Genomic evaluation may provide gains for top cattle breeders
Dairy farmers in the US are showing them the way, with top breeders making more now from genetics than milk, because genomic testing allows them to identify superior bulls and cows at least four years earlier than traditional progeny testing.
This gives farmers greatly increased access to the markets for breeding bulls and cow eggs.
Genomic testing of a DNA sample (usually from a lock of the calf’s hair) establishes an animal’s genetic merit for a fraction of the cost of progeny testing – for as little as €200. It is at least two times more reliable than the prediction of a young calf’s genetic fitness from its pedigree papers.
Irish farmers who own elite cows are set to cash in on a genomics bonanza, aided by ground-breaking research work at Teagasc and the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation which has made Ireland the European leaders in the use of genomics in dairy cattle breeding.
Irish dairy farmers have rushed to avail of genomically selected bulls, choosing them to breed 35% of their artificially inseminated cows last year. So-called GS bulls enabled them to offset low milk prices and high production cost by availing of excellent genetics at a competitive price. The huge impact of genomic selection is reflected in the active bull list of dairy AI sires released last month by ICBF – half of the top 10 rated sires were genomically selected.
With Teagasc and the ICBF also working on introducing genomics into beef cattle breeding in Ireland, there could be big opportunities also for the top beef cattle breeders.
