A £500,000 research project aimed at finding sheep with a greater resistance to foot rot is the latest project to be funded by red meat organisations in England, Wales and Scotland.

The project, which is part of a collaborative portfolio of Research and Development work managed by the Meat and Livestock Commission (MLC) on behalf of Hybu Cig Cymru (HCC), The English Beef and Lamb Executive (EBLEX), and Quality Meat Scotland (QMS), aims to use foot rot resistant sheep to breed resistance into the national flock.

Foot rot costs the UK sheep industry more than £30 million a year and steps are now being taken to tackle it head on.

The project, led by the Scottish Agricultural College (SAC), funded by DEFRA alongside the 3 devolved bodies and supported by many industry organisations and breed societies, is due to conclude in April 2008.

Gert Nieuwhof, MLC Senior Geneticist, said: "Foot rot is distressing for the sheep and the cost to the industry is also substantial. It causes animals to go off their food and the standard treatment is to trim the hooves then put the animal through a footbath, which takes time and costs money.

He continued: "If we can find genetic components which confer greater resistance it will bring major benefits both in terms of animal welfare and cost of production."

HCC, EBLEX and QMS are working together on various R&D projects to address the devolved bodies key priority areas of research and ensure the best value for money for red meat industry funds.