Most Maine dairy farmers are using high-tech breeding practices

Farming has evolved into a science. Farming has become big business. Combine the two and you get today’s scientifically managed agricultural businesses.

Dairy farmers have long known the value of selective breeding to ensure high quality herds. High-tech breeding practices have become commonplace.

Brad Goodwin, director of field personnel at Eastern Artificial Insemination Cooperative in Ithaca, N.Y., said in the early 40s, states operated their own small cooperatives. In 1967, a group of eastern cooperatives in New England and New York joined forces to form EAIC.

The merger “made us more efficient by forming one large cooperative,” Goodwin said. “We’re owned by dairy farmers in the North East. We’re a true cooperative; everyone that uses us has to be a member.”

Most of the approximately 2,000 Maine farms are members of the co-op. “A fairly large number use our service in one way or another,” he said. Some farms purchase semen and inseminate their cows themselves, particularly in areas where farms are widely scattered; while others hire a professional to perform that service.

Dairy farming is now being performed on the cutting edge of technology that results in higher profits. “Most of what we do is high-tech,” he said. “We are able to improve genetics in the whole dairy industry country wide.”

Recently, EAIC joined two other cooperatives in a venture called Federated Genetics, “a marketing entity that markets semen outside of membership areas and throughout the world,” said Goodwin. “We’re just a part of the artificial insemination industry in the U.S.”

And next month, EAIC will begin a new relationship with artificial insemination co-ops in the Midwest called Cooperative Resources, where members “will be exchanging semen.”

American dairy farmers may choose among six or seven artificial insemination organizations nationwide to purchase semen, though some still use their own bull. Goodwin said that farmers use his company’s services for several reasons.

“Mature bulls can be extremely dangerous;” he said, “their temperaments can change very suddenly.” In the early days of artificial insemination, one dairy farmer was killed by a bull daily. Now the majority are bred artificially. Additionally, the chance of spreading disease is virtually eliminated through the insemination procedure.

Many dairy farmers choose artificial insemination, because “it can be cheaper than maintaining a bull on the farm,” Goodwin said. “It’s very inexpensive to have a technician to go to the farm.” Most service technicians charge about $7, while semen cost varies from $6 to $22, according to the individual bull’s attributes.

In New England, about 200 technicians, who work as genetic and reproductive consultants, travel regular routes, responding to farmers’ calls to inseminate their cows. “What we’ve done in the dairy industry, through artificial insemination, is to achieve a genetically improved cow that can produce more milk than the calf needs.”

“We’re pleased to be part of the agricultural industry. This is an education process for consumers to see where food comes from,” Goodwin said. “We’re further away from the farm than we used to be. Many people don’t have a clue where milk comes from. The artificial insemination industry and dairy farming are high-tech industries that require specialized managers. It’s quite a challenge.” — By Melissa MacCrae