---
title: "Sustainable Sheep Production (SusSheP) SCF0210"
ocid: "ocds-b5fd17-0ada98f4-3e8c-4afc-9ffd-96576d175315"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-b5fd17-0ada98f4-3e8c-4afc-9ffd-96576d175315"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-0ada98f4-3e8c-4afc-9ffd-96576d175315.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-b5fd17-0ada98f4-3e8c-4afc-9ffd-96576d175315.json"
source: "Contracts Finder"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "DEFRA NETWORK ETENDERING PORTAL"
published: "2017-07-24"
---

# Sustainable Sheep Production (SusSheP) SCF0210

Buyer: DEFRA NETWORK ETENDERING PORTAL  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-b5fd17-0ada98f4-3e8c-4afc-9ffd-96576d175315

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## Summary

The procurement process titled "Sustainable Sheep Production (SusSheP) SCF0210" is managed by the Defra Network eTendering Portal, located in London, England. This initiative aims to enhance the sustainability and profitability of European sheep production by exploring genetic factors that influence ewe longevity. The procurement method is classified as "Other," and the award has been completed as of June 19, 2017. The contract period is set from April 1, 2017, to March 31, 2020. The total value of the procurement is £92,647, and the tender period concluded on March 1, 2017.

This tender presents significant opportunities for businesses in the agricultural research and sustainability sectors, particularly those focusing on sheep production systems. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with expertise in genetic research, animal husbandry, and agricultural sustainability are well-suited to compete for this contract. The inclusion of strategically chosen SMEs will facilitate knowledge transfer to the scientific community and industry practitioners, potentially leading to enhanced collaborative projects and innovations in sheep breeding practices.

## Notice

The overall aim of SusSheP is to increase the sustainability and profitability of European Sheep Production by addressing key industry focused problems. Sheep are unproductive (but carbon productive) until they produce their first lamb crop, normally at 2 years of age and, on average, ewes only produce 4 crops of lambs in their lifetime. Despite its importance both from an economic and environmental perspective ewe longevity is not included in sheep breeding indexes across Europe. SusSheP will establish the genetic factors controlling ewe longevity, under different Sheep Production Systems (SPSs) and assess if early life predictors (e.g. reared as single, twin, etc.) can be used to predict longevity. Parallel to this, SusSheP will identify the most carbon and labour efficient SPSs under different management systems (e.g. prolific vs non-prolific sheep breeds) in order to enable the development of strategies to reduce or optimise the labour input and carbon hoof print per kg of output. The breeding of more efficient sheep has been hampered internationally by the lack of sheep artificial insemination, as the only effective method for use with frozen-thawed semen is a laparoscopic procedure, whereby, semen is injected directly into the uterus but this requires veterinary expertise, is welfare unfriendly and sociable unacceptable. The only exception to this is in Norway, in which vaginal deposition of frozen-thawed semen yields good pregnancy rates. Research in Ireland has demonstrated this is due to the breed of the ewe used in Norway, whereby sperm can transverse the cervix in greater numbers than in other breeds, leading to higher pregnancy rates. SusSheP will interrogate the differences across breeds in cervical physiology and its secretions (genes, proteins and glycans) with a view of developing a more sociably acceptable AI method. Finally, through the participation of strategically chosen SME's, SusSheP will maximise knowledge transfer to industry, farmers and the scientific communities Additional information: Please note that Defra procurement uses e-tendering, provided by Bravosolutions. In order to access the Bravo system you will need to be registered. Could I therefore request that you register on the Bravo portal for Defra. If you're already registered on the Bravo portal please check that your registration includes Defra, as you have to specify us in order to correctly receive the tender documents. If you have any problems with the registration process, please contact the Bravo helpline on 0800 368 4850 or alternatively email them at help@bravosolution.co.uk. The link you require for new registration/amendments to registrations is - https://defra.bravosolution.co.uk

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Contracts Finder |
| Latest notice | https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/2affe41a-3003-4d86-ad74-210e7fcee55b |
| Notice type | Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Not Specified |
| Procurement method details | Other - |
| Tender suitability | SME, VCSE |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 24 Jul 2017 |
| Submission deadline | 1 Mar 2017 |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 18 Jun 2017 |
| Contract period | 31 Mar 2017 - 31 Mar 2020 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | £92,647 |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £92,647 |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Not specified |
| Awards status | Active |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | DEFRA NETWORK ETENDERING PORTAL |
| Locality | LONDON |
| Post town | South West London |
| Postcode | SW1P 3JR |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLI London |
| ITL 2 | TLI3 Inner London - West |
| ITL 3 | TLI35 Westminster and City of London |
| Local authority | Westminster |
| Electoral ward | St James's |
| Westminster constituency | Cities of London and Westminster |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | SAC COMMERCIAL |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 73 - Research and development services and related consultancy services

### Codes

- 73110000 - Research services

## Release History

- 24 Jul 2017 at 12:55 - Award - Award Notice - https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/2affe41a-3003-4d86-ad74-210e7fcee55b

## Documents

- https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/2affe41a-3003-4d86-ad74-210e7fcee55b
  24th July 2017 - Awarded contract notice on Contracts Finder

## Notice URLs

- https://defra.bravosolution.co.uk

## Provenance

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