Flying the Flag in the west
[27 Sep 07]
Find Us in Asia
[27 Sep 07]
Global threat to pork industr
[27 Sep 07]
Certification updates
[03 Aug 07]
JSR brings the pig world to Yorkshire
[07 Jul 07]
Harper Adams College and JSR team up for new research
[07 Jul 07]
EBLEX beefs up eating quality
[07 Jul 07]
Meat Industry Figures
[02 Jul 07]
Into Africa
[27 Mar 07]
One million pounds we didn't have a year ago!
[27 Mar 07]
What's happening to British calf numbers and price
[25 Mar 07]
Sauvignon Reigns in France
[24 Mar 07]
Nine Hereford bulls go to France
[24 Mar 07]
Herefords return to Germany and France
[27 Feb 07]
"British Livestock" a new magazine
[23 Feb 07]
Export boost for Aberdeen-Angus
[11 Feb 07]
Sexed Limousin Semen - a world first!
[11 Feb 07]
Animal welfare in transport: new EU rules enter into force
[5 Jan 07]
Opportunities in the genetics of cattle health and beef production
[4 Jan 07]
Charolais genetics exported down under
[11 Dec 06]
British Charolais makes breed debut in Romania
[17 Oct 06]
Counting sheep - UK/USA
[08 Oct 06]
Boom Time for British Breeding Pig Exports
[06 Oct 06]
New Pig Centre Links Farm to Lab
[06 Oct 06]
Encouraging signs from UK Pig Census
[09 Sept 06]
New semen sexing technology
[06 Sept 06]
WeideFestival - First steps back into Europe
[21 August 06]
Expointer And 100 Years of Devons in Brazil
[10 August 06]
First British Charolais & Limousin semen exported to Mexico
[10 August 06]
JSR plays a major role in Polish pig expansion
[7 August 06]
Limousins are first British cattle into Poland
[7 August 06]
Aberdeen-Angus export breakthroughs
[29 June 06]
Gene markers boost performance
[21 June 06]
Tiger economy in sheep's clothing
[20 June 06]
Strong Start for English Beef Exports
[6 June 06]
Facts at your fingertips!
[22 May 06]
Beefing up exports to Switzerland
[3 May 06]
Tally-ho! Sensible eco-friendly tallow decision
[27 Apr 06]
Danish breeding pig exports up 15% in 2004/05
[24 Apr 06]
There's animal welfare UK style or other styles
[21 Mar 06]
BSE: UK beef embargo to be lifted.
[08 Mar 06]
UK venture targets pigs in the east
[27 Feb 06]
Cogent Sexed Semen - A globally proven product
[21 Feb 06]
Meat imports drop in UK as production soars
[09 Feb 06]
Nice, if you can get it!
[17 Jan 06]
Newdawn for the British pig industry
[13 Jan 06]
SWALEX Success as Cumbrian sheep arrive in Estonia
[22 Dec 05]
British Global Genetic Giants to merge
[29 Oct 05]
Cattle exports going well for European countries
[29 Oct 05]
Birth Data Highlight Beef Herd Changes
[8 July 05]
Semen Exports’ £7 million boom
[3 July 05]
Britbreed joins forces with CBS Technologies under the umbrella of Innovis™
[14 June 05]
Sympa and Goldies Terence arrive in Oz, and more Opera [6 June 05]
Firsts for British rare breeds pigs
[27 May 05]
Genus reopens Brazil’s door to cattle semen exports
[25 Apr 05]
National UK Dairy database launched for performance & welfare improvement
[21 Apr 05]
Red faces? No, yet more sheep breeding developments in Britain!
[18 Apr 05]
British Pig Association Active in Asia [15 Apr 05]
UK now a moderate risk BSE area [22 Mar 05]
British Ambience draws international crowds at SIA
[22 Mar 05]
Onwards in Black and White
[21 Mar 05]
Livestock Links Forged with distant Nagaland
[11 Mar 05]
New UK dairy genetics testing programme for "Grazing Kings"
[13 Jan 05]
Beef and lamb sales in Britain soar
[21 Jan 05]
Nice Limousin calves Downunder!
[14 Dec 04]
Fourth proven Montbeliarde joins Genus stud
[13 Dec 04]
Dream team for Charollais sires
[24 Nov 04]
Bull prices follow performance, yet again!
[2 Nov 04]
Click on any of the news stories above for further information
The success of a project to incorporate new gene markers into existing sheep breeding systems will allow British sheep producers to take advantage of the latest genetic technology according to representatives from the Charollais, Suffolk and Texel breeds.
MASACS*, a project that has been underway since June 2004 has already identified DNA markers for muscle depth and worm parasite resistance and ways to use these to strengthen performance recording. [*MASACS - Marker Assisted Selection Applied to Commercial Sheep]
MLC Senior Geneticist Gert Nieuwhof said: "Commercial ram breeders should be aware that with new genetic markers becoming commercially available soon, there is a opportunity to use such information along with current recording systems in order to make sustained improvements to performance and other traits such as disease resistance".
Jonathan Barber of Charollais Sires stated: "MASACS will provide an infrastructure to allow the incorporation of these markers into enhanced EBVs, and software development is underway to allow this.
"Importantly, this system will provide a platform to incorporate new genetic markers and genetic technologies to be delivered to UK sheep producers and incorporated into existing breeding systems".
Texel Sheep Society Chief Executive Steve McLean said: "A major strength of the project is that it incorporates all the important players in the British breeding industry including major breed societies, the MLC and Signet, Roslin Institute, the Edinburgh Genetic Evaluations Unit and also BASCO".
Project leader, Prof. Steve Bishop, Roslin Institute, commented: "It is important to note that these new markers will provide supplementary information to enhance current EBVs in Marker Assisted Selection breeding programmes. The markers identified give greater assurance with regard to muscle depth which will mean the commercial farmer will have far greater confidence that identified rams will outperform unrecorded rams".
To find out more, there are links to Charollais and Texel from this website's 'Members' section
[21 June 06]
