A rising star in the sire rankings, Peak AltaValuepack, has stormed to the top with a near-perfect blend of health, efficiency, and production traits.
The promising young sire with high health and efficiency traits has surged to the top of the latest genomic index rankings published by AHDB.
Peak AltaValuepack, sired by Peak Excitement, narrowly leads the Profitable Lifetime Index (PLI) with a score of £877.
His well-balanced profile is bolstered by strong health traits, resulting in a HealthyCow rating of £203. This means he is predicted to pass on health and fertility benefits worth £203 on average to his daughters.
Additionally, his daughters are expected to require less feed for maintenance, reflected in a favourable Maintenance Index of -17. Peak AltaValuepack also boasts solid Predicted Transmitting Abilities (PTAs) for production, including +0.17% fat and +0.10% protein.
Following closely behind with a PLI of £876 is Denovo 20771 Segment (sired by Leeds), securing second place with an impressive Calf Survival rating of +2.6.
Denovo 20893 Harmony, last time’s number one sire, has dropped to third position with a PLI of £875, although the difference between the top three sires remains minimal.
Harmony continues to excel with strong PTAs for milk yield (1116kg), fat (54.6kg) and protein (41.3kg), as well as feed efficiency (-28 Maintenance, 294 Feed Advantage). He also retains the highest EnviroCow score (+5).
Progenesis Preston holds firm in fourth place with a PLI of £862, delivering high milk solids (54.3kg fat, 41.5kg protein), while Denovo 20723 Columbia takes fifth (PLI £856), standing out as one of the top yield transmitters.
Columbia passes on 1135kg milk and, like his sire Leeds, offers a strong Feed Advantage of 237, meaning his daughters will save 237kg of dry matter intake per lactation.
Badger Siemers Day Trip moves up to sixth place (PLI £855), with exceptional lifespan (+171 days) and udder health (-2 Mastitis, -19 SCC), contributing to a HealthyCow value of £220.
Denovo 22192 Sector-P, a maternal half-brother to Segment, is the highest fat transmitter available (59.9kg, +0.27%) and shares seventh place (PLI £853) with newcomer Adaway Beyond El Foughty (Elvin x Parsly).
El Foughty combines strong milk components (+0.28% fat, +0.15% protein) with outstanding daughter fertility (+8.4) and the highest HealthyCow value in the top 20 at £241.
Another new entry, Adaway Beyond Fitness, maternal half-brother to Foughty, scores even higher for Fertility Index (+8.7) and transmits good lifespan (+137), with a PLI of £851.
Rounding off the top ten is Denovo 0478 Colter P, a climber with excellent milk PTA (1190kg) and a PLI of £845.
Marco Winters, head of animal genetics at AHDB, commented: “It’s encouraging to see such good stability among the top 20 £PLI sires in AHDB’s latest analysis, with several bulls maintaining strong positions and some exciting new entries offering fresh genetics.
"This gives farmers a robust and diverse selection to build into their breeding plans for the upcoming season.”
