CDCB Board: December Actions

The CDCB Board of Directors met December 15-16, 2021, in Bowie, Maryland, with major decisions including: 

• The board approved a plan to support dairy breeds with smaller populations (Ayrshire, Brown Swiss, Guernsey, and Milking Shorthorn) in their efforts to accelerate genetic progress. The initiative is intended to be a joint initiative with the Purebred Dairy Cattle Association and breed associations, with the main objectives as: 
  • Greater participation in related programs (identification, registration, type classification, DHIA, genomic testing, NAAB cross-reference)
  • Value-driven access to CDCB genomic evaluations for bulls of selected breeds (Ayrshire, Brown Swiss, Guernsey, and Milking Shorthorn)
  • Technical support for breed associations in genetic improvement strategies
• The 2022 CDCB budget was approved with a provision of $2 million for research and development in the following areas: 
  • Feed efficiency
  • Hoof health and cow mobility
  • Lactation predictions and projection factors
  • Methane emissions
  • Single-step GBLUP methods
• A new position of outreach professional will be created by the CDCB to establish direct outreach and improve communications with stakeholders

Producer Advisory Committee
The CDCB Board also received valuable input from the Producer Advisory Committee (PAC) in a variety of topics, including CDCB visibility and communication with dairy producers, producer views on CDCB’s evaluation system and recent implemented changes, as well as enhancing data flow into the national cooperator database. Despite challenges posed by COVID-19, the PAC was very active in 2021.
 
The PAC is chaired by Lloyd Holterman of Rosy-Lane Holsteins, Watertown, Wisc., with these representatives for 2021-23: Kent Buttars, Butter Dell Dairy, Lewiston, Utah; Bill Peck, Welcome Stock Farm, Schuylerville, NY; Mike Santos, Jr., Terra Linda Dairy, Tulare, Calif. and Sean Tollenaar, Tollcrest Dairy, Wheatland, Calif.