Elders Ltd and X'Prime Pty Ltd

Greg Popplewell, International Manager, Livestock Genetics, Elders Ltd – Australia:

"Elders are the largest Agribusiness Company in Australia; we have over 400 branches located in Australian country towns, three major feedlots and marketing offices around the world in key export destinations. Elder’s strength is that we are involved in all aspects of rural business, including Livestock, Wool, Real-estate Insurance, Merchandise inputs and Banking."

"We see our Seed-stock clients as the genetic resource for Australia’s largest Livestock marketing service (Elders) and our entire Meat and Livestock supply chain. It is therefore imperative that we are involved with these clients right from the critical point when they decide what sires to use with what females. We have been working with X'Prime for several years now, delivering a customised and evolving mate selection product (“Breed Exact”) that allows us the be at that critical point. Many of our Seed-stock clients now consider Breed Exact an integral part of their operations and our business relationship with them."

"X'Prime has provided us with two components of service, often unseen in Agricultural software engineering and information technology support, availability and flexibility. They understand that we and each of our clients are unique, which allows their technical expertise to quickly enhance our business."

Tom Gubbins, Co-principle of Te Mania Angus - Australia:

Colac, Victoria-based Te Mania Angus co-principal Tom Gubbins considers Breed Exact one of the most effective genetic tools available today for the professional stud breeder and one he has made an essential component of his own breeding strategy. Running one of Australia's premier Angus bloodlines places a serious responsibility on the people making the breeding decisions and Tom says Breed Exact is making that part of Te Mania's Angus' role a lot easier.

"Breed Exact is not a technology designed to dictate to breeders what they need in their programs but gives them the knowledge to direct and integrate other selection and breeding technologies to achieve the best possible outcome," Tom says.

"Te Mania Angus is the most dominant enterprise in Angus Group Breedplan (Australia’s Angus Genetic Evaluation system) and with tools such as Breed Exact we have been able to continually refine our breeding program to maximise the impact of opportunities such as $Indices, EBVs, DNA markers, pedigrees and both AI and ET to accelerate genetic gain," he says.

"It is also a significant part of the service and support we receive from Elders Breeding Services, with whom we have been successfully working through our annual bull sales in both Victoria and Queensland for many years."