Ch. 1— Summary: Issues and Options • 17 
el information system and coolcl be adapted to 
other species. 
Selection— deciding which animals to mate 
—is the breeder’s most basic tool. When going 
outside his herd to purchase new germplasm, 
the breeder needs im[)artial information about 
the quality of the a\ ailahle germplasm. \CDHlP 
had recorded 2.8 million of the 10.8 million U.S. 
dairy cattle in 1979. In 1978, cows enrolled in 
the official plans of NCDHIP outproduced cow s 
not enrolled by vT.OOO Ih of milk per cow , re[)re- 
senting 52 percent more milk per lactation. 
\o comparable information system e.xists for 
other types of li\ estock. Beef hulls, for e.xample, 
continue to be sold to a large extent on the basis 
of pedigrees, hut with relatixely little objectiv e 
information on their genetic merit. Data on 
dairy goats in the L’nited States became avail- 
able through \CDHIP for the first time in late 
1980. No nationwide information systems exist 
foi' other species, although pork production in 
the United States would greatly benefit from a 
national swine testing program. 
The more esotei'ic methods of genetic manip- 
ulation will probably have little impact on the 
production of animals or animal products with- 
in the tiext 10 years. Other in vitro manij)ula- 
tions, such as cloning, cell fusion, the produc- 
tion of chimeras, and the use of rDNA tech- 
ni(|ues, will continue to he of intense interest, 
especially for research purposes. It is less likely, 
however, that they will have widespread prac- 
tical effects on farm production in this century. 
Each lechni(iue requires more research and 
refinement. Lhitil specific genes of farm animals 
can he identified and located, no direct gene 
manipulation will he practicable. In addition 
this will he difficult because most traits of im- 
portance are due to multiple genes. 
Issue and Options — Animals 
ISSUE: How can the Federal Govern- 
ment improv e the germplasm of 
major farm animal species? 
OPTIONS: 
A. Programs like the i\CDHIP could have in- 
creased governmental participation and fund- 
ing. The efforts of the Beef Cattle Improve- 
ment Federation to standardize procedures 
could receive active support, and a similar in- 
formation system for swine could be estab- 
lished. 
The fastest and least expensive way to up- 
grade breeding stock in the United States is 
through effective use of information. Computer 
technologv, along with a network of local repre- 
The wide variety of applications for genetic 
engineering is summarized in figure 4. Genetics 
can be used to improve or increase the quality 
and output of plants and animals for direct use 
by man. Alternatively, materials can be ex- 
tracted from plants and animals for use in food, 
chemical, and pharmaceutical industries. 
sentatives for data collecting, can provide the 
indiv idual farmer or breeder with accurate in- 
formation on the available germplasm so that he 
can make his own breeding decisions. 
This option implies that the Federal Govern- 
ment would play such a role in new programs, 
and expand its role in existing ones. 
B. Federal funding could be increased for basic 
research in total animal improvement. 
This option, in contrast to option A, assumes 
that it is necessary to maintain or expand basic 
R&D to generate new knowledge that can be 
applied to the production of improved animals 
and animal products. 
♦ 
Biological materials can also be converted to 
useful products. In this process, genetic engi- 
neering can be used to develop micro-organisms 
that will carry out the conversions. Therefore, 
genetic manipulation cannot only provide more 
or better biological raw materials but can also 
aid in their conversion to useful products. 
