The Never-Ending Quest for Outcross Genetics: How Important is it?

Genetic gains during the genomic era have more than doubled from earlier times, and we now select for a much more complete array of traits including fertility, health and feed efficiency. However, accompanying these impressive gains is a surge in the rates of in-breeding. How alarmed should we be and what can be done in the search for outcross genetics? We present the thoughts of some of the leading sire analysts in the industry: Ryan Starkenburg from ABS Global, Rolf Oorlog from Synetics, and Jeff Ziegler from Select Sires.

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