Holstein Friesian

Holstein Friesians are a breed of cattle originating from the North Holland and Friesland provinces of the Netherlands, and also the Schleswig-Holtstein state in northern Germany. Like other cattle, they are used as livestock for dairy and beef.

A Holstein Friesian cow.

A Holstein Friesian bull.

Overview

The breed weighs about 600 to 750 kg. A newborn calf weighs about 40 to 45 kg (sometimes even more). The breed is about about 1.45 m high. It can produce up to about 8,000 kg of milk per year (10,000 to 16,000 kg / year in top animals). It's milk is 4.2% fat and 3.4% egg white per liter (at high milk production the percentages may be slightly lower).

History

The Holstein Friesian could have originated after Frisian and Batavian cows were bred with each other, about 2000 years ago. Over the centuries, the cow is being used as a dairy breed. The breed was also popular abroad in the 19th century because of its high milk production. In the United States, Dutch cows were further bred. These cows were named Holstein-Friesian (the Holsteiners were introduced by German emigrants in the 17th century). In the second half of the 20th century, the descendants of the Dutch cows were cited in the Netherlands, because they produced more milk than the Dutch breeds Meuse-Rhine-Issel and Frisian-Holland. Since then, the black-colored Holstein-Friesian has been by far the most important cow breed in the Netherlands.