'Sheep of the Future' transformational for NZ sheep farming

Sheep of the Future is a seven-year breeding programme run by Pāmu, its genetics company Focus Genetics, AgResearch and MPI. It breeds for lower rumen methane alongside meat and wool traits.

This Pāmu article covers the two trial flocks: a fine-wool flock at Aratiatia near Taupō measured against a control line, and a no-wool flock at Kapiro near Kerikeri bred for heat and meat. It also covers the funding, the feed intake and environmental measurements taken, and how the data will flow into the national sheep evaluation system.

^{Photo: “Sheep on the sides of Sugarloaf (496m), Christchurch, New Zealand 03” by Michal Klajban, licensed for reuse under CC BY-SA 4.0}