Henrik Møller drives into the farmyard early every morning, just as he has done for the past 16 years. He is the farm manager at Christian Nissen, near Kruså, Denmark, responsible for the farm's 640 VikingHolstein cows.
Henrik is dedicated to the cows, especially because the herd is expanding, and the breeding strategy is being evaluated and adjusted. He also works hard to keep things under control and foster an excellent atmosphere among the farm’s 13 employees.
With the help of the farm's breeding advisor, Sara Petersen, Henrik’s breeding strategy focuses on improving the herd’s production and genetics. By continuously selecting the top VikingHolstein bulls within the Nordic Total Merit Index (NTM), Henrik has achieved a herd with a very high breeding level.
To make the breeding as targeted as possible, all female animals are genomically tested. The heifers and the best cows are served with X-Vik sexed semen, minimising the use of conventional semen.
The excellent genetic level of Henrik’s heifers also makes them ideal for the VikingHolstein breeding programme. Several heifers have received flushing contracts and embryo transfer (ET) was performed for the first time last summer.
This, of course, also makes the heifers highly desirable for other farmers. Over the years, demand for them being sold as livestock has increased.
