Hubbard and MetaMorphix join in predictive markers for broiler breeding

Broiler breeder Hubbard , a company of Group Grimaud La Corbière, and MetaMorphix, specialist in development of geneomic selection tools, will use Genius-Whole Genome Systemâ„¢ to develop predictive markers for desired broiler performance traits. Under the agreement MetaMorphix will be entitled to receive a royalty on revenues generated from the new breeds.

“The use of MetaMorphix-Whole Genme System will allow Hubbard to more accurately understand the natural variability expressed at the DNA-level for desirable traits in their pedigree lines. Hubbard geneticists will be able to quickly and accurately identify associations of predictive genetic markers with economically important traits, including health, welfare, meat quality, breeder and broiler traits”, says Stephane Duthoit, CEO of Hubbard.

“In the future the poultry industry will benefit from application of this technology via the development of more desirable products for the avian industry, and accelerate Hubbrd’s ability to bring these improvements to the marketplace.”

Commenting on the agreement, Edwin Quattlebaum, CEO of MetaMorphix, said, “We are especially pleased to be partnering with hubbard in developing predictive markers, as they are a leading poultry breeder which has a long-standing history of being an innovator in providing poultry solutions that focus on performance, health and well-eing of breeding stock.

“This is a significant milestone for MetaMorphix as we now have commercial agreements with industry leaders for our genomic technology in all three major livestock species, including beef (Cargill), swine (Monsanto ) and chicken (Hubbard). In addition to further validating our genomic technology, we look forward to a future royalty system under this agreement,” Quattlebaum added.