Application of Biotechnology for the Genetic Improvement of Livestock: Status and Prospects

Increasingly, biotechnology becomes an integral part of the arsenal of tools that can be used to improve animal production in order to meet the demands of the consumer within economic, environmental and ethical constraints imposed by society. Biotechnology contributes to animal production by improving the environmental component of the production systems as well as by improving the genetic make-up of livestock. After giving a general overview of biotechnology and animal production, this technical theme focuses on the three areas of biotechnology contributing to genetic improvement of livestock, i.e. reproductive biotechnology, livestock genomics and marker assisted selection (MAS), and transgenics. A questionnaire-based survey conducted amongst OIE Member Countries allowed us to briefly summarise the ongoing efforts in these areas. The questionnaire also aimed at defining the major challenges that will be faced by animal producers intending to incorporate biotechnology-based methods. Public distrust, lack of financial support for technology development in developing countries and questionable cost-effectiveness were identified as the major problems facing future implementation.