The ancestors of the oldest breed in the world were brought form Scandinavia to the modern territory of Switzerland in the middle of the 5th century. The lengthy breeding process introduced todays modern Simmental breed, however the name of the breed is derived from the Simme River in the canton of Bern.
Due to varying economic circumstances the development of a new breed was a continuous process until the presentation of the breed standard at the beginning of the 20th century. The versatile characteristics of the Simmental breed such as high fertility, reproduction ability and adaptation to various climate conditions has allowed the breed to become abundant throughout Africa, Europe and America.
The dual-purpose characteristics of the Simmental breed established the Simmental breed as an excellent combination of dairy and meat productivity.
