Whole Herd Grade Up Promotion

To enable new members of Holstein UK to grade up their herds, Holstein UK are offering Whole Herd Grade Ups from as little as £5 per head. A Whole Herd Grade Up enables members with non-pedigree animals to start the process to become pedigree and it only takes three generations. To be eligible for the promotional prices, new members must have a new prefix and not have registered animals previously.

Promotional Prices

Holstein UK offers a grading up procedure to enable members with non-pedigree animals to start the process to become pedigree. This is usually a straight-forward process which involves three easy steps. The member will be asked to sign a declaration at the start of the Whole Herd Grade Up to verify that the animals entered are not under any DEFRA movement or compulsory slaughter restrictions. 

A Whole Herd Grade Up is open to all members with non-pedigree animals, irrespective of numbers. Only one application will be accepted per member, so it is important that all non-pedigree animals are applied for.

The Process

1. Call Membership Services on 01923 695200 to book an appointment for a Holstein UK Field Officer to visit your farm to register your herd.
2. The Holstein UK Field Officer will review your herd, discuss the history of the herd and collect data on each cow.
3. After the farm visit, a report will be provided on the herd by the Holstein UK Field-Officer, quotation supplied for registering the whole herd and a summary of additional services available as part of membership.

Note: Animals must have been bred and owned by a member, otherwise they can only be registered as ASR, unless of course they are already registered in which case we will transfer them to a Member's new prefix and their progeny can be registered as full pedigree, provided they have a known main section registered Holstein or Friesian sire.

Holstein UK rules of registration are those that are contained in the European Directive 2016-1012. The grading of animals is decided based upon the parent’s status within the supplementary and main sections of our Herd Books. The requirements for grading up from supplementary sections to main sections are set out in Annex II, Part 1, Chapter III of the Directive.

All animals that do not have authenticated parentage will enter the ASR register. If the sire is unknown, the animal must be inspected and verified as of Holstein or Friesian character before they can be entered in the ‘A’ Supplementary Herd Book.  Animals that have died may enter the ASR register as Dead ASRs, but must have a registered sire as they cannot be inspected. Animals out of ASR’s can be BSR so long as they have a known main section registered Holstein or Friesian sire, female progeny from a BSR will be deemed full pedigree if they have a main section registered sire.

All applications must be verified by official records. The process involves a staff member visiting the farm and inspecting the animals to check ear tags and that there is no evidence of cross breeding. In areas of doubt the animal can be DNA/Genomic tested to establish parentage, however this is not used often as animals in doubt are placed in the ASR register. 

A Dead ASR can be registered with an ear tag, registered pedigree sire and a name. 

Alive ASRs are registered in their own right with a family name, ear tag, line number, date of birth, either parent if known, or no parents, if this can be verified as outlined. BSRs are progeny out of the ASR group bred to a main section registered sire. They are registered with full details of the ear tag, date of birth, dam, sire details verified as outlined above, and a certificate is issued for these animals. 

Calves registered from BSR bulls cannot be graded up to full pedigree and either remain as BSR or are registered as ASR. 

Female full Pedigree animals are registered out of BSR dams with a full pedigree sire, or other full pedigree animals. Male full pedigree calves need to have main section registered parents. Details are collected as for BSR registration, and a certificate is issued for these animals. 

Once animals have been graded up, their calves must be registered by telephone or the internet within the normal time limits.

For further information, or to Grade Up your herd, please contact Membership Services on 01923 695200 or info@holstein-uk.org

Whole Herd Grade Up - Mike & Kathryn Dixon, Beechhouse Holsteins

Why did you decide to have a Whole Herd Grade up?

We were pedigree in the past but let it slip, so now with the prospect of having excess heifer replacements, we thought that having the herd graded back up to pedigree status would possibly put value onto the excess animals, but also would help others with the risk of cross breeding.

How was the process for you?

The whole process was easy. Marion Holiday did all the hard work, collecting information and seeking the information about the correct sires, she also sorted out the pedigrees for some Irish cows we had purchased.

Would you recommend a Whole Herd Grade Up to other dairy farmers?

It is solely up to the individual, but it does help in reducing the risk of cross breeding, but also is another way of improving your herds traits as you can easily see which sires are improving your herd bit by bit.