Creeping over fields of green Remembering the
faces The moments unseen The hands that built
a dynasty The vision in their eyes Echoes in
the auction bar Beneath an endless sky This is
the bull buy Turn the bar Hey everyone, welcome
back to the Bullvine Podcast. I'm your host,
and today I've got an incredible story to share
with you. One that's got everything you could
want. Genetics, grit, and good old -fashioned
neighborly kindness. This is the tale of Rice
Crest Southwind Kay, a cow that literally changed
the face of Holstein breeding worldwide. Picture
this scene with me. It's 5 a .m. on a crisp Pennsylvania
morning. Fred Rice, a local farmer, is trudging
down a gravel road toward his neighbor's barn.
Jay Knepper is laid up after surgery, and Fred
is just being neighborly, helping with the morning
and evening milking while Jay recovers. Now,
Fred's walking into that barn, hearing the familiar
rhythm of vacuum pumps, smelling that sweet scent
of fresh silage. But something catches his eye.
Actually, five somethings. There's a group of
about five cows that are absolutely crushing
it in production. While the rest of the herd
is doing their usual 50 to 60 pounds, this group
is putting up numbers that made Fred stop and
really look. Being the observant farmer he was,
Fred had to know why. And here's the kicker.
Turns out every single one of those high -producing
cows was related. Every single one. Fast forward
to later that year. When Knepper decides to thin
his herd, You know how it goes. Sometimes you
need to raise cash or make room. Fred and his
brother Dale see their opportunity. But they
don't go crazy. They buy just one heifer from
that exceptional group. Her name was Terrace
Lane Ideal Star. On paper, she looked decent
enough, sired by Harrisburg Gay Ideal with some
solid Atlantic Breeders Cooperative genetics
behind her. But here's where it gets interesting.
Star wasn't much to look at as a fresh heifer.
She scored 76 points as a two -year -old. Respectable,
sure, but nothing that would make you remortgage
the farm. But Fred Rice understood something
that a lot of us miss in this business. Genetic
excellence doesn't always announce itself with
fireworks and fanfare. Sometimes it whispers
for years before it starts shouting. And Star?
She was definitely whispering greatness. Over
time, she climbed to very good 88 by age 8. stacking
up over 207 ,000 pounds of milk over her lifetime.
But more importantly, she was building something
deeper in her daughters and granddaughters. Now
let me tell you about the Rice family operation.
This wasn't about overnight success or lucky
breaks. Fred Rice wasn't even born into dairy.
He was a town kid who caught the farming bug
hard enough to make it his life's work. After
years of renting and working other people's operations,
he and his wife Dorothy scraped together enough
to buy their own 85 acres in Chambersburg back
in 1962. By 1981, if you'd walked through Ricecrest,
you would have seen the vision coming together.
The hum of a double -six herringbone parlor,
150 cows averaging 17 ,900 pounds, solid numbers
for that era. They were grouping cows by production,
feeding total mixed rations to their top producers
basic stuff now but cutting edge thinking back
then what really made the difference was when
the next generation came home freddie rice partnered
with his dad in 1976 after some time with the
usda then dale rice joined them in 1980 fresh
out of penn state with his animal science degree
you had three generations around the same kitchen
table every morning practical experience government
perspective, and formal education all working
together. I can just picture those breakfast
conversations. Dale brings the latest research
from Penn State, Freddie shares what he learned
in Washington, and the old man listens, then
says, That's fine, boys, but let's see what the
cows tell us. Their approach wasn't flashy. They
weren't trying to impress visitors or win county
fair banners. They were building cows that could
pay the bills month after month. Lactation after
lactation. The Holstein Association noticed too.
By 1996, they'd earned the Progressive Breeder
Registry Award for eight consecutive years, eventually
extending to 21 years of recognition. And then
came the star of our story. On December 10th,
1990, Ricecrest Southwind Kay hit the ground.
