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Sperm Banks Turning Away Redheads (Credit: Bartr)

European newspapers are reporting that the world’s largest sperm bank – Ole Schou – has begun turning away redheaded donors. To hear the brass at the sperm bank describe it, it’s a simple supply/demand issue.

“There are too many redheads in relation to demand,” he told Danish newspaper Ekstrabladet. “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. And that’s perhaps not so many, especially in the latter case.”

Schou said the brown-hair-brown-eyes combination is high in demand, because of preferences by customers in Spain, Italy and Greece. He conceded that the redheaded sperm samples sell “like hot cakes” in Ireland.

Although the report emerges from Europe, American websites are burning with the story, wondering what such a trend may portend for our homegrown gingers (up to 18 million, by some estimates).

“We wonder why anyone wouldn’t want a baby with beautiful strawberry locks. Perhaps it has something to do with the teasing red-headed children sometimes face?” wrote the Atlantic Wire, perhaps referring to a 2008 controversy in which a Facebook campaign, “Kick a Ginger” urged readers to assault redheaded classmates.

FUN FACTS: Celebrity Gingers:

-  Anyone wanting to behold the physical beauty of female gingers need not look further than Christina Hendricks. The voluptuous actress is best-known for her role as Joan on the acclaimed series “Mad Men.” She was also voted “sexiest woman in the world” in a 2010 poll by Esquire magazine.

-  David Caruso has had a long and fruitful acting career, currently holding a main role on the highly rated series “CSI: Miami.”

-  While no one is likely to hold up Ed Schultz as an example of ginger beauty on par with Hendricks, the burly, left-leaning talkshow host maintains a successful TV show on MSNBC and is an outspoken advocate for ginger rights.