When migrant European tribes settled the Rhine Delta region called The Netherlands close to 2,000 years ago, they wanted animals that would make the best use of the land. The black animals and white cows of the Batavians and Friesians were bred and strictly culled to produce animals that were the most efficient, producing the most milk with limited feed resources. These animals genetically evolved into the efficient, high producing black-and-white dairy cow, known as the Holstein-Friesian.
Imports to America
With the settlement of the New World, markets began to develop for milk in America. Dairy breeders turned to Holland for their cattle.
Winthrop Chenery, a Massachusetts breeder, purchased a Holland cow from a Dutch sailing master who had landed cargo at Boston in 1852. The cow had furnished the ship’s crew with fresh milk during the voyage. Chenery was so pleased with her milk production that he imported more Holsteins in 1857, 1859, and 1861. Many other breeders soon joined the race to establish Holsteins in America.
After about 8,800 Holsteins had been imported, a cattle disease broke out in Europe and importation ceased.
Americans Build Their Own Breed
In the late 1800’s there was enough interest among Holstein breeders to form associations to record pedigrees and maintain herdbooks. These associations merged in 1885, to found the Holstein-Friesian Association of America. In 1994 the name was changed to Holstein Association USA, Inc.
Holsteins are most quickly recognized by their distinctive color markings and outstanding milk production.
Physical Characteristics
Holsteins are large, stylish animals with color patterns of black and white or red and white. A healthy Holstein calf weighs 90 pounds or more at birth. A mature Holstein cow weighs about 1,500 pounds and stands 58 inches tall at the shoulder. Holstein heifers can be bred at 13 months of age, when they weigh about 800 pounds. It is desirable to have Holstein females calve for the first time between 23 and 26 months of age. Holstein gestation is approximately nine months.
While some cows may live considerably longer, the average productive life of a Holstein is 3 to 4 years.
Milk Production
The 1999 average actual production for all U.S. Holstein herds that were enrolled in production-testing programs and eligible for genetic evaluations was 21,167 pounds of milk, 775 pounds of butterfat and 683 pounds of protein per year.
Top producing Holsteins milking twice a day have been known to produce up to 67,914 pounds of milk in 365 days.
Superior Performance
Holstein dairy cattle dominate this country’s milk production industry. The reasons for their popularity are clear: unexcelled production, greater income over feed costs, unequaled genetic merit, and adaptability to a wide range of environmental conditions. Added up, this means more profit for the dairy producer who milks Holsteins. This point becomes even more clear when you consider that nine of every 10 dairy producers currently milk Holsteins.
Nineteen Million Registered Holsteins
More than 19 million animals are registered in the Holstein Association’s herdbook. The ancestry of most of these animals can be traced to animals originally imported from the Netherlands.
Holsteins identified with the Association account for nearly 20 percent of all U.S. dairy cattle. The upper end of this population is looked upon as a source of superior breeding stock, providing genetics for the dairy industry worldwide.
Genetic Improvements
The artificial insemination (AI) industry has had a tremendous impact on genetic improvement of the breed. Since perfection of the semen freezing process in the late 1940’s, AI has allowed the use of superior, proven bulls by Holstein breeders across the country. Today, AI accounts for 85 percent of Holstein births.
AI made the development of reliable, unbiased methods to evaluate Holstein genetics possible. With AI, a single Holstein bull can sire as many as 50,000 daughters. Type and production information on all these females makes it easier to predict performance of future offspring and evaluate the quality of genetics transmitted from sire to offspring.
In the late 1960’s, the AI industry, the Dairy Herd Improvement Association (DHIA) and breed organizations, including the Holstein Association, worked together to develop genetic tools dairy producers could use to breed their cattle for improvement. They used type and production information and research data from universities to develop measures Holstein breeders now use to evaluate bulls and select sires according to their needs.
Active Export Market
Holsteins can now be found on every continent and in almost every country. Such convincing evidence of genetic superiority has created an active export market for Holstein genetics. Currently, live Holstein females and males and frozen embryos and semen are being exported to more than 50 countries and used extensively to improve foreign food supplies and dairy producer incomes.