She came with serious credentials. Southwind
Bell of Barley on top, a son of the legendary
Carlin M. Ivanhoe Bell, with proven Rice Crest
maternal strength building underneath. Her dam
was Rice Crest Ned Boy Noreen, an excellent 91
cow. Kay's own numbers were the kind that make
you sit up and take notice. 39 ,450 pounds of
milk, with 4 .1 % fat and 3 .4 % protein in her
peak lactation. Her very good 87 classification,
including a very good mammary system score, told
you this was a cow built for the long haul. Not
show ring pretty, but the kind of structural
correctness that lets a cow produce at high levels
throughout a profitable life. But what really
set her apart couldn't be measured in the milk
house. It was her ability to consistently pass
on her genetics to her offspring, no matter which
bull you used on her, and pass it on she did.
Now, here's where this story gets absolutely
wild. Kay produced three sons, three different
sons, by three different sires who each claimed
the number one spot on the total performance
index rankings think about that for a minute
in an industry where thousands of bulls compete
for genetic supremacy where ai companies spend
millions trying to find that next breakthrough
sire one cow produced three different number
one bulls rice crest lance by noria lake clitus
luke was first to capture the industry's attention
when he hit number one TPI in September 1999.
Picture the buzz. Phone calls flooding into Rice
Crest, AI companies scrambling to secure breeding
rights, and suddenly everyone wanted to know
more about this Pennsylvania cow family. Rice
Crest Marshall by Lutz Meadows E. Mandel followed
his half -brother to the top, proving this wasn't
a one -time genetic accident. Then Rice Crest
Brett by Maysfield Bellwood completed the trilogy,
bumping Marshall out of first place in August
2000. The protein transmission on these bulls
was absolutely off the charts. Industry publications
called K the greatest protein transmitter the
breed has ever seen. When you're dealing with
protein premiums that can make or break your
operation, those genetics represented liquid
gold flowing through breeding programs worldwide.
But here's what's fascinating, the critics' response.
The elite sale consignors walked right past Rice
Crest Cattle. Just good milk bulls, that's all,
some of them said, though they wouldn't go on
record. Their type scores were modest, the kind
of functional cattle that might not win the county
fair, but would definitely keep the operation
profitable. Now the thing about great genetics
is they don't stay put. When Rice Crest Wood
Breanne, that's Brett's full sister, was sold
as a calf to Bauer Brothers in Wisconsin, she
began attracting bull contracts worth significant
sums, including several to Japan. And here's
where it gets really interesting. Breanne became
the maternal grandam of Sandy Valley Bolton,
who would dominate the 2000s as one of the most
popular bulls in breed history. Bolton was a
breed -defining bull who ranked with Schottel
and Goldwyn in popular favor as the 21st century
began. From what we know about modern breeding
programs, whether it's Wisconsin's Rolling Hills,
California's Central Valley, or up in Vermont,
genetics tracing back to this Pennsylvania program
are still everywhere. Walk into any modern dairy
barn, and you'll find these bloodlines woven
through countless pedigrees. But here's where
this story gets complicated, and it's something
we're still dealing with today. The same selection
pressure that created Kay's incredible success
also contributed to some serious challenges we're
facing across the industry. Recent research shows
that over 99 % of Holstein Y chromosomes trace
back to just two bulls from the 1960s, Pawnee
Farm Arlinda Chief and Round Oak Rag Apple Elevation.
That's a level of genetic uniformity that would
concern wildlife biologists if they saw it in
wild populations. The industry is now seeing
the trade -offs from that intense selection.
The very traits that made bulls like Lance, Marshall,
and Brett so valuable came with consequences
that are still playing out in herds today. But
here's the thing. You can't blame the Rice family
for this. They were responding to market signals,
to what the economic formulas were telling them
would be profitable. The Rice family didn't create
the system. They simply became the best in the
world at succeeding within it. The TPI formula
rewarded production. and they delivered it in
spades. So what can we learn from all this? Well,
for starters, the genomic tools we have today
would have amazed Fred Rice, but I suspect he
would have used them the same way he used his
own eyes and instincts to build cow families
that could thrive in real -world conditions.
