19th January 2018
More than 1000 delegates from around the world will travel to New Zealand to take part in three prestigious animal recording and genetics conferences in February.
It is the first time the World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production (WCGALP) has held its four yearly congress in New Zealand, and only the second time in the Southern Hemisphere.
The congress will be combined with the annual conferences for the International Committee for Animal Recording (ICAR) and Interbull – the leading event for research and development in animal improvement, milk testing, DNA parentage analysis, genomics and genetics.
With agendas covering everything from parentage verification, breeding and genetic evaluation to ear tags, technology and herd testing, the three events attract a wide range of national and international experts.
LIC chief scientist and ICAR conference co-chair, Bevin Harris, said the events – which are mainly attended by researchers, scientists and other professionals – are something for the Kiwi animal industry to be proud of.
“It’s like the Olympics of the animal genetics world coming to New Zealand. These are the biggest events on the industry’s event calendar.”
“This represents a huge recognition of our country’s animal genetics industry and is a great opportunity to showcase our animal recording and technological developments. New Zealand is a leader in this space, so what better way to show this than by hosting these conferences.”
Previous WCGALP events have been held in Spain, UK, Canada, France, Brazil, Germany and the United States.
NZAEL manager and ICAR conference co-chair, Jeremy Bryant, said the organisers are looking forward to welcoming such a vast crowd of international visitors to New Zealand.
“For many of the delegates, this will be their first time to New Zealand. We want to not only showcase the latest and greatest of animal recording and genetics but also give visitors a hands-on insight into the New Zealand agricultural scene.”
The taste of New Zealand’s wide-ranging primary industries is offered to delegates through several field trips, including a trip to a Waiheke Island oyster farm and a day in the Waikato visiting artificial breeding facilities and local dairy farms.
All three events are held at Aotea Centre in Auckland, with the first event starting on Wednesday, February 7.
Event details
International Committee for Animal Recording (ICAR) Annual Conference
Wednesday 7th – Sunday 11th February
For more information view the icar website.
Interbull Annual Meeting
Saturday 10th - Monday 12th February
A leading event for research and development in bovine genetic and genomic national and international evaluations.
For more information view the interbull wesbite.
World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production (WCGALP) Congress
Sunday 11th – Friday 16th February
Premier event for researchers and professionals involved in genetic improvement of livestock.
For more information view the wcgalp website.
