Ferme Des Acres Royales (BOVI-STAR) is a 100% purebred Jersey farm, owned and operated by Yannick Ostiguy & Francisca Beauregard in Marieville, Québec, 45 minutes east of Montreal, and they currently milk 28 cows (out of 44 total). Yannick was born in Marieville and studied dairy production at the agricultural school in Coaticook, Québec. Francisca grew up on her family dairy farm in nearby Roxton Pond and studied dairy production at the Institut de technologie agroalimentaire in Saint-Hyacinthe, Québec. At 23 her and Yannick purchased 5 acres and an old barn that needed renovating. The Bovi-Star herd was then born with a quota of 5kg. Eventually Francisca quit her 2nd job to work full-time on the farm and raise their first child, born in 2007. Yannick still works 20 hours per week off-farm. Today they have 5 children; Tristan (13), Alexis (10), Maïka (8), Logan (5) and Jayden (2); and the farm holds 36 Kg. of quota. It is a passion for animal husbandry, nature and being their own bosses that drives their busy life. The farm is a family affair, and the children help with chores in the evenings. The oldest, Tristan, is a young entrepreneur and started his own business.
He loves laying hens and he delivers eggs to 2 organic markets in Montréal. Why Jerseys? A number of good reasons led Yannick and Francisca to the Jersey breed. In addition to both working with and enjoying the breed in their youth, they found Jerseys were the ideal breed for old buildings like the farm they had purchased. Smaller stall sizes and lower ceilings require a more efficient use of space. As well, they have found Jerseys to be disease free in their experience. On the farm, cows are fed 50% silage corn and 50% hay fodder (they rent 35 acres of hay and buy the rest). For the last five years, they have had a machine to distribute concentrates and in 2019 they purchased a TMR mixer. Milking cows are in a pipeline tie-stall and dry cows are outside on packed litter. SOME NOTABLE COWS AT BOVI-STAR : Norjo Imperial Youlie SUP-EX 90-4E gave birth to Bovi-Star Duaiseoir Ylianne SUP EX 90 7E, 3*. Ylianne gave birth to 5 females, 1 SUP-EX, 1 EX, and 3 VG. One of the daughters, Bovi-Star Senior Ylia, is a SUP-EX 90-9E 2* with a lifetime production award in June 2020. Their 2nd bought cow, Jersey Junction Bernice SUP-EX 91-6E 2*, is a 2 Star Brood cow with a Silver Award. Their hard work and attention to their herd has contributed greatly to their success. They enjoy discussions with the classifier about the strong and weak points of an animal and use classification as a tool to
CURRENT HERD CLASSIFICATION: 9 EX, 15 VG and 10 GP HERD AVERAGE: 7,718 Kg. Milk, 5.7% Fat, 4.2% Protein AVERAGE BCA: 255-243-267 LIFETIME HERD CLASSIFICATION: 10 SUP-EX, 55 EX, 97 VG, 75 GP and 5 G PRÉSENTEMENT : 9 EX, 15 TB et 10 BP MOYENNE DU TROUPEAU : 7,718 kg de lait, 5,7 % gras, 4.2% protéine MCR MOYENNE : 255-243-267 CLASSIFICATION À VIE DU TROUPEAU : 10 SUP-EX, 55 EX, 97 TB, 75 BP and 5 B 28 JUNE / JUIN 2021 Canadian Jersey Breeder / Eleveur de Jersey Canadien
improve type. Their herd objectives are to continue to breed cows that are well balanced in type and to increase production. Looking forward, in their words: “We will keep buying quota every month. We will continue to use positively balanced bulls. We will continue to work on our big cow family the Y, B and the new cow family T. » Some final words of encouragement from Yannick and Francisca to those starting out: “Being young entrepreneurs, when you win an award, it is a huge dose of acknowledgement for all the work that has been done over the years. This prestigious award motivates us to continue despite the difficult days. To all the young people who want to start from nothing, with perseverance, work and ambition…. Everything is possible." With contributions from Yannick Ostiguy & Francisca Beauregard
Tristan and his laying hens Tristan et ses poules pondeuses
