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LIC chief executive David Chin.
LIC is embarking on a ground-breaking project aimed at breeding heat tolerant and disease resistant dairy cows for Sub-Saharan Africa, in collaboration with the global leader in precision breeding, Acceligen, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
The initiative seeks to address food insecurity in the region by providing high-performing dairy animals to help grow sustainable dairy markets, contributing to improving human and animal welfare.
It will combine LIC's expertise in breeding efficient dairy cows for pasture-based systems with Acceligen's cutting-edge gene editing capabilities to produce animals that can produce more milk than native species.
LIC chief executive David Chin emphasises the benefit of this global collaboration.
"This is a big one for LIC and we are proud to be involved. Collaborating with Acceligen allows us to work with the very best in the world, whilst showcasing our advanced breeding capability to global markets.
"The initiative supports us to stay at the forefront of the latest technologies and is an opportunity to leverage international expertise with positive benefits for the dairy sector.
"As a leader in pasture-based dairy genetics and a farmer-owned co-operative, LIC supports dairy farmers to navigate their unique challenges and provide them with the right tools to breed the most sustainable and profitable herds.
"Gene editing technologies could help give farmers even more tools to improve their productivity and efficiency - and that's something we have to explore," says Chin.
Embryos bred from LIC's world-class pasture based genetics will be sent to the US, where Acceligen will perform gene edits on the stem cells. The embryos will then be transferred into dams that will give birth to gene edited sires. The bull calves will be transferred to Brazil for rearing. The semen will be collected from these sires and sold into Sub-Saharan African markets through a developed distributor network.
The New Zealand Government has committed to legislative change to enable the greater use of gene technologies, ending the effective ban on gene editing by the end of 2025. Chin says LIC is actively looking at the science and viability of adopting such tools for New Zealand farmers.
"We continue to explore gene editing as a breeding technology to ensure the co-operative stays current with this area of science so we can understand how the sector may adopt it in the future.
"LIC is supportive of tools that can enhance the productivity of the dairy sector and we are ready to adopt new technologies."
LIC chief executive David Chin says meeting the revised methane reduction targets will rely on practical science, smart technology, and genuine collaboration across the sector.
Opening a new $3 million methane research barn in Waikato this month, Agriculture Minister Todd McClay called on the dairy sector to “go as fast as you can and prove the concepts”.
The Government has announced it has invested $8 million in lower methane dairy genetics research.
The first calves of a new crossbred dairy-beef offering are now on the ground at a Pamu (Landcorp) farm near Taupo.
Academic and former Fonterra director Nicola Shadbolt has been elected as LIC director.
Following recent storms in the region, the 69th edition of the Tour of Southland cycling event has been postponed.
A function at Parliament on 7th October brought together central government decision-makers, MPs, industry stakeholders and commercial partners to highlight the need for strategic investment in the future of Fieldays and its home, the Mystery Creek Events Centre campus.
The Government's revised 2050 biogenic methane target range of 14-24% by 2050 is being welcomed by dairy farmers.
An increasing number of students are doing agricultural and horticultural degrees at Massey University by distance learning.
ANZ New Zealand is encouraging farmers and businesses impacted by the recent extreme weather that hit Southland and South Otago last week to seek support if they need it.
When Professor Pierre Venter takes up his new role as vice chancellor at Massey University next February it will just be a matter of taking a few steps across the road to get to his new office at the Palmerston North Campus.
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