Hilda may look like an ordinary calf, but the Scotland-born animal represents a historic moment for the world’s longest-running livestock genetics project and could help accelerate the dairy industry’s journey to net zero, according to a news release from Scotland's Rural College (SRUC).

The calf is the first of the 16th generation of the Dumfries-based Langhill Herd – a vital source of data for the U.K. dairy industry for more than half century – and, significantly, she is the first member of the herd to be born through in vitro fertilization (IVF).

Hilda is part of the Cool Cows project, which aims to establish a nucleus of highly methane-efficient animals. 

Fertilizing Hilda’s mother’s eggs in a lab means the next generation of the Langhill Herd has arrived eight months earlier than previously possible. 

With the process set to be repeated, it means that researchers are doubling the rate of genetic gain and, thereby, accelerating the accumulation of data to breed more efficient dairy cows. 

The partnership between SRUC, Cumbria vets Paragon and Semex has received £335,000 from the Digital Dairy Chain’s Collaborative Research & Development Grant Competition. The competition is managed and awarded independently by the U.K.’s national innovation agency, Innovate U.K. 

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SRUC’s project lead, professor Richard Dewhurst, said, “With global consumption of dairy produce continuing to grow, breeding livestock for sustainability is extremely important. The birth of Hilda is potentially a hugely significant moment for the U.K. dairy industry. 

“We will use a new genomic assessment alongside existing production and environmental efficiency indices to select elite, methane-efficient heifers for breeding. The Cool Cows project will produce a greater number of offspring from these donors, rapidly establishing a nucleus of highly methane-efficient calves,” Dewhurst added.

Project lead Rob Simmons, director and lead vet–advanced breeding at Paragon, said, “As the first veterinary practice to be awarded an RCVS Outstanding achievement in Environmental Sustainability, Paragon were delighted to help develop and deliver this important project to help support sustainability in the dairy sector. Genetic improvement in methane efficiency is going to be key to continuing to provide nutritious food to the public while controlling the impact of methane emissions on the environment in the future.” 

Stuart Martin, program director of Digital Dairy Chain, said, “We are very pleased to have supported this groundbreaking project. With the environmental impact of farming being a critical global issue, projects that look for innovative solutions to mitigate this impact are vital to the industry. The birth of the first Cool Cows calf marks a significant milestone, promising significant results for the future of sustainable farming.” 

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First established in 1970, the Langhill Herd – which led to a Queen’s Anniversary Prize for SRUC in 2017 – has contributed to the development of the Profitable Lifetime Index, which benefits all dairy farmers in the U.K. 

Over the last five years, the dairy feed intake records collected at Langhill have been used by EGENES to create national genomic breeding values for feed efficiency available to all farmers who genotype their cows.