The challenge for today's producers is balancing
the economic pressure to maximize short -term
production gains with the long -term health of
our herds. Feed costs are squeezing margins like
never before. Labor challenges are forcing us
to think differently about cow flow and facility
design. Consumer demands around sustainability
and animal welfare are changing how we market
our products. In this environment, the Rice family's
approach offers some timeless lessons. Focus
on functional type over show ring beauty. In
today's market, with labor costs what they are,
Cows that can maintain themselves and produce
efficiently are worth their weight in gold. Great
genetics often come from unexpected places, not
always from the most expensive bulls or the flashiest
sale catalogs. How often do we overlook opportunities
in our own neighborhoods while chasing expensive
genetics from across the country? And most importantly,
play the long game. Multi -generational thinking
in an industry that often operates on quarterly
profit margins. Great cow families don't just
happen. They're built through consistent selection
over multiple generations. And that takes patience
in a business that often rewards quick fixes.
Here's what's happening on farms that are succeeding
in today's environment. They're taking the rice
family's approach and applying it to modern challenges.
They're using genomics to identify animals with
the right balance of production, health, and
longevity. They're paying attention to traits
like feed efficiency and environmental impact
that will matter in tomorrow's market. We're
starting to see the industry respond to these
challenges. Modern breeding indices are putting
more emphasis on health and fertility traits.
There's growing interest in crossbreeding and
outcrossing to broaden the genetic base. The
genomic revolution that started in the 2000s
is now being used to address some of the problems
created by the intense selection of the 1990s.
But here's what strikes me most about this story,
how it all started. Not with a million -dollar
investment or a breeding contract worth a small
fortune. It started with a farmer helping his
neighbor. and having the eye to recognize genetic
potential in a group of cows that were just doing
their job really, really well. The Holstein breed
is fundamentally different today because Fred
Rice chose to help a neighbor and had the wisdom
to recognize excellence when he saw it. That
simple act of walking down a gravel road to help
with morning milking triggered a chain of events
that shaped global genetics for decades. The
legacy of Rice Crest Southwind Cay isn't just
about the records she set or the suns she produced.
It's about the fundamental truth that transformative
genetics often come from the most unexpected
places and that sometimes the best investment
you can make is helping your neighbor when he
needs it most. As we navigate whatever challenges
lie ahead, whether it's climate change, new regulations,
or shifting consumer demands, that lesson is
worth remembering. The future of our industry
might not come from the latest genomic breakthrough
or the most expensive bull. It might come from
a producer who's observant enough to recognize
excellence, patient enough to develop it, and
generous enough to share it with the world. In
our industry, community has always been our strength.
The Rice family story proves that great things
happen when neighbors help neighbors, when experience
meets innovation, and when patience meets opportunity.
The Holstein breed is better today because Fred
Rice chose to be a good neighbor. That's a lesson
worth carrying forward, especially in an industry
that's always been built on the foundation of
people helping people. The next genetic revolution
might be just down the road, waiting for someone
with the wisdom to recognize it and the dedication
to develop it. So here are the key takeaways
from this incredible story. First, Rice Crest
Southwind K achieved what no other Holstein cow
has accomplished, producing three different number
one TPI sons, demonstrating unmatched genetic
transmitting ability. Second, the Rice family's
approach combined practical observation with
progressive genetics, focusing on functional
traits and production over show ring appeal,
proving that sustainable success comes from patience
and systematic selection. Third, While Kay's
genetics drove remarkable production gains, the
story highlights our industry's challenge with
genetic bottlenecking. Over 99 % of Holstein
genetics now trace to just two bulls from the
1960s. Fourth, today's producers must balance
production gains with health, fertility, and
longevity traits to ensure sustainable genetic
progress in an era of genomic selection. And
finally, This story demonstrates that revolutionary
genetics often emerge from neighborly relationships
and local observations rather than expensive
investments, emphasizing the continued value
of farmer -to -farmer knowledge sharing. Thanks
for joining me today on the Bullvine Podcast.
This has been the remarkable story of Ricecrest
Southwind Kay, a cow that truly changed everything
in Holstein breeding. Until next time, keep those
cows happy, keep learning from each other. And
remember that sometimes the most powerful genetics
are hiding right down the road. Take care, everyone.
Coming right on through. Oh, tell the tale, tell
the tale. The Beaumont legends live here.