What Is Basco > Introduction

A number of breed societies decided to cooperate when replacing their existing databases for pedigree registration and herd book administration. This led to the formation of a company called BASCO that these founding societies use as a holding company, thereby allowing the individual founder members to continue servicing their members as autonomous independent organisations promoting their respective breeds. The rest, as they say, is history.

Or is it? Perhaps the best is yet to come. Following the award of a major grant from the Agricultural Development Scheme (ADS) provided by Defra, developments in the original database to incorporate health and fertility traits, the joining of BASCO by Signet and the genetic evaluations being undertaken in Edinburgh by SAC have all been initiated; this being the start of a development program that will lead to a major breeding and performance recording company operating in the UK for UK farmers, using UK parameters for evaluation and most importantly, owned and controlled by UK farmers.

What will this mean to UK producers? This article sets out the benefits of this co-operative venture and explores where this process will lead. It finishes off with a plan of action to be implemented by BASCO over the next 5 years.