With a good share of the 2026 calves yet to be delivered, it seems early to be talking about the next breeding season to deliver the 2027 calf crop.
However, at this stage many farmers have already picked their bulls for the season ahead. In the past, farmers had to act early to secure the best bulls, now farmers are acting early to secure the best sexed bulls.
There is some talk in the industry that AI companies didn’t get as many straws sexed this year as they did last year, due to concerns about reduced demand because of lower milk prices. This has meant that some of the highest EBI bulls have already sold out in terms of their sexed semen supply.
There is now less talk of individual bulls and more talk of the bull team, because most dairy farmers should be using a minimum of eight to 10 bulls in equal measure across the herd.
The bull team should improve the herd, so the starting point for picking the team is to look at the EBI report and ensure that the team maximises gains in as many areas as possible.
The key areas to focus on are milk and fertility sub-index. These make up the largest part of the EBI and are the most important in terms of profitability. Other areas matter too, particularly TB resistance and maintenance.
We publish the active bull list for 2026, based on the November 2025 evaluation. Note that this is subject to change based on the March 2026 evaluation taking place later this month.
Daire Cregg chats to Monaghan farmer Cathal Comiskey about how changing the genetics in the herd totally revolutionised farm performance.
It’s an endorsement of the power of genetics and shows the importance of picking a good team of bulls to fast-track genetic gain and animal performance.
With a good share of the 2026 calves yet to be delivered, it seems early to be talking about the next breeding season to deliver the 2027 calf crop.
However, at this stage many farmers have already picked their bulls for the season ahead. In the past, farmers had to act early to secure the best bulls, now farmers are acting early to secure the best sexed bulls.
There is some talk in the industry that AI companies didn’t get as many straws sexed this year as they did last year, due to concerns about reduced demand because of lower milk prices. This has meant that some of the highest EBI bulls have already sold out in terms of their sexed semen supply.
There is now less talk of individual bulls and more talk of the bull team, because most dairy farmers should be using a minimum of eight to 10 bulls in equal measure across the herd.
The bull team should improve the herd, so the starting point for picking the team is to look at the EBI report and ensure that the team maximises gains in as many areas as possible.
The key areas to focus on are milk and fertility sub-index. These make up the largest part of the EBI and are the most important in terms of profitability. Other areas matter too, particularly TB resistance and maintenance.
We publish the active bull list for 2026, based on the November 2025 evaluation. Note that this is subject to change based on the March 2026 evaluation taking place later this month.
Daire Cregg chats to Monaghan farmer Cathal Comiskey about how changing the genetics in the herd totally revolutionised farm performance.
It’s an endorsement of the power of genetics and shows the importance of picking a good team of bulls to fast-track genetic gain and animal performance.
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