Approved breeding programmes: standards for breed societies and organisations
Rules and standards for running an approved breeding programme and keeping a breed book or register of purebred animals, hybrid pigs and germinal products.
When breed societies apply for official recognition, they must get approval for their breeding programme as part of their application.
Breed societies must state what breeding activities they carry out to achieve their objectives. For example, their objective might be to improve or preserve a breed, line or cross.
Breeding programme standards
Breeding programmes must meet certain standards. You must show that your breeding programme meets these standards when you apply for official recognition for your breed society.
To get approval for your breeding programme, you must:
- provide information about the selection criteria
- explain the breeding objectives
- give evaluation criteria relating to the objectives
- state where in the UK the breeding programme will be carried out (England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland)
- explain how you’ll identify individual breeding animals that meet the identification standards of the species
Purebred breeding animals
Breeding programmes for purebred breeding animals must:
- aim to improve, preserve or reconstruct the breed – the programme can create a new breed or combine these aims
- include the name and detailed characteristics of the breed, including essential traits in the breeding book
- explain the system for recording pedigrees entered or registered in the breeding book
Hybrid pigs
If you run a breeding programme for hybrid breeding pigs and need further information about the requirements, contact your relevant authority.
All breeding programmes within hybrid pig breeding systems can be recognised as breeding operations rather than breed societies.
Hybrid pig breeding systems include:
- breeding companies that have either no, or a restricted number of breeders bound to it
- breeders’ associations and organisations
Private undertakings operating in a closed production system
If you run a pig breeding business that does not have any members, you can apply to have your breeding operation recognised as a ‘private undertaking operating in a closed production system’.
These businesses are exempt from some of the breeding programme rules. They do not have to:
- inform breeders of changes to the breeding programme
- have rules of procedure covering breeders or members
- register pigs or germinal products that are not part of the closed production system
- publish the results of genetic evaluations
Breeders have no automatic right to participate in the breeding programme.
New, reconstructed or at-risk breeds
If you establish a new breed, or reconstruct an extinct or near-extinct breed, you must give a detailed explanation justifying its establishment in the breeding programme. You must set up a new breeding book if none exists for your breed.
During a period of establishment, a new breeding book can include:
- purebred breeding animals
- descendants from purebred breeding animals of a different breed
- any animal that meets the characteristics of the new breed
- any animal that meets the minimum performance requirements of the breeding programme
The breeding programme must:
- set a period of time to establish or re-establish the new breeding book – the period set must take account of the generation interval of the species or the breed
- refer to any breeding book the purebred breeding animals or their parents were entered in, and include the original registration numbers
- identify animals considered to be the breed’s foundation or reconstruction stock
At the end of the establishment period of the new breeding book, your breed society will be subject to an official audit.
New and reconstructed breeds will be shown on the public list of breed societies.
Where a breed is in serious danger of disappearing, or has already disappeared, you may be authorised to use other animals in your breeding programme to reconstruct the breed.
These animals may be:
- descendants of purebred breeding animals of the breed, purebred breeding animals or their descendants from other breeds that factor in the reconstruction
- any animal that meets the characteristics of the breed to be reconstructed – it must meet the minimum performance requirements in the breeding programme
Contact your relevant authority for guidelines on new, reconstructed or at-risk breeds.
Breeding books and registers
Breed societies keep a breeding book or register that contains pedigree and identification information about the live breeding animals in that herd or flock.
You can enter an animal into the main section of the breeding book if:
- they’re kept on a holding in the UK
- their pedigree can be traced – they’re descended from parents and grandparents that were also entered in the main section of a breeding book of the same breed
- they are identified according to UK animal health laws, for example, ear tags for cattle and sheep
- they have a valid zootechnical certificate
You can enter horses and other equines into a studbook if their parents are in an equivalent studbook. You do not need to trace their pedigree back to grandparents.
If your society or organisation is not officially recognised, you must not enter the animals or germinal products that it trades into the main section of your breeding book or register.
Classes in the breeding book main section
You can divide the main section of a breeding book or register into classes. At least one of these classes must be open to breeding animals that meet the minimum requirements of zootechnical legislation.
