Genomic selection in French dairy sheep

Abstract

After a presentation of the background of French dairy sheep selection and the resulting strategy of genomic selection, this article considers the different research x development achievements undertaken since 2009 in order to assess the feasibility of this strategy and which results in the implementation of genomic selection in 2015. The following topics are successively reviewed: the constitution of the reference populations, the methods and strategies of genomic evaluation, the accuracy obtained for genomic prediction in the different dairy sheep breeds, the original experiment conducted in the Lacaune breed, the conception, modeling and optimization of dairy-sheep-customized genomic breeding schemes, the decisions made by the breeding societies and their organizational and contractual implications. The main expectations opened by this new field of genomic selection are highlighted: selection for new traits, increased flexibility in the breeding programs, more efficient management of genetic variability. The Lacaune breed has been switched to genomic selection in 2015, whereas in the Pyrenean breeds, breeders intend to do it by 2017.