Published date: 24 July 2017

Awarded contract - This means that the contract has been awarded to a supplier.


Closing: 1 March 2017

Contract summary

Industry

  • Research services - 73110000

Location of contract

Any region

Value of contract

£92,647

Procurement reference

tender_141906/600895

Published date

24 July 2017

Closing date

1 March 2017

Contract start date

1 April 2017

Contract end date

31 March 2020

Contract type

Service contract

Procedure type

Other:

Contract is suitable for SMEs?

Yes

Contract is suitable for VCSEs?

Yes

Description

The overall aim of SusSheP is to increase the sustainability and profitability of European Sheep Production by addressing key industry focused problems. Sheep are unproductive (but carbon productive) until they produce their first lamb crop, normally at 2 years of age and, on average, ewes only produce 4 crops of lambs in their lifetime. Despite its importance both from an economic and environmental perspective ewe longevity is not included in sheep breeding indexes across Europe. SusSheP will establish the genetic factors controlling ewe longevity, under different Sheep Production Systems (SPSs) and assess if early life predictors (e.g. reared as single, twin, etc.) can be used to predict longevity. Parallel to this, SusSheP will identify the most carbon and labour efficient SPSs under different management systems (e.g. prolific vs non-prolific sheep breeds) in order to enable the development of strategies to reduce or optimise the labour input and carbon hoof print per kg of output.
The breeding of more efficient sheep has been hampered internationally by the lack of sheep artificial insemination, as the only effective method for use with frozen-thawed semen is a laparoscopic procedure, whereby, semen is injected directly into the uterus but this requires veterinary expertise, is welfare unfriendly and sociable unacceptable. The only exception to this is in Norway, in which vaginal deposition of frozen-thawed semen yields good pregnancy rates. Research in Ireland has demonstrated this is due to the breed of the ewe used in Norway, whereby sperm can transverse the cervix in greater numbers than in other breeds, leading to higher pregnancy rates. SusSheP will interrogate the differences across breeds in cervical physiology and its secretions (genes, proteins and glycans) with a view of developing a more sociably acceptable AI method.
Finally, through the participation of strategically chosen SME's, SusSheP will maximise knowledge transfer to industry, farmers and the scientific communities

More information

Additional text

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Award information

Awarded date

19 June 2017

Contract start date

1 April 2017

Contract end date

31 March 2020

Total value of contract

£92,647

This contract was awarded to 1 supplier.

SAC Commercial Ltd

Address

West Mains Road, Edinburgh, EH9 2AS, UNITED KINGDOM

Reference

None

Supplier is SME?

No

Supplier is VCSE?

No

About the buyer

Address

DEFRA
London
SW1P 3JR
England

Email

Network.Procurement@defra.gsi.gov.uk