Latest news with #artificialInsemination
Zawya
04-06-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Artificial insemination a win for Zimbabwe's farmers
Zimbabwean farmer Freedom Sibanda used to sell his goats for US$30 each. Now, through crossbreeding techniques, one goat can fetch up to US$60 at market. Many smallholder farmers across Zimbabwe struggle with low livestock productivity and poverty. Traditional breeding methods often fail, leaving families with poor-quality animals and meager incomes. When Sibanda crossbred artificially inseminated goats with naturally bred goats from Zimbabwe's Matabele region, he noticed significant improvements in fertility, size, and disease resistance in the crossbred goats. 'This isn't just good for me but benefits the whole community,' he said. 'The meat quality is better and more nutritious, so my family eats healthier, and we can sell more at higher prices.' Behind this improvement is a team of researchers at Lupane State University testing low-cost reproductive technologies, including artificial insemination and crossbreeding in both poultry and goats, with early results showing striking gains. They evaluated the impact of artificial insemination on goats and poultry across a number of smallholder farms. While artificial insemination alone did not significantly outperform natural mating in goat fertility rates, both averaging around 85%, offspring resulting from crossbreeding the two lines exhibited superior performance in both size and reproductive success. Female Matabele-Boer crosses, for instance, reached up to 57.5kg, compared to just 42.3kg in purebred Matabele goats. In poultry, however, artificial insemination delivered a more dramatic result. Fertility rates jumped from 54% with natural mating to 89% with artificial insemination. Semen distribution Artificial insemination is a technique already widely used in agriculture in many other countries to improve genetic quality and productivity in cattle and poultry. In Zimbabwe, most poultry farms are owned by small-scale farmers, who typically keep one rooster with several hens. But roosters can be picky and mate only with their favorites. With artificial insemination, farmers take semen from the rooster and give it to every hen. 'Artificial insemination allows for better semen distribution, so every hen gets bred properly,' explains Fortune Jomane, the lead researcher of the project and senior lecturer at Lupane State University. 'In contrast, natural mating often faces issues, like roosters only choosing a few hens, which lowers fertility.' Extenders Jomane and his team developed special solutions that keep sperm alive longer. They used three types of extenders: a so-called 'ringer's solution' containing sodium chloride, potassium chloride, and sodium lactate; an extender with glucose, and a saline solution. They compared these to undiluted semen to assess their effectiveness. 'We found that the ringer's solution worked very well, maintaining osmotic balance, preventing dehydration, and preserving the structural integrity of the sperm while maintaining pH levels,' Jomane said. 'The extenders nourish the sperm and serve as bulking agents, helping to maintain semen quality for extended periods.' Forbes Chinyemba, senior technical officer for research management at RCZ, said 10 extension officers were trained to support farmers in using artificial insemination techniques in chickens to improve fertility rates. 'If you empower government extension officers, you empower the farmer too,' said Chinyemba. Hands-on experience Sibonangabo Sikhondze, a livestock expert from Eswatini, is convinced of the advantages of artificial insemination. He stresses the need for community training, saying farmers learn best through hands-on experience. To make the technique more accessible, Sikhondze recommends setting up local artificial insemination service centers, as well as awareness campaigns to help communities understand the advantages. Jomane says some farmers are skeptical about the effectiveness of artificial insemination, while transport issues and limited communication can also be an obstacle for remote farmers. Flooded rivers during the rainy season block access to farms and poor mobile network coverage makes it hard to contact farmers. Power shortages affect the cold storage needed to keep semen viable. Source: Artificial insemination a win for Zimbabwe's farmers
Agriland
07-05-2025
- Business
- Agriland
Aubrac bulls reach €5,000 at society sale in Tullamore
The Aubrac Irish Cattle Breed Society hosted its annual spring sale on Saturday, May 3, at GVM Tullamore Mart, Co. Offaly with a total of 44 animals offered for sale. The sale kicked off with the bulls entering the ring first, and the society reported a great demand for Aubrac genetics with a 100% clearance of the bulls and an average price of €3,655. Taking the top price of the sale was Turloughmore T Bone selling for €5,000. Bred by Kevin O'Brien from Co. Galway, the bull is a full-brother to the well-known artificial Insemination (AI) bull Turloughmore Magnificent. O'Brien also secured the joint second-highest price of the sale for Lot 8, Turloughmore Teddy Bear ET. Rated 5-stars in the replacement, terminal and dairy beef index, this bull was sired by Madison and sold for €4,300. The second bull to enter the ring also sold for €4,300 for Co. Galway-based breeder James Donnellan. Sired by Bison, Cloonmore Theo also had plenty of stars and took the joint second-highest bull price of the sale. Selling at €4,000 was Ballyconneely Utah, also coming from Co. Galway but this time from the herd of John Terence Sweeney. With a full sheet of stars, this bull was sired by Whitestown Leyland Et. In the In-calf section, the jewel of the crown was Ashbrook Tessa, bred by Michael Hanlon from Co. Longford. With a replacement value of €230 and dairy-beef at €172, this classy heifer sold for €3,850. Hanlon also had Ashbrook Tori sired by AI bull Dauphin in the sale, and this heifer sold for €3,550. The average sale price for the in-calf females was €2,560. In the maiden heifer section, the demand was described as 'excellent', with some super-quality maiden heifers on offer in the sale, according to the society. The joint top sale price of €2,550 in this section went firstly to Aubrac breeders Francis and James Butler from Co. Westmeath for De Buitlier Teagan, sired by the French bull Feilix and with a replacement value of €205. Brian and Rachel Donagher from Co. Laois also secured €2,550 for Donabrach Teddy – sired by Westfield Pluto. The average price for the maiden heifers in the sale settled at €2,175. A statement from the cattle breed society said: 'Overall, it was a great sale with top-quality stock on offer.' The overall clearance rate was 82%. The society thanked all those who supported and helped the event and wished the buyers the best of luck with their purchases. Glenford Aubrac Herd dispersal sale Also taking place on the day was the dispersal of the Glenford Aubrac Herd owned by Kelly Stephenson and PJ Mc Grath. The herd was being dispersed as the farm is changing enterprise to dairy farming. The dispersal included 20 lots and the top price of the dispersal went to Glenford Prima Donna selling for €4,700. The 2020-born cow was sired by Eros and her dam was the Reserve Champion at Tullamore Show in 2016. She sold scanned in calf to Harmonieux (S2205 carrying a heifer calf) . Glenford Uriel, an eight-month-old heifer, sold for €4,550. Glenford Uriel sold for €4,550 Sired by Otto657efb, this heifer's dam, Glenford Snowball, also sold in the dispersal for €3,200. Both Uriel and Prima Donna were purchased by Westmeath-based Aubrac breeder Robert Burns.
