Breeding tools available

There currently exists a large, and growing, supply of information that Australian woolgrowers can access to shape the future of their Merino enterprise.

Read the latest Beyond the Bale supplement - Breeding for profit which provides tools for breeders and woolgrowers to improve genetic gain and lift profitability across the industry.

  • Sheep Genetics

    Developed by AWI and Meat and Livestock Australia to provide woolgrowers with a national genetic database, Sheep Genetics can be easily used to calculate the performance breeding values of ewes and rams.

  • Merino Superior Sires

    Independently operated progeny testing sites provide an accurate tool to identify the genetic merit and visual performance of Merino sires. Information is catalogued and available to highlight those with the most commercially important traits.

  • Bloodline Performance Package

    Illustrating the performance of Merinos across wool production, wool quality and profitability, the Merino Bloodline Package identifies the best ram source to satisfy a range of woolgrowers' breeding objectives.

  • Genetics Best Management Practice Module

    The Gain From Genetics module in the Making More From Sheep package allows woolgrowers a 'one-stop-shop' for better understanding the available genetic knowledge and its application.

Overview

Wide participation in genetic evaluation is critical to the ongoing genetic development of Australian Merino sheep - especially in ensuring ram breeders have access to, and make use of, the best available genetic knowledge.

Irrespective of the sheep breeding systems used, genetic evaluation tools provide a means to help woolgrowers select the sheep most suited to their long term strategy, environment demands and profitability goals.

The benefits of genetic selection last forever and compound over time. AWI supports three forms of genetic evaluation.

Identifying not only the most productive animals within any population, but also nation-wide evaluation of Merino performance, genetic benchmarking information is one of the most powerful tools available to Australian woolgrowers from AWI.

 

AWI Global Sites