The information below has been supplied by dairy marketers and other industry organizations. It has not been edited, verified or endorsed by Hoard’s Dairyman.

Dairy industry professionals have until April 30 to nominate dairy operations for the Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council (DCRC) Reproduction Awards program. This program recognizes outstanding dairy operations for reproductive efficiency and well-implemented management procedures.

Key metrics for evaluating nominations include voluntary waiting period, interbreeding intervals, heat detection, conception rate, pregnancy rate, value of reproduction and culling rate. Reproduction numbers are based on the 12-month period Jan. 1, 2016-Dec. 31, 2016.

Dairy operations must be nominated by professionals who serve the dairy industry, such as veterinarians, extension agents, artificial insemination (AI) and pharmaceutical company representatives, dairy processor field staff and consultants. Complete nomination forms online or mail completed paper nomination forms to:


DCRC
605 Columbus Ave South
New Prague MN 56071

Judges will review applications and select the top herds, which will be asked to provide additional information about their operation. This will help judges select Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze winners. Award recipients will be honored at the 2017 DCRC Annual Meeting in Reno, Nev., Nov. 8-9.

For more information about the Reproduction Awards program, visit www.dcrcouncil.org/awards/nominate-a-herd.aspx.

This year's award sponsors include Hoard’s Dairyman and Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council.

The Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council is focused on bringing together all sectors of the dairy industry – producers, consultants, academia and allied industry professionals – for improved reproductive performance. DCRC provides an unprecedented opportunity for all groups to work together to take dairy cattle reproduction to the next level.