Applications are now open for study tours of breeding technologies being used on dairy herds in Scotland.
The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) is offering dairy farmers the opportunity to travel to southwest Scotland to learn how advanced breeding technologies can aid breeding decisions, as well as the use of new genetic indices, genomics and sire mating programmes.
As part of the Farm Innovation Visit Scheme, DAERA is delivering the study trip for late-summer to visit four farms over two days, in conjunction with the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE).
Scotland trip
The trip will include a visit to “at least” one of the ‘fast breeders herds’ – a group of farmers in southwest Scotland that secured funding from the Scottish Government in 2019 to work with Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC) to establish a breeding programme using innovative breeding technologies to improve productivity.
It will also comprise a visit to the world’s longest-running genetic selection trial, the Langhill dairy herd at the SRUC Dairy Research Centre in Dumfries.
Prof. Mike Coffey will be holding an evening workshop, with the discussion topics being on the genomic testing of dairy heifers and making use of genomically tested young sires to speed up genetic progress.
DAERA said this discussion will also include the new FeedAdvantage and EnviroCow indices that have been developed using Langhill and national milk recording data aimed at breeding more sustainable dairy cows in future.
Applicants
The Farm Innovation Visit Scheme, which is part of the Northern Ireland Rural Development Programme and part-funded by the European Union, will cover the costs associated with setting up the visit, accommodation, travel outside of Northern Ireland and meals when in Great Britain.
Applicants are invited from nominate one member or employee of a farm business that has had dairy cows in any one of the last two years (2021 or 2022), is over 18 years of age on the application closing date and not in full-time education.
DAERA said that to increase the benefits arising from the study tour, all applicants “must identify a group of farmers to share their findings with upon their return”.
Applications can be completed from June 12, to June 30, 2023.
