Tour guide extraordinaire Claudio Mariani, Product Manager for Genesi Project, had another full day of touring on the schedule, including an unplanned stop at a gas station where pictures were taken (of course) of the displays of fresh meats, cheeses, wines and olive oils….in the gas station! Really unbelievable!
But the main focus of the day was to see more good cows, and that’s exactly what happened. Thanks Claudio for helping with the interpretation and added farm facts! Be sure to visit Genesi Project at www.genesiproject.it.
CIOLI FARMS: Stefano Cioli is a true Holstein addict! His family has been tied to dairy cows since the beginning of last century and in his home you can still see original pictures of ancestors with a kind of Brown Swiss cow (more likely a Braunvieh – at that time Brown Swiss was not even a meaningful word probably).
Stefano and his wife Lucia have 5 children: Maria Adriana 24, Margherita 23, Francesco 19, Antonio 14 and Donata 10. Margherita – who will get married next year – has inherited her father’s passion for showing cows. She’s the one leading the charge at all the shows they participate in – from clipping the cows to showing them in the ring. Her father is surely proud of her, but the whole family supports this passion. Francesco is also involved in farming, as the family owns a farm in Romania – but there are no animals there, only crops. He’s currently there working the land and managing the investment.
But the Cioli family is much more than this: they also own a cheese factory, BRESCIALAT (Brescia is the name of the biggest town nearby and LAT is the short name that stands for LATTE, that means milk). Brescialat is a company who sells many different kind of cheese, from fresh (like Mozzarella) to the old-seasoned (like Parmesan, 2yrs old), together with many other typical cheese made following original recipes. The company also exports some products, in as many as 50 different countries, among those are the U.S., Canada, Australia and Japan.
They also rent a farm nearby that houses a commercial herd of cattle – 400 in total. And, they bottle wine each year, with a new label produced for Stefano’s favorite cow that year.
In their spare time, the family is also involved in some social activities and takes an annual family trip for one week to help a charity. This year, the seven family members went and worked at Lourdes Sanctuary.
So, it’s no surprise that this family knows the word hospitality and how to make you feel at home! Their beautiful, remodeled country house is located in a very small village, and part of the cattle are there too (dry cows and bred heifers). In addition, some special cattle are there that Stefano bought himself or through our tour guide Claudio.
The farm with 50 milking cows in only about 200 yards away, and some individual pens are reserved for some show cows, including Martina EX-94 (sired by Martino – an Italian Chairman son). Martina is 15-years-old and is due to calve for the 10th time.
U.S. and Canadian cow families are well represented at Cioli – including members of the Henkeseen Hillary, Durham Regenia, Roxy, Tradition Jackie, Dellia, or Leadman Mae families. Stefano also owned some animals previously with Crackholm, and still has some members of the Astre Inksou family.
From the barn to the office – a visitor is still in awe as you see all the banners, trophies and signature wines on display. The best kept secret of all? The semen tanks – which include straws of Arlinda Chief, Astronaut, Wayne-Spring Fond Apollo, Sexation, Blackstar, Elevation, Carlin Ivanohe Bell, Standout, Thriple Threat, Starbuck, Skychief,……..and many more!
In fact, Stefano has a couple of Elevation daughters in their 2nd lactation, a Blackstar in her 4th, and some other “antiques” like these. And if you can believe it, he has a 6-month-old heifer sired by Fond Apollo…from an Elevation dam…who will be bred to Chairman.
An all around enjoyable visit – from the cheese and salami tasting, to Lucia’s homemade pumpkin ravioli, to the 60 acres (yup – acres) of tomatoes being planted for sauce to the great show cows and lively discussions on breeding and genomics. If you ever get the chance to stop by, this is a must-visit herd and family!
The hay barn
The heifer “shed” – clearly they do not suffer from northern U.S. winters!
There’s something for everyone at Cioli!
Donata waters the young tomato plants which will be put in the ground shortly.
VG-88 September Storm 3rd calf
VG-88 Talent x Roy x Dundee x Dellia
VG-86 Pronto x Sept Storm x EX-92 Durham x EX Airliner
EX-94 Martina – 15-years-old with her 10th calf on the way.
The front of the office
Of course we had to show you the Apollo heifer!
GO-FARM HOLSTEINS: While Monday’s three farms were located in northeastern Italy, in the province of Vicenza (halfway between Verona and Venice), Go-Farm is placed in the heart of the dairy area in Italy: the province of Cremona. Go-Farm is Italy’s #1 source for genetics, and among the top five farms in all of Europe. So many families are represented here that is impossible to include them all. Roberto Gozzini and his two brothers run the 480-cow operation, always on the edge for providing some of the top genetics. Roberto is in charge of the genetics and they currently have the #1 bull in Italy, ARTES, a Goldwyn x BW Marshall x Jeffrey-Way Formation Tate. The full sister is an impressive cow, and another half sister by Shottle was nothing less. Roberto has a true passion for genetics and he has built a separate barn for all his donor cows. He makes more than 200 embryos per year, sells about 40 bulls to AI plus some heifers both at auction sales and private treaty.
Roberto on breeding…”Our goal is make milk, but there is also a passion for genetics. We try to make sire selections for both. Currently the herd averages 4.0%F and 3.5%P and all our milk goes for cheese production. We do have two distinct herds though – the commercial herd (where we use complete bulls – a balance of some type, health traits and management traits like SCC…we are looking for a homozygous population – no extremes. On the elite herd, we spend more money to use the newest bulls who sometimes have less information, but a higher price! They must have high type, udders, and feet & legs.”
Roberto on genomics…”We would like to use genomics but it’s not possible to use high genomic bulls here. We are at a big disadvantage because we can’t use these bulls and other countries can. Our hands are tied. We are suffering an economic loss because we can’t utilize a system that not only affects our immediate future, but also because when the market does open up, we will be behind other countries that have been able to use genomics all along. We have over 100 well-known cow families represented here and have invested a lot in genetics. Do we keep going like this or not? We have to think about what makes the most financial sense.”
…and yes…it does play music and have a little dance!
The newest addition for elite cows. Roberto says they will add on another barn of similar size to spread out the commercial herd a bit.
A VG-89 (max score) Goldwyn – the full sister of Artes
A beautiful Shottle daughter – from the same family as well-known bull Scooby Doo
A Buckeye daughter from the Penn-Gate Skychief Finesse family
A Mac from the Christmas Fudge family
For more information on the cows, heifers, embryos available and more, please visit their website at http://www.anafi.it/gofarm/.
Each year, during the world-famous Cremona Show, Go-Farm hosts a sale at the farm which allows visitors to come and see the cows and be involved in the sale. If you’re headed to Cremona this October, make Go-Farm and stop and see!
A few more scenes from our journeys out and about. And stay tuned tomorrow as we travel to the Lallemand sponsored, International Fibre Conference in Bologna. You’ll see more information and tours to a parmesan cheese plant, a winery and an olive oil cooperative!
