Merino Lifetime Productivity

AWI and Australian Merino Sire Evaluation Association (AMSEA) have teamed up with five sire evaluation sites to deliver the AWI Merino Lifetime Productivity (MLP) Project between 2015-25.
AWI and Australian Merino Sire Evaluation Association (AMSEA) have teamed up with five sire evaluation sites, site hosts and nominating stud breeders, to deliver the AWI Merino Lifetime Productivity Project (MLP). The project will receive $8 million dollars in funding from AWI over ten years from 2015, along with $5 million in support from project partners.
The 10-year project is designed to capture lifetime data across diverse environments and Merino types to help better understand and deliver Merino ewe lifetime performance outcomes for the Australian Merino industry.

Download the Project Brochure
Read more about the Merino Lifetime Productivity Project in the MLP brochure (PDF 696 KB)

MLP Sites, Sires and More Information
Visit the Merino Lifetime Productivity Project page on the Merino Superior Sires website to find out more about the project’s aims, evaluation sites, the sires and ewes involved and to access project reports.

Download MLP Reports
MLP Reports including raw data, adjusted sire means, breeding values and indexes are produced annually for each site. They can be downloaded from the Merino Superior Sires website.
The project is an opportunity to answer many of the industry’s questions in relation to selection and ewe lifetime performance, such as:
- Is it possible to select for lifetime productivity at a young age using raw data, breeding values, genomically enhanced breeding values, visual classing or a combination of industry approaches?
- What is the impact of selecting for wool, growth, reproduction, welfare and carcase traits on the productivity of Merino ewes over their lifetime?
- Why do some animals perform year in and year out, while others fade over time?
- Are there new ways to better predict superior lifetime performance?
Read about the Merino Lifetime Productivity Project in AWI’s Beyond the Bale magazine
LISTEN ABOUT THE MERINO LIFETIME PRODUCTIVITY PROJECT ON AWI'S PODCAST 'THE YARN'

Gaining genetic ground with an MLP milestone - episode 129
The Merino Lifetime Productivity (MLP) Project has reached its halfway mark, so what does this mean for the commercial and stud breeders of Australia's wool industry?
Merino Lifetime Productivity Project Update episode 86
Four years into the ten-year long MLP Project, the industry experts from the MLP Industry Steering Committee share the successes of the project so far and the outcomes the industry hopes to see in the future.

Related Articles
- A day of firsts and lasts - the MLP Project New England Field Day article
- Can we find a better way to compare sheep performance
- MerinoLink - Linking the Merino Industry
- Genetic aspects of lifetime productivity in Merinos - A Review by R.R. Woolaston
- Low wrinkle - high fleece weight - June 2019
- Sire evaluation made easy via new website - December 2018
- R&D into profit per hectare of different merino types - December 2018
- Improving merino resilience - December 2018
- Merino sire evaluation explained - December 2018
- Scanning for age of foetus - June 2018
- Independent classing and measurement combine to deliver merino sire evaluation - September 2016

Associated MLP “Add On” Projects
Read more on the list of MLP Add-On Projects (Add-on projects use the core MLP sheep for additional R&D but are separate to the core purpose of the MLP)
Merino Lifetime Productivity ANALYSIS AND REPORTING PLAN VERSION 2
Read the MLP Analysis and Reporting Plan. Feedback welcome to Geoff.Lindon@wool.com