The Annual General Meeting of the Canadian Brown Swiss and Braunvieh Association was hosted by the Ontario Club on Tuesday, March 22, 2016 at the Holiday Inn & Conference Centre, Guelph, ON.
On behalf of the Board, thank you to the Ontario club for planning the AGM and the surrounding events. The members very much appreciated the opportunity to view the cattle and barns at Sigview Farms, Keviott Acres Brown Swiss and Glen Islay Brown Swiss.
The AGM gave a wonderful opportunity for members to discuss various topics. Listed are a few of the decisions taken with more details within the enclosed minutes. Two breed objective goals were set. First goal was to encourage age at first calving at 23 months or less. The second goal was to encourage the increase of production levels for Fat at 390 kg and Protein at 330 kg (members should aim for a 40 kg increase). There was much discussion on the location of the national show. At a Board meeting following the AGM, the Board voted to accept the invitation from Quebec to host the national show at the Supreme show for 2016 and 2017. The members present at the AGM also saw value in revising the fee schedule. Of special note are the two new membership levels. There is now a New Member fee of $45 + $10 for Quebec members. Included with the new membership are 10 free transfers within the 3 years. A Supporter Member (receives the newsletter however has no right to vote) was added at $45. The Board of Directors accepted an invitation from the Quebec Club to host the next AGM. More details will follow when available. The order deadline for importing SwissGenetics semen will be May 16, 2016. Contact your Semex partner for further information.
Robyn Walsh from Post Lely was the guest speaker on the afternoon program and gave a presentation on why Brown Swiss animals make good robot cows. The motivation of a good quality pellet and the dominance in the breed are just two of the reasons Brown Swiss work well in robots.
As of January 1, 2016, our Registrar is now at Holstein Canada. Registry work and all material for parentage verification or genotyping should be forwarded to Canadian Brown Swiss & Braunvieh, P O Box 610, Brantford, ON, N3T 5R4. For general registry inquires please call 1-855-756-8300, Crystal Smith (Bilingual) extension 208 or Tiffany-Jane Brotherton (Bilingual) extension 237. Don’t hesitate to call if you have a question or require rush service.
The annual report, All Canadian results and production award winners are available on the website for viewing. If a member wishes to receive a hard copy of any of the reports please contact the office.
Immediately following the Annual Meeting the Board of Directors elected their Executive for 2016:
President – Ken Drummond – Shawville, QC,
Vice-President – Dan Bates, Stayner, ON
Director – Chantal Leclerc, Trois Rivieres, QC
Director – Ernst Gubelmann, Walton, ON
Director – Armin Dueck, Kleefeld, MB
Director – Ian Peden, Leduc, AB (Braunvieh)
Breed Improvement Committee Chairman – Ken Drummond
Congratulations to Nor Bella Acres Inc., ON for receiving the Top Composite BCA Brown Swiss Cow Award sponsored by Swiss Dream Farm for Nor Bella Supreme Dabble (EX) with 399 Milk, 436 Fat, 388 Protein for a total composite BCA of 1223. The 2015 Top BCA Herd under 25 cows was awarded to Ferme Brown Heaven, QC and for over 25 cows to Gubelmann Brown Swiss Ltd., ON.
The membership is optimistic that with high components, longevity and solid feet & legs, Brown Swiss is the desired breed of the future. Brown Swiss…Components that Pay…Cows that Last!
The Canadian Brown Swiss & Braunvieh Association Board of Directors and Secretary-Manager Jessie Weir posing with Keviott Acres Starbuck Florence. At 20 years of age Florence is only 4 years younger than our youngest Board member! Daniel Bates (Vice-President), Ken Drummond (President), Jessie Weir, Ian Peden, Chantal Leclerc, Ernst Gubelmann and Florence!)
For further information, please contact:
Jessie Weir, Secretary Manager
Canadian Brown Swiss and Braunvieh Association 519-821-2811 or Email: [email protected]