A proven requirement for sustainable and efficient primary production is well managed selective breeding programs of domesticated stock. This was recognised for Australian aquaculture in establishing the Seafood CRC Breeding for Profit Theme outcomes and strategies.

Breeding programs are long-term investments delivering incremental gains based on selection decisions made on a combination of expert advice, phenotype and genotype data analyses and sound breeding objectives. This combination, and the essential data management and analytical systems required, are beyond the scope of any single aquaculture company to provide in-house. Like the animals in the breeding program, the provision of these capabilities needs to have continuity and a long-term delivery plan.

CSIRO has over 15 years co-investment with multiple sectors of the Australian aquaculture industry in R&D to deliver commercial selective breeding programs to meet individual needs. While delivering on the R&D, CSIRO considered the strategies for its clients to obtain the required future commercial genetic services. Local options for delivering this capability are limited, partly due the current lack of programs requiring the services and the size of the programs.

As such CSIRO has developed some capability and a strategic plan (see attachment) for the transfer of the delivery of the required capabilities and systems to the predicted 8 to 10 Australian and international breeding programs to an autonomous or semi-autonomous unit by 2015 to 2017. To deliver this strategy requires additional investment in the development of the essential capabilities and systems during the transition phase from 2013 to 2015.

However critical to the strategy and further investment is the need for an independent assessment of the economic and management viability of the proposed strategy and an autonomous unit, and potential uptake by identified national and international breeding programs of the services to be provided. This critical assessment is required before further investment in establishing the proposed independent genetic services unit and in developing the essential capability and systems.

This project therefore will be in two stages with a clear Go/No-go point after the first stage. Stage 1, proposed here, will involve an independent consultant completing a Business Case assessment of the proposed strategy and services unit. Stage 2 would proceed if that Business Case proved positive and the Unit and strategy was viable and acceptable to potential clients. The second, implementation stage (which would require an updated full proposal) would involve developing the proposed Unit and training and delivering the essential capability and systems for the Unit and for the long-term viability of Australian aquaculture breeding programs.