§ Mr. Barry Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) when calf rearing by twinning techniques will be controlled and positive in the identification of multiple conceptions for the greater production of beef cattle; where experiments in these techniques are taking place; what are the results so far; and if she will make a statement;
(2) where, and for how long, the experiment of transplanting ova from premium stock to grow in other cattle has taken place; and if he will make a statement on the experiment's implications for the farming industry.
§ Mrs. ThatcherExperiments concerned with the transplanting of ova from cattle of one breed into cattle of another breed have been conducted over the past two years at the Agricultural Research Council's Unit of Reproductive Physiology and Biochemistry in Cambridge. Several calves have been successfully bred by this method, now referred to as "Artificial Inovulation". The technique of ovum transplantation is also being currently developed by the scientific staff of the Unit for the purpose of producing multiple pregnancies in cattle. Several pairs of normal and healthy twin calves have been born in Cambridge during the past few months. These techniques open up new possibilities for the livestock industry, but it is too early to assess their implication and it is not possible to say whether they will become commercially practicable.