News

Breeding persistence pays off

By McPherson Media Group

Aug 19, 2026

Stuart Tracy’s consistent breeding strategy has resulted in steady improvement in his herd’s genetic merit, now ranking number one in the country for health weighted index.

Persistence has paid off for two Victorian breeders whose herds have taken significant leaps forward in DataGene’s August release of Australian Breeding Values (ABVs).

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Stuart Tracy of Waratah Bay, Victoria has the new number one health weighted index (HWI) Holstein herd with an average HWI 342.

The Parish family of Bambra in south-west Victoria entered the top three Jersey herds for the first time, with the number three balanced performance index (BPI) herd at 210 and the number two HWI herd at 152 HWI.

Another Victorian breeder, Basil and Liam Ryan from Grassmere, scored their first top BPI and HWI heifer with Numeralla Bigsur 7662 with a BPI of 882 and a HWI of 938, making her the top HWI cow in the Holstein breed.

DataGene stakeholder relations specialist Peter Thurn said the improvements showed the importance of perseverance.

“The Tracy and Parish herds show that it takes a long time to move a herd’s average genetic merit but it can be done if you stick to a process.”

Mr Thurn said by continuing to select bulls from the Good Bull Guide aligned to their breeding goal, the Tracy family had been able to achieve the number one HWI herd in the country for the first time, moving up from second position in the April run.

“They have a large number of cows genomically tested, use DataGene’s Herd Data App and are part of the GINFO system,” he said.

“This long-term planning has paid off, and there is clearly more focus on health and fertility traits in their selections.”

The Parish family has taken big steps up the ranks. In the April run the herd ranked ninth for BPI and sixth for HWI, and it also moved from 12th to seventh for sustainability index (SI).

“They have achieved quite a dramatic lift,” Mr Thurn said.

“They have a large herd with a large number of cows genotyped and a GINFO herd. This shows that if you define your goal, stick to it and make sure your bull selection is aligned with your goals, you will be successful.”

The Emu Banks Holstein herd of Bryan and Jo Dickson at Terang, Victoria retained top spot with an average BPI of 451.

It also ranks second for both HWI and SI.

White Star, owned by Con and Michelle Glennen of Noorat, Victoria, returned to the top of the Jersey rankings of all key indexes, BPI, HWI and SI.

For more information, contact DataGene on 1800 841 848 or at enquiries@datagene.com.au or www.datagene.com.au

DataGene is an initiative of Dairy Australia and the herd improvement industry.