Founded in 2007 by Wout Vander Goot and Eric Danzeisen, Sierra Desert Breeders (SDB) is based in Tulare County, California. “When we started, we knew things were going to be tough but we had a firm belief in our breeding philosophy,” says Vander Goot. “We wanted to get back to the basics and give dairymen what they really wanted. Our focus has been to offer our customers top genetics from proven and genomic bulls coming from deep cow families. That means bulls that will produce nice looking daughters that breed back quick and have high production.”

On the surface, Sersia France seems to come from a different mindset. Based in Rennes, they are the export wing of two large co-operatives in France; Midatest and Creavia. Together these two groups test 450 bulls a year from 17 different breeds of cattle, with 350 alone coming from the Holstein breed. That puts Sersia’s lineup on par with some of the largest A.I. companies here in the U.S.

“Sersia offers something different to what we see here in the U.S.,” says Alistair Ross, Sersia’s sales representative in the U.S. “We’ve focused on bringing outcross pedigrees with high milk and component levels (especially protein) and excellent fertility to the U.S. but we don’t end there. We do so much testing that if there’s a farmer with a very specific need we should have the right bull for that person. For instance we test everything from the usual production traits right down to the temperament and milking speed of the daughters. That attention to detail is what we feel is necessary to grow in this business.” PD

—From Sierra Desert Breeders news release

PHOTO:
Pictured, left to right, are Eric Danziesen, SDB; Alistair Ross, Elite Sires Inc; Ali Haidar, Sersia France; and Wout Vander Goot, SDB.