World’s Biggest Sperm Bank Shows Redheads to the Door
Email
ABC News’ Mikaela Conley reports:
Gingers may not be feeling the love these days. Cryos International, the largest sperm bank in the world, has closed its door to redheads — at least for the moment, according to a report in the International Business Times.
“I do not think you chose a redhead, unless the partner, for example, the sterile male — has red hair, or because the lone woman has a preference for redheads,” Ole Schou, director of Cryos International, told the Danish newspaper Ekstra Bladet. “And that’s perhaps not so many, especially in the latter case.”
Ouch.
The bank has reached its capacity of 70 sperm liters, with 600 donors on its waiting list. While ginger swimmers sell “like hotcakes” in Ireland, Schou said few people outside the Emerald Isle are as eager to have a redheaded baby.
Demand for sperm is everywhere, Schou told the Danish newspaper, particularly from men who are tall, with brown eyes and dark hair are the biggest sellers. Much of the demand for tall, dark and handsome comes from southern Europe, including Spain, Italy and Greece, Schou reported. But many Scandinavians also demand the look, in hopes of veering away from the typical blonde and blue-eyed Danish baby, Schou told the newspaper. Indian sperm is also reportedly in high demand and short supply because sperm is not allowed to be legally exported outside of India.
The only continent where sperm has not been sent is Antarctica. Depending on the quality of the sperm, men can make 250 to 500 kroner in Denmark… that is, as long as he’s not a redhead.
Man Discovers He's a Woman at the Hospital 
Head Trauma, Behavior Problems Linked
That’s bewildering. I think redheads are awesome looking… I don’t understand why people fuss so much about it.
Posted by: Faith | September 19, 2011 September 19, 2011, 7:47 pm
I can’t believe some men donate their sperm. I don’t ever want to wonder if their might be a child in the world who is mine; knowing I’m not in his or her life. A child is suposed to be unique to you and your spouse. This activity should be illegal.
Posted by: Benjamin | September 19, 2011 September 19, 2011, 8:10 pm
Babies have become commodities like everything else now, to be custom tailored to our snide little specifications. I have no doubt at all that in the near future you’ll be able to order designer babies complete with options lists on line shipped in a little cryo container with a 30 day money back guarantee.
Posted by: Andacar | September 19, 2011 September 19, 2011, 8:50 pm
OY. Some people need the donations to have a little one. If you don’t like then idea then don’t do it. But these people aren’t bad.
Posted by: attitude | September 19, 2011 September 19, 2011, 9:13 pm
Nothing wrong with redheads, i have one and she gets lots of compliments for that hair, and she is so damn cute. And some people need the help of a sperm donor.
Posted by: dsear | September 19, 2011 September 19, 2011, 10:00 pm
It’s just goofy looking having red hair, green eyes and a pale looking skin.
Posted by: NoFlyZone2 | September 19, 2011 September 19, 2011, 10:02 pm
I am a red headed female. My dad & my uncle are both red heads. My daughter is strawberry blonde & my 2 son is a red head, & let me tell you he is darn adorable! I know there are some goofy looking red headed males, but there are also some goofy looking blondes & brunettes. If you are buying sperm to make a baby, how do you know that you are actually getting what you are paying for?! And then, how do you know what genetic traits that sperm is carrying, for sure? How many people make babies without buying the sperm & then come to find out their DNA wasn’t compatable to make a baby & that baby has a defect? Then how often does that happen that people don’t hear about when the sperm is bought? These people are just crazy to me.
Posted by: Rebecca | September 19, 2011 September 19, 2011, 10:36 pm
I think red heads are adorable. I dont believe sperm should be chosen by color of hair. I would love for my kids to all have red hair. If you want a baby bad enough hair color should be the last thing your thinkin about.
Posted by: Lovin Red | September 19, 2011 September 19, 2011, 11:20 pm
Why does it matter if the donor has red hair? Some studies have shown that unless both parents carry the genetic makeup for red hair, it’s unlikely that the baby will have it. Even so, there are plenty of couples out there where neither parent has red hair, and yet they still end up with a red headed baby.
Posted by: mmmha22 | September 19, 2011 September 19, 2011, 11:47 pm
To add to my post. Both of my parents are brunettes, not a single red hair on either of them. But they carry the genetic makeup for it. My mother’s father was a redhead as well as a great grandparent on my dads side. I am the only one of my four siblings with red hair. So just goes to show that turning away redheads doesn’t make any guarantees
.
Posted by: mmmha22 | September 19, 2011 September 19, 2011, 11:53 pm
With so many people dying their hair red, I would think red hair would be in demand.
