It is claimed that Nordic bulls drop more in NTM compared to foreign bulls when they become proven. Is this true or just a myth?
Find out in part two of Myth Busters!
dairy cattle
First Nordic Methane Index
In May evaluation NAV introduces the first methane index for Holstein AI-bulls. The phenotypic registration used in the methane index is the methane concentration. The idea is that a lower methane concentration from a cow indicates lower methane production. In the beginning methane index is only for Holstein AI-bulls and the results are published at NAV homepage. For the November evaluation the methane index will also be available for Holstein females and hopefully next year also for Jersey and RDC.
Read more about the new methane index from the paper First Nordic methane index and look for the index values for Holstein bulls.
Myth Buster, part 1
Cattle breeding is full of myths and the question is are they true or fake. In MythBuster NAV will test with facts if the myths are just myths or if they actually are true.
The first myth is about older cows and if their progeny really is better.
Find out if the myth is true or fake from the paper Older cows with proven potential, give better heifers .
NAV Genomic Evaluation
The latest NAV routine genomic evaluation took place as scheduled. NAV carried out genomic prediction for Holstein, RDC and Jersey. Genomic breeding values of bulls are updated to NAV Bull Search after each evaluation.
Read more from the NAV newsletter.
NAV Interbull Search has been also updated with new Interbull breeding values.
More weight for Saved feed in NTM for Holstein
Saved feed was included in the Nordic Total Merit (NTM) in 2020 for all breeds. With the introduction of new saved feed index in February 2025, its weighting in the NTM for Holstein has been adjusted. The new weight for saved feed is 0.18, more than double the previous value of 0.08. For NTM, 10 index units in saved feed will change NTM by one unit. A bull with 110 in saved feed will increase NTM by one unit according to the changed weight for saved feed.
The introduction of the new saved feed index has also changed the correlation between NTM and saved feed, not only for Holstein but for all breeds. The updated NTM correlations can be found on NAV homepage.