Following the introduction of the linear assessment method of evaluating conformation within the Dairy Progeny Testing Scheme run by the Artificial Insemination Organisation (now Genus) of the Milk Marketing Board in 1983 three new traits were included in 1985 and 1986. The new traits were Temperament, Ease of Milking and Fore Udder Angle. In addition information was collected on the number of hours since milked when the classification was carried out.

The objective of this study was to establish whether the variation in linear scores was significantly affected by the number of hours since milked and also to estimate the phenotypic and genetic parameters for the new trails, in particular Temperament and Ease of Milking.

Mastitis is a major source of culling and economic loss in the dairy herd. To date in England and Wales the main monitor of mastitis both within a herd and nationally is provided by monthly herd milk cell counts. The main thrust of mastitis control programmes has been to improve management practices such as dry cow treatment and milk machine testing. Interest has also been shown in the use of milk cell count as an indirect means of selecting for resistance to mastitis infection. Wood and Booth (1983) indicated that the cell count at the third monthly recording had the highest correlation with lactation mean cell count. The objective of this study was to estimate the herilability of somatic cell count, taken at the third recording after calving in the heifer lactation and to examine the association between cell count and production traits.

The Artificial Insemination organisation of the Milk Marketing Board (MMB) (now Genus) progeny tests approximately 100 Friesian/Holstein bulls each year in co-operating milk recorded herds. In 1983 a linear assessment evaluation scheme was introduced in order to describe the conformation of animals in a more objective way. In conjunction with the Holstein Friesian Society it was agreed to score 16 main traits in the assessment scheme. The MMB also included a seventeenth trail, Beef Shape. The linear assessment scores are analysed by Best Linear Unbiased Prediction to provide sire evaluations on the bulls in the progeny testing scheme. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the environmental and genetic parameters for the traits assessed in the scheme during the first two years.

A pilot study has been carried out in North East Scotland by the Scottish Agricultural College (SAC) Aberdeen, Buchan Meat and Animal Biotechnology Cambridge (ABC), transferring in-vitro fertilised (IVF) bovine embryos to cattle in commercial diary and suckler herds. The pilot study was undertaken with the co-operation of veterinary practices in the area.

The embryos were produced entirely in-vitro, using ovaries removed from beef heifers post slaughter as a source of oocytes. The heifers were selected pre and post slaughter for breed, health, conformation and fatness. The oocytes were allowed to mature for 24 hours and then fertilised using frozen/thawed semen from top quality beef bulls. These sires were selected for breed, ease of calving, conformation, growth and ability to fertilise in-vitro. Forty-eight hours after insemination the developing embryos were transferred to a co-culture system. After 4 to 5 days of culture the embryos had developed to the morula/blastocyst stage, and were ready for transfer. The recipients’ oestrus cycles were synchronised using a combined PRID and prostaglandin programme. The PRID was inserted on day 1 of the programme and withdrawn on day 9 or day 10 of the programme.

Work in New Zealand has suggested that treatment of dairy cows with buserelin an analogue of GnRH between days 11 and 13 after insemination can increase pregnancy rate by reducing embryo loss (MacMillan, Taufa and Day, 1986). This effect is probably mediated via a luteoprotective mechanism (MacMillan, Thatcher & Drost 1989; Thatcher, MacMillan, Hansen & Drost, 1989). The present study was carried out to attempt to confirm this effect of buserelin under UK conditions.

A total of 660 Holstein/Friesian cows on 10 commercial dairy farms were used. The cows were paired according to date, of previous calving and allocated at random to control or treated group on the day of service. Only cows in the parity range 1-5 with no obvious reproductive disorders were used. Bulls and inseminators were used on the same number of cows in each group. Milk samples were taken on the day of service for progesterone assay. Cows not in oestrus were removed from the study. Cows in treated groups were given an intramuscular injection of 10 ug buserelin [2.5 ml Receptal, Hoechst] 12 days after first insemination. Cows not observed to return to oestrus before Day 24 were re-sampled for progesterone assay. Pregnancy was confirned by palpation or ultrasonic scanning at six weeks.

The results of previous experiments indicate that the effect of body condition (BC) on ovulation rate is mediated through changes in the number of large, potentially ovulatory, ovarian follicles. However, these differences in follicle populations were not associated with consistent differences in gonadotrophin profiles. It was therefore postulated that effects of level of BC on follicle development and ovulation rate are due to differential ovarian sensitivity of FSH.

