The Canadian Milking Shorthorn Society is proud to present its Distinguished Service Award to Mike Sullivan of Maple Inn Farms, Peterborough, Ontario. Mike has been a fixture of the Milking Shorthorn breed in Ontario for many years and has served the breed in number of ways.
Mike started farming with his father Joseph (a Past-President of the CMSS) in 1964, initially shipping cream before transitioning to ship fluid milk a few years later. The Maple Inn herd was active in the show ring across Ontario, including local shows in Peterborough and Lindsay as well as the CNE and Royal Winter Fair in Toronto and the World Dairy Expo in Wisconsin. Mike lists as one of his showing highlights when Maple Inn Dairymaid 56th EX-95 won Grand Championship honours at the 2008 National Show, with Rosemary also named Reserve Grand in 2009 and 2011.
The story of the Maple Inn herd has been built on the strength of cow families, particularly the Dairymaid and Rosemary cow families. For example, Maple Inn Rosemary 33rd VG sits second all time for lifetime milk and fat production among Canadian Milking Shorthorns. Members of the both families have been exported to the United States, and Maple Inn was the first Canadian herd to export embryos to the United Kingdom in the 1990’s.
Mike was a director of the CMSS for the best part of 20 years. He was a long time Chairman of the Sale Committee, instrumental in organizing and running the annual National Sales that were held in Peterborough or Lindsay for a number of years. Maple Inn cattle have helped to form the foundation of a number of new Milking Shorthorn herds in Canada and the United States, including one of the 2013 Cow of the Year nominees.
The Maple Inn herd ceased milk production in 2004 but Mike continues to breed Milking Shorthorns at the farm just south of Peterborough. In receiving this Distinguished Service Award, Mike receives an Honourary Life Membership to the CMSS.