Holstein Australia.

“I would definitely be keen for an idea like this.” Emily said.

“I have four registered breeds on my farm but I will only pay a membership for the other three if I get a heifer calf from them.

“Traditionally it has been harder for the smaller breed societies who have had to follow along so it would be definitely good to get a conversation started.”

Scott believes the data that comes with registering cattle is invaluable, especially when it comes to selling stock.

“If someone looking to buy cattle can look back through the history and see production, longevity and fertility data stretching back generations then that certainly adds a premium when it comes to selling animals.”

Scott is currently milking 200 cows on 166ha at Timmering, in northern Victoria, with his partner Linda.

He said the data he has been able to extract from his registered animals over three decades has enabled him to breed longevity in his herd, and the consistency that can be achieved from quality cow families is quite amazing.

“Around 10 per cent of the cows in my herd are 10 years old or over and still going strong and many have never seen a vet.”

He said through the use of sexed semen and a significant embryo transfer program, more recently IVF has meant he now has more than 300 heifers to calve in the future.

“I will be holding a milking herd dispersal sale in October and having the data from registering cattle will certainly help when it comes to sale time.”