To kick off the conference, genetic consultants participated in a day of continuing education to ensure that they remain a valuable resource for their customers. The group discussed the latest developments in the Program for Genetic Advancement™ (PGA™) and the many strengths of Select Sires’ current sire lineup as well as exciting genomic young sires that are waiting in the wings. They learned about enhancements to the SMS program, innovative technologies and recent trends and were introduced to StrataGEN™, a unique, sequential breeding system developed by Select Sires.

The role of the consultant is ever changing as are the needs of their customers. SMS allows consultants to help dairy producers control genetic recessives, haplotypes, inbreeding levels and provides a means to create custom selection indexes based on customer goals. SMS genetic consultants are trained to help their customers identify the highest ranking genetics in their herds for future development.

The most widely accepted mating program in the world, SMS continues to have persistent growth that is unmatched in the industry. SMS genetic consultants took the program to record-breaking heights in customer service in 2011. More than 5.48 million corrective matings were generated with more than one million cow-side evaluations, over 875,000 pedigree matings and more than 1.9 million new animals mated. For more than 35 years, SMS has been building better cows throughout the world with 80 committed genetic consultants whose dedication and passion are to improve the herds of Select Sires’ customer-owners.