CRC Year 3 Review

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Genetic improvement of Merino sheep in Australia

• Laurie Piper
• CSIRO Livestock Industries
• Armidale NSW Australia

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Researching the Global Market Place
56 Target Consumer Discussion Groups ABC1, 25-40
Clothing Interest USA, JN, UK, GE, FR, IT
10,500 Quantitative Consumer Survey Major Six
plusCH, KOR, POL, CSFR
38 Major Retailer Interviews (7 Countries, 3000
Outlets)
83 Processing Partner Interviews (11 Countries)
IWS REVIEW 1992/93
IWS Global Product Management
Continual Market Data and External Surveys
A NEW AWARENESS OF WHAT TODAYS CONSUMER IS
DEMANDING
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Changing Apparel Requirements in the 90s

• SUMMARY
• Quality at a competitive price
• More comfort (lightweight, soft) and practicality
• Transeasonal versatility
• Natural fibres
• Readily accessible product information

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Processing changes

• Processing speeds increasing
• Labour inputs decreasing
• Spinners and Weavers trying to reduce yarn and
  fabric weights but hampered by reduced labour
  inputs and higher processing speeds in modern
  mills
• Solution is to use finer wool and to investigate
  other processing options such as singles yarns,
  Sirostretch etc.

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Competition from other apparel fibres

• Cotton has reduced its fibre diameter by around
  25 in the last 15 years
• Man-made fibres have become significantly finer
  in the last 5-7 years
• Wool must reduce its diameter to remain
  competitive

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Wool as a textile fibre

• Strength
  (g/tex) Diameter (µm)
• Wool 14 14-26
• Cotton 36 13
• Rayon 30 3-18
• Acrylic 24 3-18
• Polyester 40 3-18
• Nylon 51 3-18
• Silk 36 5

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Wool QualityEffect of raw wool traits on Product
Value

• TOP YARN CLOTH
• Yield
• VM
• Mean Fibre Diam.
• Fibre Diam Var.
• Staple Length
• Staple Length Var. E
• Staple Strength
• Crimp/Res. to Comp.
• Colour
• Dark Fibre Content E E E

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Wool Price 1975 - 2000
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Average premium 60
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Sheep Production statistics
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Merino statistics - 1999/2000

• Total sheep numbers 115 million
• Total wool production 632,000 tonnes
• Total ewes mated 53 million
• Total ewes mated with Merino rams 42 million
• Total Merino rams sold /year 180,000
• Total number Merino studs 1900
• 250 studs account for 80 of the rams sold

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Merino studs - philosophies of selection

• Breeding Objectives - Sheep cutting more wool
  with better processing performance
• Selection strategies
• Traditional hand and eye appraisal by
  professional stud classers - little or no use of
  objective measurements
• Objective measurement based programs
  incorporating some input from professional stud
  classers - Rampower, Merino Lambplan, Merino
  benchmark, etc
• Soft Rolling Skin, Elite Wool trademark
  methods based around the expertise of a guru

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Traditional Merino industry structure

• Strong links between parent, daughter, grower

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More recent trends

• Across-flock information fosters increased
  mobility of ram buyers

Studs
Rams
Commercial growers
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Genetic improvement for commercial Merino breeders

• Buy rams from the traditional stud just like Dad
  and Grandad
• Define a breeding objective and utilise publicly
  available performance data to choose an
  appropriate stud
• National wether trial database evaluating
  performance of a large number of Merino
  bloodlines
• Central Test Sire Evaluation database evaluating
  performance of a large number of rams based on
  controlled progeny tests
• Evaluate current breeding program with chosen
  stud and assess likely progress towards breeding
  objective

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Choosing a ram source on current production level

• Impact of bloodline change on fleece weight,
  diameter, wool quality and size / reproduction
• Wether trials provide data on most traits, except
  reproduction and disease resistance
• Information from wether trials represent past
  performance (5-10 years ago) and needs to account
  for recent genetic gain

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Wether trial production differences
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Differences in profitability (1995-1999 market)
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Choosing a ram source on likely genetic gains
(future production level)

• Genetic responses determined by
• breeding objective - expected changes
• selection accuracy - traits measured, selection
  emphasis, index selection
• across-flock selection - central test sire
  evaluation, Merino Benchmark
• Measures (indicators) of genetic change
• time trends - phenotypic, BLUP
• benchmark against other flocks

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Genetic responses after 4 years of index
selection in the QPLU lines
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Effect of genetic options individually on flock
fibre diameter
Source - 2mm finer bloodline Gain - 1mm finer
over 10 years Rams - 1mm finer than average Ewes
- cull 30 replacements on diameter
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Effect of combined genetic options on flock fibre
diameter
Source - 2mm finer bloodline Gain - 1mm finer
over 10 years Rams - 1mm finer than average Ewes
- cull 30 replacements on diameter
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Changes in diameter have arisen from

• Ram source changes
• More targeted breeding practices by many ram
  breeders
• Selection of flock rams at source
• Diameter measurement of commercial ewes and
  wethers

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Conclusions

• Merino breeding programs in Australia are rapidly
  evolving
• Breeding objective focus in studs is increasingly
  on major profit drivers, clean fleece weight and
  fibre diameter
• Publicly available comparative performance
  information on bloodlines, studs and individual
  rams is transforming the accuracy of choice for
  commercial sheep breeders
• Changes of ram source and use of measurement by
  commercial sheep breeders is leading to higher
  rates of productivity increase in the Merino
  industry

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