Benefits of ‘Designer’ Animal Breeding Outlined
17 June,2004
Gene technology has the potential to dramatically improve animal breeding leading to better quality and healthier food products, an international food conference has been told.
Dr David MacHugh from the Faculty of Agriculture in UCD told the International Food Conference in Dublin that scientists can now identify the genes that are responsible for varying the physical features in farm animals.
“These genes can be manipulated and used to predict meat quality, tenderness, fat contact, milk yield and disease resistance. This will help farmers and the food industry save money and supply better quality meat and dairy products to the consumer,” he said.
The two-day conference is organised by Teagasc in association with UCD, UCC and the Department of Agriculture and Food as part of Ireland’s Presidency of the EU. It is being attended by 300 scientists and industry representatives from Europe and the US.
Dr MacHugh said that gene technology, which was originally designed for human research, has now moved to animal research.
“For years, animal breeding has been tailored using statistics and pedigree information. Future progress in animal research and gene technology will simplify and speed up traditional breeding programmes by increasing the accuracy of breed selection. This will result in a genetic improvement in farm animals that will lead to better food quality and livestock performance,” he said.
“Current human dietary recommendations include consuming less fat in the diet. This has led to consumer demands for lean meat and low-fat meat products. Providing better quality meat and dairy products will promote healthier eating. Therefore, designer livestock breeding will benefit not just farmers and the food industry but also consumers,” said Dr MacHugh
