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Merino Lifetime Productivity
AWI and the Australian Merino Sire Evaluation Association (AMSEA) have teamed up with five sire evaluation sites, site hosts and nominating stud breeders to deliver the 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.
Upcoming Field Days
The New England MLP Field Day which was going to be held on the 26th June 2020 has been cancelled due to COVID-19.
In its place, the New England MLP site, situated at CSIRO’s Chiswick farm will host an “Online Field Day” in August 2020.
This online event will include video visual inspections of the MLP ewes, video presentations of the site and results, plus a suite of associated New England Add-On projects and MLP highlights.
The platform will enable inspection of ewes in full wool alongside their shearing results. The site looks forward to showcasing this field day out to all industry.
MerinoLink MLP Field Day (2016 and 2017 Drop Progeny on Display), “The Vale”, Temora, NSW
Date: Tuesday, October 20, 2020
Contact: Lexi Cesnik, 0431 565 731
Pingelly MLP Field Day (2016 and 2017 Drop Progeny on Display), UWA “Ridgefield”, Pingelly, WA.
Date: Thursday, October 22, 2020
Time: 1pm Field Day, 10am-12 ASBV workshop by RSVP only
Contact: Bronwyn Clarke, 0418 957 293
Please Note: Details of these Field Days will be confirmed closer to the date depending on the COVID-19 restrictions at the time.
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?
Gaining genetic ground with an MLP milestone
The Merino Lifetime Productivity (MLP) Project has reached its halfway mark, so what does that mean for the commercial and stud breeders of Australia’s wool industry?
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.
Download the Project Brochure
Read more about the Merino Lifetime Productivity Project in the MLP brochure (PDF 696 KB)
Read the MLP Analysis and Reporting Plan. Feedback welcome to Geoff.Lindon@wool.com
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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.
Merino Lifetime Productivity Project Update
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.
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)
