# Presentation: 827688

## Usefulness of international dairy bull evaluations

**Rex L. Powell**
**Animal Improvement Programs Laboratory**
**Agricultural Research Service, USDA, Beltsville, MD**
- _[rpowell@aipl.arsusda.gov](mailto:rpowell@aipl.arsusda.gov)_

**Notes:**
TITLE SLIDE

## Interbull Formed

** ****IDF and EAAP activities**
** ****1982 - Leningrad meeting**
** ****1983 - Interbull formed**
** ****1988 - Became ICAR committee**
** ****1991 - Centre established**

## Interbull Centre

** ****Site: Uppsala, Sweden**
** ****Responsibilities and activities:**
**Steering committee sets policy**
**General operations by staff**
**Global service provider**

## Interbull Evaluation Process

**National evaluations sent to Centre**
**MACE combines pedigree and               national evaluation data**
**Estimated genetic correlations applied**
**Evaluations returned to countries on their own scale**
**Officiality responsibility of countries**

## Countries Participating in Service

## Numbers of Countries per Bull

**94.6**

**3.8**

**0.8**

**0.3**

**0.1**

**0.1**

**0.1**

**0.1**

**0.1**

**0**

**20**

**40**

**60**

**80**

**100**

**Percentage of Bulls**

**1**

**2**

**3**

**4**

**5**

**6**

**7**

**8**

**9+**

**Number of countries**

## Question

**Do foreign data aid in prediction of future national evaluations?**

## Study Design

_**1995**_

_**1999**_

## Study Design

_**1995**_

_**1999**_

**r**

**SD**

**r**

**SD**

## Data

**February 1995 Interbull evaluations **
**National 1995 evaluations**
**National 1999 evaluations**
**Canada, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, USA**

## Answers

**Foreign data improved prediction**
**Improvement greatest for imported bulls**
**Interbull evaluations should be official**

## Top 100 Bulls for Yield (USA)Based on Official Evaluations

| Location |  | Protein | Fat | Milk |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| USA |  | 47 | 35 | 67 |
| NLD |  | 23 | 29 | 7 |
| FRA |  | 8 | 7 | 6 |
| ITA |  | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| DEU |  | 3 | 11 | 5 |
| CAN |  | 2 | 4 | 5 |
| DNK |  | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| Others |  | 13 | 11 | 7 |
| Top-100 Bulls with US Sires |  | 65 | 49 | 89 |

**Source: Interbull and domestic, February 2001**

## Top 100 Bulls for Yield (NLD)Based on Official Evaluations

| Location |  | Protein | Fat | Milk |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| USA |  | 24 | 13 | 48 |
| NLD |  | 47 | 59 | 19 |
| FRA |  | 14 | 5 | 11 |
| ITA |  | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| DEU |  | 1 | 6 | 7 |
| CAN |  | 0 | 3 | 2 |
| DNK |  | 3 | 4 | 3 |
| Others |  | 10 | 8 | 9 |
| Top-100 Bulls with US Sires |  | 42 | 33 | 74 |

**Source: Interbull and domestic, February 2001**

## Top 100 Bulls for Yield (CAN)Based on Official Evaluations

| Location |  | Protein | Fat | Milk |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| USA |  | 40 | 16 | 52 |
| NLD |  | 26 | 34 | 8 |
| FRA |  | 10 | 11 | 7 |
| ITA |  | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| DEU |  | 4 | 10 | 8 |
| CAN |  | 5 | 8 | 11 |
| DNK |  | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| Others |  | 11 | 17 | 10 |
| Top-100 Bulls with US Sires |  | 54 | 27 | 83 |

**Source: Interbull and domestic, February 2001**

## Top 100 Bulls for Yield (HUN)Based on Official Evaluations

| Location |  | Protein | Fat | Milk |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| USA |  | 31 | 12 | 42 |
| NLD |  | 20 | 32 | 8 |
| FRA |  | 18 | 12 | 13 |
| ITA |  | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| DEU |  | 7 | 18 | 13 |
| CAN |  | 3 | 4 | 7 |
| DNK |  | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Others |  | 13 | 16 | 11 |
| Top-100 Bulls with US Sires |  | 63 | 30 | 82 |

