Pedigree move will boost cash

DAIRY farmers can enhance the value of their herds and qualify for higher payments in the event of a disease breakdown, "at minimal cost", according to the Irish Holstein Friesian Association.

John O'Dea of the IHFA has advised farmers they can add at least 200 per head by upgrading to pedigree. "If your herd is taken out by a breakdown of BSE, TB, or brucellosis, the animal with a pedigree on a piece of paper is worth up to 250 more than the non-pedigree animal", he said. "If the cow has a pedigree status, she is worth that much more than a cow with the same milk yield, cell count and butterfat. The Department or Agriculture monitor pedigree sales to determine what they should be paying."

Now that procedures for registering pedigree animals have been simplified, they should no longer present difficulty for any farmer. But the farmer is required to officially milk record, and animals must be sired by a registered bull. He said that there has been a big increase in the number of herds upgrading to pedigree over the past three years.