The National Sheep Improvement Program (NSIP) is committed to helping American sheep producers improve profitability through the use of genetic information. NSIP and its membership recognize the importance of combining genetic evaluations derived from performance records with visual assessments when selecting breeding stock for purebred and commercial flocks.
Founded in 1986, this non-profit organization is administered by a volunteer board of directors. All breeds are represented.
Our Mission: To provide predictable, economically important genetic evaluation information to the American sheep industry by converting performance records into relevant decision-making tools.
What We Do
NSIP is the only American organization to offer U.S. sheep producers a proven genetic selection system by which to improve flock productivity and quality. Using a process similar to that used by nearly all other livestock species to aid in genetic selection, NSIP develops Estimated Breeding Values (EBVs) which sheep producers can use to select animals for important traits, including productivity, quality and flock health.
In alignment with the U.S. Sheep Industry Roadmap, NSIP is dedicated to helping sheep producers improve traits that result in animals with desirable, profitable characteristics. Ultimately, we offer an excellent tool and method to move the industry toward its goal of value-based carcass pricing, using genetic selection criteria for carcass quality.