**Source: Interbull, February 2001**

## Top 100 Bulls for Yield (CSK)Based on Official Evaluations

| Location |  | Protein | Fat | Milk |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| USA |  | 22 | 15 | 34 |
| NLD |  | 30 | 29 | 13 |
| FRA |  | 16 | 10 | 8 |
| ITA |  | 3 | 1 | 6 |
| DEU |  | 3 | 17 | 10 |
| CAN |  | 7 | 5 | 10 |
| DNK |  | 4 | 5 | 3 |
| Others |  | 15 | 18 | 16 |
| Top-100 Bulls with US Sires |  | 41 | 38 | 76 |

**Source: Interbull, February 2001**

## Use of Reliability

**Measure of accuracy**
**Guides *****how much***** to use a bull, *****not ******whether***** to use a bull**
**Minimum restricts the number of bulls**
**Limiting bulls limits progress**

## Impact of Minimum REL On Number of Bulls & Mean PTAP of Top 50 (USA)

| Minimum REL | Number of Bulls | PTAP
 (top 50) |
| --- | --- | --- |
| (all) 0 | 65472 | 72 |
| 60 | 61380 | 72 |
| 70 | 54312 | 71 |
| 75 | 49707 | 71 |
| 80 | 30121 | 69 |
| 85 | 14167 | 66 |
| 90 | 4348 | 59 |

**Source: Interbull, May 2001**

## Impact of Minimum REL On Number of Bulls & Mean PTAP of Top 50 (HUN)

| Minimum REL | Number of Bulls | PTAP
 (top 50) |
| --- | --- | --- |
| (all) 0 | 65472 | 60 |
| 60 | 60708 | 60 |
| 70 | 44982 | 59 |
| 75 | 26078 | 57 |
| 80 | 6070 | 52 |
| 85 | 1203 | 47 |
| 90 | 208 | 32 |

**Source: Interbull, May 2001**

## Impact of Minimum REL On Number of Bulls & Mean PTAP of Top 50 (CSK)

| Minimum REL | Number of Bulls | PTAP
 (top 50) |
| --- | --- | --- |
| (all) 0 | 65472 | 66 |
| 60 | 59242 | 66 |
| 70 | 35203 | 65 |
| 75 | 7395 | 59 |
| 80 | 1681 | 54 |
| 85 | 837 | 50 |
| 90 | 457 | 47 |

**Source: Interbull, May 2001**

## Websites

_**[interbull.org](file:///interbull.org)**_
**Publications & bulletins**
**Evaluation summaries**
_**[aipl.arsusda.gov](http://aipl.arsusda.gov/)**_
**Documents**
**Downloadable files**
**Access to all evaluations**

## Conclusions

**Interbull Centre young and growing**
**Rankings differ by country**
**Foreign data improve prediction of later national evaluations**
**Most gain is from considering all bulls on one scale**
**Challenges remain in technical areas and in education**

## Foreign Bull Options

**Top 100 on HGI**
**HGI as high as 10th HUN bull and**
**HUN REL 75% for production**
**HUN REL 70% for conformation**
**Nominated and approved**

## Foreign Bulls In & Out

**367 bulls on HGI combined list**
**Includes 68 of top 200 on US Net Merit**
**Bulls from all countries eligible for US NM$ list**
**6 of top 12 for NM$ not included on HGI list (among them #2)**
**3 of top 8 on TPI not included**
**#1 not included**

## Foreign Bulls Excluded

|  |  |  | Hungarian1  |  | Foreign |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Name |  | Ctry. | Protein | REL | REL2 | Daus |
| Elite Mt Donor Imp |  | AUS | 66 | 68 | 90 | 128 |
| Etazon Lambro |  | EST | 51 | 74 | 96 | 284 |
| Looster |  | FRA | 50 | 70 | 91 | 108 |
| Pen-Col Decision |  | USA | 51 | 73 | 91 | 109 |
| Pckstn. E. Curtis |  | USA | 45 | 73 | 90 | 116 |
| Kemview Beauty |  | USA | 40 | 71 | 87 | 96 |
| Sildahl BW D. Boy |  | USA | 57 | 70 | 87 | 96 |

**1****Protein and REL from Hungarian scaled MACE**
**2****Reliability of evaluation in home country of bull**

## Reliabilities on Hungarian Scale

| US REL | Hungarian REL  |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
|  | Expected | Actual |
| 75 | 58 | 62 |
| 80 | 62 | 66 |
| 85 | 66 | 69 |
| 90 | 70 | 73 |
| 92 | 71 | 74 |
| 94 | 73 | 75 |
| 96 | 74 | 77 |
| 98 | 76 | 78 |
| 99 | 77 | 79 |