The four biggest AI companies in Ireland are coming together to enforce new intellectual property (IP) restrictions on their sire progeny.

From this spring on, the highest EBI bulls in Ireland will be “IP protected”, meaning sons and daughters of those bulls can only be sold to other AI companies with the permission of the company that the AI straw was purchased from.

The move is designed to prevent foreign AI companies from purchasing stock with high EBI genetics, building up a herd book and then selling the high EBI genetics back to Irish farmers.

The four AI companies, Dovea, Eurogene, Munster Bovine and Progressive Genetics, say they will all sign cross-licensing agreements with each other and that farmers with high EBI bull calves of interest to AI companies can sell them to other participating AI companies. However, this can only happen with the permission of the AI company that holds the IP of the sire in question.

Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal this week, each of the AI company bosses said they would honour such agreements as it is in “each of their best interests to do so”.

Farmers wishing to purchase these high EBI bulls will have to become members of a club, or agree to terms and conditions outlining the restrictions on progeny sales, including embryos or oocytes from heifers.

Importantly, the move only concerns sales to other AI companies, with no restrictions on farm-to-farm sales or sales as natural stock bulls.

About 200 high EBI bull calves are purchased by the four companies annually and the best of these make their way into AI.

Comment

The introduction of IP restrictions is clearly designed to prevent foreign competitors like Sexing Technologies from entering and ultimately dominating the Irish genetic scene. Through the use of advanced reproductive technologies like IVF, they can ‘build a bull’ over the space of a few years, that will be potentially far superior than the current genetic stock. If that were to happen, Irish farmers may have access to better bulls, but will have lost control of the breeding programme, undoing 25 years of progress. Protecting the IP is the first step. The next step will be to use the available technology to the benefit of Irish farmers, while retaining control and ownership of the genetics.

‘IP rights won’t be a barrier to genetic gain’ – says chief executive

Martin Kavanagh, chief executive, Munster Bovine:

This “will not be a barrier to genetic gain for the national herd, nor will it impact genetic diversity within the Irish cattle breeding industry. A new cross-licensing system between Irish AI operators will facilitate ongoing competition for elite bulls and will ensure Irish farmers continue to benefit from genetic advancements.”

Ger Ryan, general manager, Dovea Genetics:

“The advancements in breeding technology due to national genotyping programme and sexed semen, combined with the globalisation of markets, has opened the door to non-collaborating third parties to access our elite Irish genetics without contributing to their development. We must secure our genetics from international competitors.”

Michael Doran, chair ICBF:

“All the major breeding companies around the world have gone in this direction. It is important that the Irish breeding programme is safeguarded, and we recognise the risks. At the same time, we need to ensure that competition for bulls is maintained.”