Agriland I spoke with a number of artificial insemination (AI) companies about what criteria they are selecting for litters this breeding season and what the trends are.
It has officially been a month into the breeding season, with most farmers now finished or in the final stages of raising replacement heifers.
The focus will now shift to dairy beef, and given the premiums available in the market for good stock this year, farmers will be keen to get the breeding right.
The use of continental mares continues to increase, with the Charolais and especially the Belgian Blue becoming popular again this year.
Despite this, Angus is still the driving force behind dairy beef, especially in the late stage of the breeding season.
For dairy alternatives, the focus on kg of milk and milk solids remained evident again this year, with many farmers focusing on bulls that will increase milk solids by percentages.
However, there is a strong focus on the health number creeping into breeding plans now as well.
Note: All bulls numbers below are as of May 26, 2026 Ratings.
Monster Puffin
Agriland He spoke with Tom Baker of Monster Puffin, who said the desire to produce well is still evident.
“Guys don’t necessarily pick the best up-and-comers in EBI anymore, but they pick the most balanced up-and-comers,” Baker said.
He said there was an appetite for kilograms of milk solids, even without litres, as farmers aimed to increase production while maintaining liters in a bid to stay at the upper end of the middle nitrate range.
He said the fundamental change in the Economic Breeding Index (EBI) since the last breeding season had not affected matters significantly, noting that farmers may not take a €200 bull but would be happy to take a €100 bull.
Baker noted that before the EBI rule change, they had a lot of farmers looking for a reduction in milk fat of only 0.2-0.3; However, farmers are now selecting bulls by 0.5-0.7 drops.
He has also noticed a great interest among farmers in selecting bulls for their health traits, especially in terms of health Tuberculosis resistanceas farmers try to stay below the TB resistance threshold of 8.5%.
He noted that dairy beef remains as strong as ever, with farmers seeing the value of tools like commercial beef value (CBV) more than ever before.
He said Angus dominates dairy beef with the likes of him Tobridmore Tommy Flying out the door, but it highlighted how much he loves the Belgian blues Quarrybank Moneyman They also do a very good job.
The most popular dairy farmers selling in Munster Bovine are as follows:
- Barkdove Magical(FR2534), EBI of €242, 40 kg of milk with 26.76 kg of solids;
- Bonacloi imagination (FR2533), European Investment Bank with a value of 267 euros. – 125 kg of milk with 15.26 kg of solids;
- Ballydehop Ringo (FR9842), EBI of €194, 63kg of milk with 21.51kg of solids.
Baker said they saw significant growth in sexual semen in 2025, which has remained steady until this year.
Beau Sirius
Neil Lahart of Bó Sires noted that farmers are “looking for bulls from proven cow families with milk and milk components” this year.
This can be seen as a trend evident throughout the best-selling Bó Sires, with the likes Trendy (FR774) Good sale.
Lahart stressed this Trendy Powered by a cow family, with three generations still on the farm all dating back to the calf.
All the sons in his pedigree are proven bulls who have had daughters milked here in Ireland.
Big Deal (FR8995) He was also one of Bó Sires’ best-selling bulls, a bull that also belongs to a proven cow family here in Ireland and Holland.
“He’s a bull that has greatly imprinted his offspring,” Lahart said.
Getz 21 (FR2905) It was a bestseller for the Lahart team. The pure Friesian bull was brought in recently after the Bó Sires team visited his original farm.
Lahart said his dam and the big dam performed really well on a low-input farm, which made it even more desirable.
Antarctica (FR6106) He is another bull backed by many daughters here in Ireland, where “farmers keep coming back for more,” says Lahart.
Bó Sires also offers Coopex Montbeliarde sires, which provide the strength, power, production and longevity that growers are looking for.
“We have a wide range of Montbéliard bulls that continues to grow for us as well, especially now with their higher composition and the new data they now have on hoof health,” Lahart said.
progressive
Shane Lin, Technical Sales Manager at Progressive Genetics, said: Agriland There has been a major crackdown on sexed semen during the start of the breeding season, with many farmers experiencing a shortage of dairy substitutes.
From now on they will see an influx of used beef straw.
Angus remains the driving force for dairy beef, Lane said Tobridmore Tommy ET (AA8472) and Swanky Valentino (AA1320) cleaning.
He said traditional dairy hay has increased, and semen has decreased slightly, but noted that demand for it remains high.
When it comes to breeding standards, Lin said farmers aim for high percentages and high PTAs.
Even with the rule change, many farmers have the old numbers of 0.2-0.3 in their minds, creating demand there, he noted.
This is evidenced by the most popular dairy products sold With progressive genetics, they are as follows:
- Barkdove Magical(FR2534), EBI of €242, 40 kg of milk with 26.76 kg of solids;
- Calephora grassif (FR1958)EBI of €265, 38 kg of milk with 25.36 kg of solids;
- Braunoff Maxi court (FR2922), (G1-Limited) EBI of €270, -111 kg of milk with 24.4 kg of solids;
where
Orders were a bit slow heading into the spring but picked up dramatically once the weather started improving in April, Dovea’s Marty Hayes said.
He said they have more customers looking for dairy semen this year, along with better breeding of dairy beef to command premiums in the market.
Hayes said there was a big push to calves alongside the dairy sires in the first three weeks, with bulls with shorter gestations now taking over.
Regarding breeding standards, he said that “health is the new currency” as farmers strive to achieve the highest possible level of health.
The drive for solids from different levels of milk volumes remains as clear as ever in Dovea as well.
Hayes also noted that there is tremendous demand this year for the new traditional G1 straw.
- Modemount Firepower SRM (FR1840)EBI of €280, -118 kg of milk with 22.09 kg of solids;
- Ballygoon Bait (FR1900)EBI of €266, 45 kg of milk with 26.41 kg of solids;
- Claudius Messi (FR9358)EBI of €224, -86 kg of milk with 21.66 kg of solids.
Donmasque genetics
Speaking to Dúnmasc Genetics CEO, Stephen Dowling, he said that the sex ratio of semen will reach 40% in 2026 while the traditional ratio is 60%.
Regarding standards, Dowling said farmers are looking for positive milk bulls as they try to add kilos of fat and protein while maintaining the percentages.
Farms in areas susceptible to TB select bulls with a high rating for TB resistance, noting that areas not severely affected by TB are not interested in breeding for this trait.
Dowling also notes there is a mix between some farmers who want proven bulls in their team, while others are happy to try genetic bulls but need larger bull teams.
The most popular dairy farmers of Dúnmasc Genetics are as follows:
- Eylesdale Vancouver (FR1792)EBI of 197 euros, 85 kg of milk with 24.5 kg of solids.
- Radney Newton (FR1783)EBI of €178 with 136 kg of milk and 26.06 kg of solids;
- Blumenfeld Bumblebee-ET (FR2853)EBI of €55 with 475 kg of milk and 45.08 kg of solids.
Dowling said the Belgian Blue has been in very good form this year Norbert van Krakhof (BB9799) Flying out the door.
Breeds such as Angus, Hereford and Limousin are still as popular as ever, he said Carrigrow Cum (AA1022) In very good condition.