This means they must:
- meet the breed characteristics criteria
- be descended from parents and grandparents that are also entered into the main section of a breeding book for that breed
A pedigree breeding animal has automatic right of entry into the main section of your society if it:
- meets the minimum requirements
- is imported into this country with a valid zootechnical certificate
It is at the discretion of the society as to whether different classes are held for these animals, for information such as colour.
You can have supplementary sections in a breeding book. Societies must explain the rules they use to classify and record animals in these sections in their breeding programme.
Supplementary sections
Breed societies can add supplementary sections in their breeding book to allow breeding animals whose pedigree cannot be traced, to be part of the herd or flock.
The offspring of these animals may become recognised as pedigree (and be ‘graded up’) over time if certain conditions are met.
Grading up
Where a breeding body wants to maintain a supplementary section in their breeding book, they must allow for grading up to the main section.
Animals entered in the supplementary section must:
- be identified in accordance with UK legislation
- conform to the breed standard
- meet minimum performance criteria laid down in the herd book
Grading up cattle, sheep, pigs and goats
Grading up is carried out through the female line using main section pedigree males.
A female can be entered into the main section if both the:
- mother and maternal grandmother are recorded in a supplementary section of the breeding book
- father and 2 grandfathers are recorded in the main section of the breeding book
To do this, you will need to carry out the following steps:
- Breed the first-generation supplementary female with a pedigree male.
- Breed her second-generation female offspring with an additional pedigree male.
- The resultant third generation female offspring is now eligible for the main section.
- Breed the third generation female to an additional pedigree male.
The resultant fourth generation female or male offspring are eligible for the main section.
Grading up horses
Horses and other equines can be graded up into the main section of the studbook if they meet the entry conditions set out in the approved breeding programme.
Grading up endangered or hardy sheep breeds
Different rules can apply to certain endangered breeds or hardy sheep breeds. These make it easier to upgrade to the main section of the breeding book.
Animals descended from parents and grandparents recorded in the main or supplementary sections of a breeding book may be eligible for entry into the main section of the breeding book.
If you manage a breeding programme for endangered breeds or hardy sheep breeds and want to upgrade animals in this way, contact your relevant authority.
You must:
- show that there are not enough male purebred breeding animals of that breed available for breeding purposes
- have clear rules to explain grading up
- provide information about the selection criteria
- explain the breeding objectives
- give evaluation criteria relating to the objectives
- state the country where the breeding programme will be carried out
- explain how you’ll identify individual breeding animals that meet the identification standards of the species
Imported breeding animals and germinal products
Breeding animals and germinal products imported into the UK can only be entered into the main section of your breeding book if accompanied by a zootechnical certificate issued by a breeding body that is either:
- listed by the UK government as an approved EU breeding body
- listed as a third country breeding body by the European Commission
You must not discriminate on country of origin when entering animals into the main section of your breeding book.
Eligible pedigree animals that have a zootechnical certificate, must be entered into the main section regardless of their country of origin.
For more information read about getting official recognition to trade with the EU and some non-EU countries.
Breeding programme extension
UK-based breeders and breed societies do not have access to the breeding programme extension. You cannot register animals that live in the EU in your breeding book.
EU and third country breeding bodies can extend a breeding programme into the UK, where there is not an approved breeding programme for purebred breeding animals of the same breed. Competent authorities in the EU or third countries can submit an application to the UK government for approval.
Where an application has been approved, you can register your UK animals into the equivalent EU or third country breeding book.
Your UK animals (and any germinal products they produce) will remain as recognised pedigree animals. The EU breeding body will issue a valid zootechnical certificate.
The UK maintains a list of approved extended breeding programmes. If the breeding body is not approved by the UK government, you cannot enter your UK animals into that EU breeding book.
Breeders in Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland
You can enter animals located in Northern Ireland into breeding books based in the Republic of Ireland (ROI) if the breeding body in ROI has extended their breeding programme into Northern Ireland. Check the list of extended programmes.
You can only enter animals located in ROI into breeding books held in Northern Ireland if they:
- have a valid EU zootechnical certificate issued by an EU recognised breeding body
- are moved onto a holding in Northern Ireland
You need a zootechnical certificate for all pedigree breeding animals moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.