There are three proofs per year in France, and the summer one is the major one, when most of the new bulls come in for the first time. You’ll find the proofs presented under our usual format, i.e. as a PDF form you can print out. Beneath this link, another link will take you to the bulls’ individual proof sheets, featuring their pictures and their daughters’ pictures. Those sheets are still being updated in France for the various studs, but we expect fully accurate numbers soon.
1. download July 2010 proofs and price list.
(PDF)
2. individual bull sheets, including photos.
Many new bulls make their entry into our lineup: Most notable are Viveco, a well rounded component/type bull, but Vitriol, Uperise (the number one bull of the breed today), UTC, Unog and Ulozon need some close attention. Comments on each bull will be posted on the website. As for our more senior bulls, please note the rise of Royal Holl's milk proof, which in turn propels him at a much higher rank in the full listing. With 763 daughters in milk, he now stand at 761 lbs of milk, while preserving his remarkably high components (.27P and .32F) as well as his exceptional type and calving ease. The other main confirmation is Redondo, who seems to be never bothered by additional daughters: he still hovers at 2814 lbs while keeping his great type. Those interested in well confirmed medium size bulls will check Hollydays, Idris and Messager, all sure values. The more adventurous ones will look at newcomers UTC, Ucany,Viveco, Uperise, Ulozon and Unog, as well as Tricorne, Tetrapak and SaintYorre
The production indexes (Quantity of Milk, Protein and Fat, Percentage of Protein and Fat) are calculated three times a year according to the BLUP Animal Model method. The index reflects the bull's breeding value, calculated on his daughters' first three lactations. The lactations of ALL daughters are included. The index is expressed in terms of a standard deviation against the French Normande rolling base. This is changed each year in July (every 5 years in the U.S.), leaving the average index always at zero.
All figures are Breeding Values originally calculated in kilograms. They are expressed here in pounds (1 kilogram = 2.2 pounds). The protein and fat percentage indexes have also been adjusted to U.S. mode of calculation: the value have been divided by 10, so that a percentage is expressed, instead of a per thousand value, as is the case in France.
The Kappa Casein is the key protein for cheese making. There are different variant of this protein, A and B. Cattle can be homozygous or heterozygous (i.e. AA, AB or BB). Many studies have demonstrated the supperiority of the B variant when it comes to cheese yield. BB milk tends to clott faster and studies in France and Switzerland have shown overall higher yield and better taste with BB milk. A very high percentage of Normande bulls and cows are homozygous BB and the Normande has one of the highest incidence of the B gene over all dairy breeds. For now, no market ever pays for BB superior milk but unformal practices reflect the specific trait of that milk. Cheese plants in Western France where there are many Holsteins along with Normandes make sure they mix milks in order to secure good quality batches. More information on this can be found on the Dairy Pipeline web site at www.cdr.wisc.edu. As more information becomes available, this site will provide it to you.
The semen from all bulls in this catalogue complies with the stringent health and sanitary regulations for importation of semen into the U.S.