LIC believes the contract agreement it will be asking farmers to sign is a necessary requirement, ensuring it can deliver the very best in technology to Irish farmers, Mark Ryder, LIC’s European General Manager has said.
The contract stipulates that a farmer cannot sell a bull calf, bred through the use of semen from LIC, onto another AI company for a period of five years after its birth, Ryder confirmed.
Should farmers not wish to sign the contract then they will not be able to purchase the semen, he said.
“LIC is one of the oldest farming co-operatives in New Zealand, with a proud history of providing solutions to improve farmer prosperity since 1909.
“With investment between $20 and $30m per year in technology and genetics, and with our products now growing in Ireland faster than ever before, our farmers who have invested in the co-op are seeking some protection around their intellectual property in order to secure their ongoing investment and future development in LIC,” he said.
LIC Ireland has announced a number of changes to its operations in Ireland, as it looks at better ways to support their Irish farmers – the signing of these contracts is one of these changes.
These changes come into effect this month in Ireland and the UK, January 2017, and are being used to support a positive change that has developed in the way LIC operates its EU export centre in New Zealand.
Introduced to build resilience in the business, this announcement comes in response to what LIC says is a positive changing landscape in New Zealand – EU regulations recently reviewed now mean that In-Quarantine regulations have gone from 104 days previously, down to just 30 days for LIC’s European Bull Stud.
This enables LIC to process more of its elite genetics earlier than ever before, offering Irish customers a wider range, it says, putting the company under greater pressure to protect its intellectual property.
As a result of these changes, elite “high-demand” sires can now be collected for Ireland and in some cases used here before they can even be used in New Zealand.
“LIC’s vision in Ireland is to improve the prosperity, productivity and efficiency of farmers through the continual improvement of their expertise and experience.
“To achieve this, an investment in herd improvement and genetics is critical.
“LIC is a world leader in pastoral-based genetics with proven results in the New Zealand dairy industry, and in partnership with Eurogene AI Services here in Ireland, we have the ability to deliver those genetics to Irish farmers.”
With breeding goals that align with those of the Irish dairy industry, LIC is fully committed to the Economic Breeding Index (EBI) in Ireland.
“The company has a long and supportive relationship with the ICBF and are working closely with them to form an agreement on this issue, for the benefit of both the industry and for Irish farmers,” Ryder said.
He said that LIC has pioneered some of the biggest innovations that provide Irish farmers with a competitive edge, including:
- The systematic testing of milk quality.
- Long-last liquid semen.
- Animal health and parentage testing.
- DNA testing technology.
- A short gestation bull team bred to deliver offspring up to 10 days early.