Professor Gerry Boyle:

It will not surprise the Deputy to hear me saying this but I believe it is a really important scheme. Alongside the improvements in efficiencies of grassland use, the second biggest area where we have made substantial advances in the agriculture sector has been in the breeding of animals. We can see the huge benefits in the dairy industry by promoting the economic breeding index, EBI. The difficulty when it comes to the beef animals is that the group is much more heterogeneous in terms of types of breeds and so on. The principle, however, is the same. The beef data and genomics scheme provides us with the hard information to enable us to improve the efficiency of the breeding indices. I am sure the Deputy is aware that breeding is the one area where there is most discussion, and it is very often emotional and, at times, virulent. The science is very clear. The breeding index is based on science. It is not based on the look of an animal. While it will take longer, the beef data and genomics scheme is the pathway towards improving the quality of the beef herd.