Contrary to popular belief, in vitro fertilisation (IVF) is now the overwhelming choice of technology globally responsible for 87 per cent of all cattle embryos produced.
Yet in Wagyu breeding, doubts about pregnancy rates, donor performance and commercial viability still get thrown into the mix at breeder networks. But for producers already running IVF programs, the numbers tell a different reality.
Across Wagyu operations in Australia and the United States commercial programs are delivering pregnancy rates between 30 and nearly 60 per cent, while accelerating genetic progress and growing herds faster than traditional breeding systems allow.
Those results will be part of the conversation at WagyuEdge 2026 in Brisbane from April 15-17, where Vytelle Vice President of Operations Dr Bruno Sanches will present global IVF performance data alongside producer outcomes from commercial herds.
Inside the numbers at 3D Genetics
Northern NSW-based 3D Genetics has been an early adopter of IVF in Australian Wagyu breeding. Working with embryos produced through Vytelle’s IVF laboratory in Brisbane, the operation has transferred 768 embryos into recipient herds at its Bukkulla properties.
Veterinarian, 3D Genetic General manager, and winner of the 2025 Weekly Times Coles Beef Farmer of the Year, Dr Joe Grose, said the program has achieved:
- 57.4% pregnancy rate from fresh IVF embryos
- 49.3% pregnancy rate from frozen IVF embryos
Those figures represent a big improvement on earlier IVF programs the business ran with other providers.
“Previously we saw conception rates ranging from 22 to 48 per cent, with an average around 35 per cent,” Joe said.
For 3D Genetics, the biggest advantage of IVF is not just pregnancy rates but how it changes the breeding timeline. The program now collects oocytes from high genetic merit yearling heifers before their first joining, allowing elite females to influence the herd earlier.
“These younger heifers don’t respond as well to traditional MOET programs,” Joe said. “Using IVF we’ve averaged 4.5 pregnancies per yearling donor in their first year, while still allowing them to calve as two-year-olds with the rest of the cohort.”
The result is faster genetic turnover without disrupting normal herd management.
Multiplying elite genetics earlier at Arubial Wagyu
For Arubial Wagyu in South East Queensland, IVF plays a slightly different role. Owner and operator Laird Morgan uses the technology primarily to multiply elite genetics earlier, rather than maximise embryo numbers.
Arubial held two on-farm embryo transfers in 2025 in April and July using embryos produced through Vytelle’s technology following Ovum Pick-Up collections (OPU) performed on-site at Oakey.
April transfer program
- 109 embryos transferred
- 49% pregnancy rate at 36 days
- 54 confirmed pregnancies
– 36 from frozen embryos
– 18 from fresh embryos - 55 empty recipients
– 39 received frozen embryos
– 16 received fresh embryos - January calving outcome
– 45 of the 55 pregnancies resulted in healthy calves
“Our breeding decisions aren’t driven alone by embryo production ability,” Laird said.
“They’re driven by objective performance data, genetic merit and long-term herd improvement.”
By producing multiple progeny from key joinings within a single season, IVF allows the herd to identify and expand high-performing genetic lines much earlier.
Fast-tracking Wagyu herd growth at Booth Creek Wagyu
Booth Creek Wagyu in Kansas has integrated IVF into a vertically aligned Wagyu business spanning cow-calf production through to retail beef sales.
Ranch operations manager Ben Rankin said reproductive technology has been central to building the herd quickly while maintaining genetic quality.
“Vytelle allowed us to really grow the herd quickly with strong genetics,” Ben said.
“The technology helped accelerate our breeding program much faster than we could have done otherwise.”
Booth Creek also integrates reproductive programs with feed efficiency data, using performance data to guide breeding decisions across the production chain.
“It’s helping us grow this thing a lot faster and a lot more efficiently,” Ben said.
The global shift toward IVF
While individual producer results vary, global embryo production data shows IVF is quickly becoming the dominant reproductive technology in cattle breeding.
At WagyuEdge 2026, Dr Bruno Sanches will present international datasets examining how IVF is performing across commercial programs worldwide. A veterinarian and reproductive specialist with a PhD in animal reproduction, Dr Sanches has spent his career working within IVF systems across several countries,
According to the International Embryo Technology Society, global embryo production is expanding rapidly – and IVF is driving nearly all of that growth.
Global embryo production trends
- 2.3 million embryos produced globally in 2024
- Up from 1.5 million embryos in 2020
Share of technology
- 87% IVF embryos
- 13% conventional MOET
Four year growth
- IVF embryos grew from 1.1 million to nearly 2 million
- MOET embryos declined slightly from 360,000 to 300,000
Dr Sanches said the shift reflects the reliability producers are seeing when IVF programs are well managed.
“IVF isn’t growing because it’s fashionable,” he said. “It’s growing because producers are seeing predictable and repeatable results.”
“We can collect on pregnant females with Vytelle since we don’t use hormones, keeping valuable donors in production. In particular in the Wagyu breed we can make better use of high value semen with IVF vs MOET fertilising multiple donors with a straw vs one.”
What producer data is telling us
IVF has long carried a reputation in Wagyu breeding that hasn’t always matched producer outcomes. But as commercial programs gather more data, the conversation is changing. Rather than asking whether IVF works in Wagyu, many breeders are now asking how to integrate it most effectively into their breeding strategy.
The experiences of producers like 3D Genetics, Arubial Wagyu and Booth Creek show IVF is no longer just about producing embryos. It’s about accelerating genetic progress and growing breeding programs more efficiently. And according to Dr Sanches, the data backs it up.
“What we’re seeing now is adoption at scale,” he said. “The industry is moving beyond experimentation.”
For Wagyu breeders evaluating the technology, the debate may no longer be about whether IVF works. It may simply be about how well it can work when the program is managed correctly.
About Vytelle
Vytelle is a precision livestock company helping cattle producers fast track genetic gain with confidence. Through data-driven reproductive technology, Vytelle removes the guesswork from breeding and mating decisions to deliver faster measurable progress. Media contact: Lisa Rumsfeld, Vice President of Global Sales: [email protected]