UK sheep genetics gain access to lucrative US market
© Tim Scrivener British sheep breeders can export genetics to the US for the first time in 26 years after an agreement was reached on health certification.
The new ovine embryo export health certification could be worth more than £750,000 to UK sheep breeders in the first year of trade, according to the AHDB.
The levy body said breeds including Suffolk, Texel and Charollais could benefit, with interest in their genetics on the increase in the US.
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Sheep breeders in the US have been looking to bring in fresh genetics of some of the UK breeds since the market closed, an AHDB spokesperson said.
About 10,000 doses of semen are expected to arrive in the US by the end of 2022, retailing at up to US$100 (£84.15) a dose. It is expected that 2,000 commercial embryos will follow, worth between $450 (£378) and $1,000 (£840) each.
AHDB international market development director Phil Hadley hailed the move as “fantastic news for the UK sheep sector”.
“The importance of this agreement is huge. Many entrepreneurial breeders have had an eye on the US market for some time and are ready to export sheep genetics to America,” Dr Hadley said.
“The publication of the embryo export certificate not only brings a financial boost to breeders in the UK, but also affords ovine genetic benefit to our American sheep industry colleagues,” he added.
The reopening of the market follows two decades of collaborative work between the AHDB, Defra, the National Sheep Association, the UK Export Certification Partnership and Henry Lewis from the British Livestock Genetics.