BREEDPLAN, modern genetic evaluation.

Increase genetic progress, productivity and prices with BREEDPLAN.

What is it?

BREEDPLAN is a modern genetic evaluation system for beef cattle. It offers the potential to accelerate genetic progress, tighten up breeding operations, improve productivity and increase prices for cattle sold for breeding and slaughter.

Where is it used?

BREEDPLAN has been implemented as the national beef recording scheme in Australia, New Zealand, Namibia, Thailand and the Philippines, and its use is also increasing in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Hungary, South America and South Africa.

How does it work?

BREEDPLAN uses the world’s most advanced genetic evaluation system (based on Best Linear Unbiased Prediction (BLUP) technology) to produce Estimated Breeding Values (EBVs) of recorded cattle for a range of important production traits (e.g. weight, carcase, fertility).

What is an EBV?

An animal’s breeding value can be defined as its genetic merit for each trait. While it is not possible to determine an animal’s true breeding value, it is possible to estimate it.

These estimates of an animal’s true breeding value are called EBVs (Estimated Breeding Values). EBVs are expressed as the difference between an individual animal’s genetics and the genetic base to which the animal is compared.

EBVs are reported in the units in which the measurements are taken (e.g. kilograms for the weight EBVs). Thus a value of +12 kg for 400 day weight means the animal is genetically superior by 12 kg at 400 days compared with the genetic base of the relevant cattle population. On average, half of this difference will be passed on to the animal’s progeny.