Posted by: Sharon | September 20, 2011 September 20, 2011, 12:25 am
i love my beautiful redheaded family….cutest babies youve ever seen and now beautiful teenagers…and my red headed man is gorgeous….a definate loss to ban gingers!
Posted by: jill e | September 20, 2011 September 20, 2011, 12:49 am
What a shame. For them to decide that red heads aren’t desireable enough is rather Hitleresque. If people are being honest, they would have to admit that there is a shade or more of red hair in their family, somewhere down the line. Excluding sperm from red heads is no guarantee that the woman won’t have a baby with red hair.
Posted by: Sally Behning | September 20, 2011 September 20, 2011, 1:39 am
The problem I see with using Sperm Banks, is that you could end up having half siblings running around fornicating with each other because they don’t know that they share a parent. There have already been cases where someone has given a child up for adoption and then went on to have more children. And by some twist of fate their child they gave up fell in love with one of their other children as an adult. Unknowing that they were half siblings. It’s going to come to a point one day where everyone will need to be tested to make sure they’re not related before getting into a relationship with them because of promiscuity and Sperm Banks.
Posted by: Jessica R | September 20, 2011 September 20, 2011, 1:43 am
If you want a baby bad enough, you wont care the hair color, the eye color, the height etc.. that is ridiculous.. what happened to having kids & loving them for who they are? & it is true that some people who don’t have red hair still have red headed babies! I have two beautiful red heads and I have dark brown hair and so does my bf! The fact that the world is so picky with everything now is ridiculous.. instead of hoping for a happy & healthy baby your hoping for certainhaor colors? Just goes to show the kind of parents that are going to be out there.
Posted by: Kristin | September 20, 2011 September 20, 2011, 2:10 am
Wow. Alot of you are judging from your ignorant high horses. The problem is more that the couples who need a sperm donor to conceive a child are not redheaded. They want their child to look as much like the father as possible…how is that a bad thing? Isn’t that what you fertile people want? Children that look like you or your spouse? Give them a break. Going this route is not done to make a designer baby. It’s done because these people want to have a family and raise their children with love. Don’t judge unless you’ve been there.
Posted by: KS77 | September 20, 2011 September 20, 2011, 11:50 am
That is honestly pathetic. I can’t believe that they would do such a thing. I think it’s honestly even more pathetic that sperm banks exist. We’re not god and we should not be allowed to genetically reproduce babies especially to decide what the babies should look like.It’s honestly racism. I’m a redhead myself but that doesn’t mean that I’m any less of a person. I go to a good school, I have a good job, and I have a wonderful family that supports me. My father owns Summit Entertainment which produces the Twilight Saga series and its his dna that gave me redhair. He doesn’t have it himself nor does my mother but both my dads mother did and I’m proud of having it. It makes me different than anybody else. Im sitting in my class right now and I’m the only redhead in here out of 50 students. Does that make me embarassed? NO it makes me unique and I am proud of my redhair.
Posted by: Brendon Hayward | September 20, 2011 September 20, 2011, 5:07 pm
Most couples want a child with their coloring…most people now are not Anglo,not even in my family…but I see the Anglos becoming extinct…sad…Maybe they will show red heads in our history books one day….with the dinasours!
Posted by: Doradee Bashar | September 22, 2011 September 22, 2011, 1:11 pm
Jessica R. is right on!
Posted by: Doradee Bashar | September 22, 2011 September 22, 2011, 1:14 pm
Dude “Ginger” is a British derogatory term …”Redhead” is the preferred nomenclature
Posted by: Mick | October 1, 2011 October 1, 2011, 1:11 am
I find this ridiculous! So many people out there want red hair, I find it absolutely insane to ban red head genes. Since there are less and less of us out there, it should almost be more in demand then brunettes and blond genes! Both my parents are brunettes and no one else in my family has red hair but me, my grandma and my brother and I love it. I get compliments all the time and alot of people ask me if its dyed or not. It makes us different and stand out in a crowd. Out of 300 people in my classes, I’m the only one with red hair!! I really hope my kids have red hair, it would be a blessing to keep the gene around for another generation in my family.
Posted by: Kb123 | October 28, 2011 October 28, 2011, 12:14 am
Well it doesn’t matter if the father is ginger, if the mother or father has the ginger gene, there is a chance the baby will be ginger. Oh No, this means, thousands of babies… are INFECTED! Run for the hills, the gingers are forming an army!
Ain’t heard such a ludicrous idea in all my life
Posted by: Frank | November 4, 2011 November 4, 2011, 8:36 pm