NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) – Canada has invested C$575,000 (US$585,000) in the Delta Genomics Centre, a non-profit genomics services provider that supports livestock research
to spur development of new genetic profiling technologies.
The Centre will use the funding to collect and analyze, profile, and catalogue cattle samples and to provide data to Canadian breed associations. The Centre provides biobanking, genotyping, and sequencing services for the livestock industry and for the academic research community.
Located in Edmonton, Delta Genomics is the services branch of Livestock Gentec, a research center supported by the provincial government and by the Alberta Livestock and Meat Agency that launched in 2011 with C$3.5 million in support from the Western Economic Diversification program.
"Using genomic tools for breeding and selection can help producers lower costs of production and deliver a better quality product to the market and boost their bottom lines," Parliamentary Secretary Pierre Lemieux said in a statement yesterday.
Colin Coros, VP of operations at the Delta Genomics Centre, added "This project is an essential stepping stone to get the benefits of genomics into the hands of producers on the ground. It will allow our project partners to adopt a new sire identification tool, which is fundamental to using more in depth DNA profiles for genetic improvement of Canadian cattle."