SIL takes message to Romney breeders
13 June 2001
MEDIA RELEASE
IMMEDIATE
SIL takes
message to Romney breeders
(About 435 words)
Sheep
Improvement Limited (SIL) – the sheep industry’s genetic
database – has been taking its performance recording message
to Romney breeders throughout New Zealand.
The Meat New
Zealand/WoolPro joint venture now plans a series of seminars
for other breeders over the next six weeks.
SIL general
manager, George Cruickshank, says SIL’s technology offers
breeders a quantum leap in performance recording.
“Our
seminars are introducing breeders to performance recording
in SIL, how it works and how simple it is.
“Performance
recording aims to identify which sheep are doing well
because of their genes and not just because they are being
well managed. It is this gene element that denotes the
breeding value of an animal.
“The technology and data we
have means we can identify a sheep’s breeding potential
before it performs, instead of having to wait for proof
after it has bred.”
Around 100 Romney breeders attended
eight seminars designed to introduce them to performance
recording and how to use SIL’s services to analyse that
data.
Cruickshank says many breeders are already
recording much of the information needed for them to use the
SIL service and many could use SIL’s services
immediately.
“However, some of them might need to record
data for other characteristics before SIL really becomes
useful to them. For instance, a breeder might be recording
mating and birth data and weaning weights. They could also
record the animal’s weight at eight or 12 months or hogget
fleece weight.
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“SIL
would then use that data to calculate breeding values for
their animals.”
Southland ram breeder Peter Wishart, who
attended the Southland Romney seminar, says the New Zealand
sheep industry’s time has come.
“It’s an exciting time
and the opportunity SIL offers breeders is dynamic.”
The
SIL program incorporates three previous schemes, Studfax,
AnimalPlan and FlockLinc, into a combined database and
state-of-the-art genetic engine that analyses performance
data against data from other breeders.
The main benefit
of the SIL recording system for a breeder is to identify an
animal’s breeding value.
Cruickshank says SIL’s breeding
values allow breeders to provide commercial farmer clients
with accurate predictions of what a ram is capable of, as
well as letting breeders compare and improve their own flock
genetics with that of other like-minded breeders.
SIL is
aiming to have at least 600 breeders using the system by
September of this year, with another 150 on-board over the
next two years.
Upcoming SIL breeders’ seminars:
Monday
25 June Te Kuiti Hotel, Rora St, Te Kuiti
Tuesday 26
June Wool Testing Authority Building, Napier
Wednesday 27
June Marton Hotel, Marton
Thursday 28 June Copthorne
Resort, Masterton
Monday 9 July Airport Plaza,
Christchurch
Tuesday 10 July Federated Farmers,
Ashburton
Wednesday 11 July Rosebank Lodge,
Balclutha
Thursday 12 July James Cumming Wing,
Gore
Friday 13 July Commercial Hotel,
Winton
[ends]
For more information, contact:
George
Cruickshank, SIL general manager, tel 06-833 7230.
For a
portrait photo of George, or a group shot of George, Peter
Wishart and Aaron Meikle, please contact greer@wham.co.nz