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 suppliers, reproductive physiology and animal health researchers, dairy producers, bovine veterinarians and dairy industry partners who attended the 2018 Dairy Cattle Reproduction Council (DCRC) Annual Meeting learned about informing consumers, new reproductive technologies, dairy data, herd health, employee management and reproductive management strategies and protocols. Nearly 250 DCRC members gathered in Reno, Nov. 7-9, for the organization’s annual meeting. “The DCRC Annual Meeting brought together all industry partners to share expertise, insights, innovations and research related to dairy cattle fertility,” said Program Chair Luis Mendonca. “This event addressed several factors that influence dairy cattle reproduction success – from biology to nutrition to physiology to genetics to communications.”

Outgoing DCRC President Todd Bilby, Merck Animal Health, passed the gavel to Ronaldo Cerri, University of British Columbia. Other DCRC board members are: Vice President Glaucio Lopes Jr., Alta Genetics; Secretary Treasurer Jeff Stevenson, Kansas State University; Past President Bilby; and director members Paul Fricke, University of Wisconsin; Alex Souza, Ceva Santa Animale; and Matt Utt, Select Sires. Committee chairs include: Awards Chair Corey Geiger, Hoard’s Dairyman; Program Chair Rafael Bisinotto, University of Florida; Education Chair Fabio Lima, University of Illinois; Membership Chair JP Martins, University of California Davis; Finance-Sponsorship Chair Stephen Foulke, Boehringer Ingelheim; and Nomination Chair Todd Bilby.

DCRC thanks its annual meeting sponsors who contributed to the program’s success. Platinum sponsors were Boehringer Ingelheim and Merck Animal Health. Gold sponsors included Elanco and Zoetis. The Silver sponsor was Arm & Hammer Animal Nutrition. Bronze sponsors included Accelerated Genetics, Afimilk, BCF Technology, Estrotect, IDEXX, Multimin, Nedap Livestock Management, Parnell, SCR Dairy, Select Sires, Semex and STgenetics.

Next year’s DCRC Annual Meeting will be held Nov. 13-15, at the Westin in Indianapolis. Watch the DCRC website – www.dcrcouncil.org – for program updates.

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.