Wales Farmer 12 FEATURE JANUARY 2014


BREEDING ENTHUSIASM: The genomics programme could bring important benefits to breeders like Richard Howells.


PICTURE: Debbie James. Adding value to stock


AWELSH beef farmer says anew genomic breeding value system for Limousin breeders will allow him to add value to


his stock. LynHowells,who farms with


his father,Richard, and brother, David, at Gelli Farm,Cymmer, breeds Limousin bulls and heifers to sell as breeding stock. The Howellses recentlyhosted


an open dayatGelli Farm,a Farming Connect demonstration farm, wherefarmers were given an update on the British Limousin Cattle


Society’s


research programme,which utilises genomics to improvebeef carcass traits. By providing nine newgenom-


ic traits forprimal cuts such as rump,strip loin and sirloin, the value of carcasses could be enhanced. The retail difference in the carcass value of some ani- mals can be as much as £200 for the same carcass weight, with superior carcasses having ahigh- er proportion of the quality pri- mal cuts. Alison Glasgow, technical


manager at the British Limousin Cattle Society,saysGenomic Breeding Values (GBVs) take existing Estimated Breeding


By Debbie James


Values (EBVs) astep further. Across all beef breeds thereis


variation and further variation again within asingle breed. “If thereisvariation within the


breed and it is heritableitcan be passed to other animals,” Mrs Glasgowexplained. “GBVs give us the tools to


select these.” Those whouse Limousin


breeding stock will be able to select animals thatbetter hit their target markets. “They will effectively be breed-


ing towardsahigher value prod- uct,”Mrs Glasgowsaid. “Wehavethe end marketwith-


in our sights and we can arm breeders to be better able to breed forthatmarket. “Different markets have differ-


ent requirements,but thereisa standardmarketthatcarcasses will sell into.The majority will hit targets,but thereare some that don’t.The aim of using GBVs is to increase the volume of animals thathit specifications.” GBVs will also allowproduc-


ers to cut costs because if genetic merits can be estimated to a greater degree of accuracy and earlier in an animal’slife,itwill enablefarmers to makeadeci-


sion earlier about the futureof thatanimal. “The information available


from ablood sample taken from ayoung calf will give producers better information about thatcalf and will allowthem to decide whether to keep it forbreeding purposes or forthe food chain,” said Mrs Glasgow. The £1.5 million project, which


the society is undertaking in col- laboration with Scotland’sRural College,SRUC, and meatproces- sor,APB,with funding from the Technology Strategy Board, is currentlyexclusive to the Limousin breed, butother breed societies arelikelytofollow. Forthe Howells familyat


Gelli, the project could bring important benefits to their busi- ness.They sell to the breeding market, butevery year apercent- ageoftheir stock don’t makethe grade and aresold as stores at 12- 18 months.GBVs would help to addvalue and maximise the potential of all their animals. “Thereismorecompetition


among breeders and we are always looking forsomething to give us an advantage,” said Lyn. Also featured at the open day


were DNAsamples taken from 12 animals on the farm. The aim wastoprovide information on


BETTER VALUE: DNA samples have been taken from 12 Limousins at Gelli Farm. PICTURE: Debbie James.


the myostatin variants they car- ried. Myostatin genes promote increased yield and quality of meat, butcan be associated with an increase in calving difficulty wheretwo copies of certain vari- ants come together.Mrs Glasgow


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discussed the breeding outcomes of pairing certain heifers and bulls carrying these genes. The event wasorganised by


Farming Connect facilitator for Glamorganshire, Mari Golds- worthy, whosaid it wasanoppor-


tunity forfarmers to learn more about newtechnologies. “This project will accelerate


genetic improvement and create additional business opportunities forfarmers with abattoirs and retailers,” she said.


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