Whole Herd Performance Recording (WHPR) is an ICBF service for pedigree beef breeders. Once a year, an ICBF scorer visits your herd to weigh and score your young pedigree animals. The data goes into your animals’ EuroStar indexes and shows buyers that your herd is independently recorded.
- Build buyer confidence. Your young stock are assessed independently by ICBF every year, and spot checks back up your herd’s data.
- List your bulls on the Bull Finder. Only bulls from WHPR herds can be listed for sale on ICBF’s online Bull Finder.
- Make your EuroStars more reliable. Weights and scores recorded on your animals make their EuroStar indexes more accurate.
What’s involved
An ICBF scorer visits your herd at least once a year. You present every pedigree animal up to 365 days old. What the scorer records depends on the animal’s age.
| Animal’s Age | What’s recorded |
|---|---|
| Under 150 days | Weighed |
| 150 to 365 days | Scored and Weighed |
Facilities. The scorer brings weighing scales. You need a suitable crush on the day, and all handling facilities must be in good working order so everyone can work safely.
Spot checks. ICBF may also make spot check visits to your herd. These confirm birth dates and young stock performance, so buyers can trust the data.
Your own weights. You’re encouraged to record your own weights between visits too. These add to your animals’ EuroStar reliability.
Benefits for your herd
Buyer confidence and the WHPR stamp. Animals weighed or scored at a WHPR visit carry an “ICBF Performance Recorded” stamp beside their EuroStars. Buyers can see at a glance that the animal comes from an independently recorded herd.
Bull Finder. Only bulls from WHPR herds can be listed on ICBF’s online Bull Finder. Each listing shows the bull’s EuroStars and your contact details, and you can add photos and comments. See WHPR breeder herds.
More reliable EuroStars. At birth, a calf’s EuroStars are the average of his sire’s and dam’s. Recording his own weights and scores lets his EuroStars move away from that starting point and reflect how he actually performs. The more breeders who record, the more accurate EuroStars become for everyone. Read more about EuroStar indexes.
Cost
- You must be registered with HerdPlus to join WHPR.
- The cost of the visit is agreed with your scorer.
- Costs are reviewed every year. The service is subject to the WHPR terms and conditions.
Breeder Profiles
Meet some of the pedigree breeders who record their herds through WHPR.
Background
ICBF developed an across-breed linear scoring system in 2002, so scorers could score animals of every breed. In 2008, the GROW programme (Genetic Recording of Weanlings) began recording weights and scores on beef weanlings to strengthen the new EuroStar indexes. In September 2016, this became the Whole Herd visit, where every pedigree animal in the herd is presented each year. The change gave the industry the accurate on-farm data it needs for the Replacement Index and genomics.
How to Join
- Make sure your herd is registered with HerdPlus.
- Read the WHPR terms and conditions.
- Fill in the WHPR application form.
Any questions, give us a call.