B+LNZ’s long-running Dairy Beef Progeny Test has been renamed the Beef-on-Dairy Progeny Test. While the programme itself remains unchanged, the new name better reflects its purpose and aligns with terminology now commonly used across the sector and internationally.
While the programme itself remains unchanged, the new name better reflects its purpose and aligns with terminology now widely used across New Zealand and internationally.
The recent launch of the Dairy Beef Opportunities (DBO) programme provides an ideal opportunity to introduce this name change, with the BoDPT a key component of the work being delivered through the programme.
The DBO programme is a joint initiative between New Zealand’s dairy and beef industries, bringing together B+LNZ, DairyNZ, the Meat Industry Association, and Dairy Companies of New Zealand. It is co-funded by the Ministry for Primary Industries via the Primary Sector Growth Fund.
The programme aims to unlock more value from non-replacement dairy calves by strengthening dairy-beef integration and developing innovative, New Zealand-focused pathways for raising them for beef.
Why the name change?
When the Progeny Test was established in 2015, the term "dairy beef" was widely recognised across the industry and accurately described the programme's focus.
Over the past decade, both the programme and industry terminology have evolved. While "dairy-beef" remains a broad term for cattle originating from dairy systems, including animals sired by either dairy or beef breeds, the term "Beef-on-Dairy" is now more commonly used when referring to beef-sired, non-replacement dairy animals.
Because the progeny test evaluates beef sires used over dairy cows, rather than dairy sires, B+LNZ believes the new name more accurately reflects the programme's purpose and the animals it assesses.
A decade of industry-leading research
The progeny test was first established at Limestone Downs in 2015, where Hereford and Angus bulls with a range of Estimated Breeding Values (EBVs) were used in a dairy herd to assess how closely progeny performance matched the sire's EBVs.
The results demonstrated that EBVs were a strong predictor of performance in dairy-beef production systems. This success led to a second phase of testing at Pāmu's Renown Farm, part of Wairakei Pastoral, where bulls from any beef breed showing strong suitability for beef-on-dairy systems were selected and progeny-tested through the generation of calves in the Renown dairy herd. Calves were reared under commercial conditions and finished at Pāmu's Orakonui Farm at Wairakei Pastoral.
Since then, the programme has continued to expand and evolve.
After being run at single-sites for many years, the DBPT is now run across five host farms: two Dairy Trust Taranaki farms, two Massey University farms and an owner-operated commercial dairy farm at Five Forks near Oamaru. Jersey cows have also been incorporated into the programme through herds at Dairy Trust Taranaki and Massey University.
Host farms collect detailed information on mating dates, pregnancy diagnosis, calving dates and calf weights, while rearers and finishers record growth and management data throughout the animals' lives. This information provides a comprehensive picture of sire performance and helps improve the industry's understanding of what drives success in beef-on-dairy systems.
Over the life of the test, 209 sires from 19 different beef breeds have contributed to the programme, generating performance records from 5,767 animals.
B+LNZ Senior Genetics Operations Specialist Anna Vaughan says the breadth of breeds represented in the programme highlights both the industry's interest in beef-on-dairy systems and the value of robust performance data.
"Having such a wide range of beef breeds represented in the test gives us a good understanding of how different beef genetics perform when used over dairy cows.
"As Beef-on-Dairy becomes an increasingly important part of New Zealand's livestock sector, the insights generated through the Progeny Test will help farmers make more informed breeding decisions and maximise the value of calves entering the beef supply chain."
The latest Beef-on-Dairy Progeny Test report, including results from calves born through to 2025 and the top-performing sires across key traits, can be found here.