Farmers could get an extra $5.90 a lamb sold because of the genetics research within 10 years, Joyce said.
The funding, contributed by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, would also allow the development of beef and sheep with new traits that would enable them to thrive in increasingly popular hill-country environments, he said.
Total funding for the new project from government and industry sources will be up to $8.8m a year.
The partnership will consolidate Sheep Improvement, the B+LNZ Central Progeny Test, and Ovita.
AgResearch would play a major role in the partnership, along with other research partners Abacus Bio, Lincoln University, Massey University, and the University of Otago, Joyce said.