Two groups of 20 Scottish Blackface ewes were fed differentially so that they achieved mean (±s.e.m.) body condition scores of 1.78±0.017 (Low; L) and 2.94±0.031 (High; H) by 2 weeks before sample collection. They were then fed to maintain these body conditions throughout the remainder of the experiment. Four weeks before study, Alzet minipumps (Charles Rivers UK Ltd.) containing GnRH agonist (buserilin; Hoechst AG; Frankfurt, F.R.G.) were inserted, subcutaneously, in all ewes. This treatment partially suppresses FSH secretion and totally inhibits LH pulses so that growth of ovarian follicles >2.5 mm in diameter is inhibited.

Theoretical studies show that rates of genetic progress in sheep could be increased by 100% through use of multiple ovulation-embryo transfer (MOET) to Increase selection intensity amongst females and reduce female generation intervals (Smith, 1986). However, there has been a slow uptake of this technology In breed Improvement programmes due to 2 main problems: (a) surgical interference with donor and recipient animals; (b) poor repeatability of superovulatory response. The first of these problems has been adequately resolved by development of minimally Invasive techniques for the recovery and transfer of embryos by laparoscopy (McKelvey, Robinson and Aitken, 1985a). The main Impediment to rapid dissemination of MOET is now the problem of inconsistent repeatability of superovulatory responses. Pregnant mare's serum gonadotrophin (PMSG) Is the most widely used gonadotropin for superovulating sheep but significant variation in ovulation rate has been reported amongst individual animals (Smith, 1988). However as the predicted genetic gains assume that MOET can consistently produce 4 progeny per donor ewe, what Is achieved in practice falls far short of the theoretical maximum. Several researchers have suggested that higher ovulation rates and less individual variation in ovulation response occur with porcine follicle stimulating hormone (FSHp) compared with PMSG (Armstrong and Evans, 1983; Moor, Kruip and Green, 1984). Compared to the single treatment of PMSG, successive treatments of FSHp are required for 3-4 days to induce superovulation due to the short half-life of the FSH molecules in FSHp.

Somatostatin has been implicated in the control of a number of hormonal systems, through its inhibitory effects on the release of somatotrophin, insulin, thyroid stimulating hormone and glucagon. It is therefore central to the control of metabolism and growth. There have been a number of trials based on neutralisation of the hormone by active immunisation against it, which have produced variable results. Trials in commercial breeds of sheep and cattle have generally resulted in increased growth rates, often associated with increased feed efficiency. The majority of these trials have been carried out on the males of the species; information on the female response is therefore limited. Work by Spencer et al (1985) on somatostatin immunisation in mixed groups of lambs did not result in significant increased in growth rate. However when the data was re-examined splitting the groups by sex, treated female lambs grew significantly better than their female control counterparts while there was no treatment response with male lambs. Recent work by Breier et a] (1988) has suggested that oestradiol 17-B, widely used as a growth promoter in ruminants, may affect the binding capacity of hepatic somatotrophic receptors thereby enhancing IGF-1 production and ultimately growth rate. This trial examines the effect of immunisation against somatostatin in pubertal heifers.

The gross Agricultural product in France amounted to 44 thousands million Ecus in 1989 or 23 per cent of that of the EC; animal and plant production contributing equally to this figure. About 1 million farms are still in operation representing roughly in thousands : 180 growing crops and cereals in the North and South West, 150 growing fruit and vines in the South; 400 raising cattle sheep and goats, 150 producing pigs and 40 highly specialized farms producing poultry in the West Milk and dairy products and beef and poultry meat are the major animal products exported, while there are substantial imports of pig, and sheep meat to meet the requirements of the home market Agricultural business and consequently research have for long time been focused on the improvement of breeding stock and of the conversion efficiency of plant into animal protein. Present Agricultural Research in France, mainly performed in INRA laboratories, involves 7000 people of which 3000 are scientists (this has increased from 2000 in 1980). The total governement budget is 310 million Ecus/year, 82 per cent represented by salaries. But in a climate of surpluses,, consumers are less and less prepared to spend money on food : 16 % in 1987 instead of 20 % of their annual wages ten years ago, and are aware of food safety and quality. Therefore, in the past five years, research forces have been directed towards increasing the productivity of crop plants by expanding the number of scientists from 922 to 1029 (+ 11.6 %); also special attention was paid to agro-food research which has expanded from 319 to 525 scientists (+ 64.6 %).

The accomplishments of United Kingdom agriculture and the changing government policies which have accompanied them are briefly discussed, leading to expectations of future change. The constraints on animal production are outlined, particularly those which affect consumption of animal products. It is concluded that the scientific validity of many official recommendations and expressed views are highly questionable. One specific example, among others discussed, is the COMA recommendations of 1984 to reduce consumption of fat and saturated fatty acids by the whole population so to reduce coronary heart disease and mortality. Recent work, which is briefly reviewed, shows the contention cannot be sustained on scientific grounds while direct, controlled experimentation with many thousands of subjects shows that intervention has not reduced mortality. This recommendation should be withdrawn.