Montbéliarde
(most common name)
(transboundary/brand name)

(local/other name):
• La race Montbéliarde
• Montbéliard (English)
(historical breed name):
• French Dairy Simmental

The Montbéliarde originated in the upland (mountainous) environment of Franche Comté, a cultural and historical region of eastern France. It ranks second on the list of dairy breeds in France and is very widely distributed.

Presumably, Mennonite immigrants from Switzerland brought the now extinct Bernese cattle (the Simmental forerunner) in the 1700s and combined them with local breeds, notably:
• Tourache - russet-coated (dairy/draught)
• Fémeline - froment or wheat-colored (beef)

The Montbéliarde was first known as the ‘Alsatian’ breed.

• 1872 - Montbéliarde named after the principality of Montbéliarde
• 1889 - Montbéliarde officially recognized; herdbook established focusing on dairy
• 1901 - Montbéliarde breed societies established
• 1923 - formal milk-recording began
• 1950s - government proposal to merge Montbéliarde with Abondance and French Simmental rejected
• late 1970s - introgression by Red Holstein (USA) permitted
• 1990 - proportion of Red Holstein genes at its highest (5.8%) and is decreasing slowly

SNP studies of the Montbéliarde show a close affinity with the Abondance, then Tarentaise and Vosges.

(French) froment = wheat

This page was last updated on: 2024-06-05

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