Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 20 May 2004
23 Mr. Hayes asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the financial assistance he intends to give to persons who participate in the national genotyping programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14759/04]
View answerThe national genotype programme, NGP, has a number of components, one of which is the availability to all flockowners of a commercial genotyping service in a number of laboratories approved by my Department for NGP purposes. The results of tests carried out in these laboratories will be accepted by my Department as the basis for the issue in respect of each tested animal of a NGP certificate unique to that animal on which will be specified its particular genotype.
Flockowners who avail of this service will pay the cost of having their private veterinary practitioner take a blood sample from each animal which they nominate for genotyping. Each individual flockowner is free to choose any of the three NGP-approved laboratories in which to have his or her samples tested. I fully expect that these laboratories will vigorously compete with each other for business. The flockowner will bear the cost of tests carried out by his or her chosen laboratory.
Leaving aside scrapie-infected flocks, there is as yet no legal requirement on any flockowner to have sheep genotyped, although from April 2005, pedigree flockowners will be required to have rams genotyped. It is nonetheless important that flockowners in Ireland, both pedigree and commercial, begin the process of determining the genotype of their sheep, particularly breeding stock, as early as possible. To this end I have decided to provide, as a once-off incentive, a cost offset of €10 per test for the first 30,000 tests carried out under the NGP in 2004. In respect of up to an aggregate total of 30,000 tests, NGP-approved laboratories will charge flockowners a price net of the €10 per test cost offset which will be met by my Department.
This is a most important development for Ireland's sheep sector. I am anxious the best possible service will be provided by my Department, the NGP-approved laboratories and veterinary practitioners, to flockowners who elect to have sheep tested under NGP. It had been my intention to provide a somewhat higher cost offset for the small number of flockowners involved in breed improvement programmes but this proved impossible to operate in practical terms. I decided that the cost offset should be at the standard €10 level. I am of course appreciative of the value of breed improvement programmes and would be anxious to support and encourage as appropriate participation in such programmes into the future, whether in relation to genotyping or otherwise.
I am happy with the interest being shown over the past week or so in this particular component of NGP. Many application forms have already been sought by and issued to flockowners and with the NGP-approved laboratories now ready to accept samples, I expect that within coming weeks we will witness a steady growth in both the number of test results being generated and the number of NGP certificates being issued by my Department. I encourage all flockowners to avail of this service at the earliest opportunity.
