BREEDPLAN Ultrasound Scanner Accreditation Course Held in Armidale

In March, ultrasound scanning technicians from around Australia travelled to Armidale for a two-day BREEDPLAN ultrasound scanner accreditation course. Among those in attendance were a mix of experienced scanners and those hoping to be accredited for the first time.

Organised by the Agricultural Business Research Institute (ABRI), the ultrasound scanner accreditation process assessed the proficiency of each technician. Each participant scanned 20 head of cattle crush-side, with a maximum of five minutes allocated to collect rib and rump fat depth, eye muscle area and intramuscular fat (marbling) measurements on each animal. To assess repeatability, each technician then re-scanned the 20 animals (in a different order). Additionally, to ensure that all technicians were getting similar measurements on an individual animal, each technician’s results were compared to the results of a team of highly experienced benchmarking scanners.  

Consequently, beef producers can be assured that all accredited ultrasound scanners are collecting quality scan data for the BREEDPLAN genetic evaluation. "As for any trait in BREEDPLAN, maximising the precision of the performance records collected is critical to the accuracy of the BREEDPLAN genetic evaluation and resulting EBVs,” explains Dr Matt Wolcott from the Animal Genetics & Breeding Unit (AGBU).

Congratulations to all BREEDPLAN accredited ultrasound scanning technicians, including Zeta Berryman and Matt Boon, Charters Towers, who have been accredited for the first time. A full list of the 13 Australian accredited scanners can be found on the BREEDPLAN website here.