LSAT 128, Section 4, RC Passage 1, New Zealand Sheep

RC Passage 1 Explanation

Paragraph Summaries

1. New Zealand has historically relied on its wool industry, but competition from synthetic materials has reduced demand and profitability, leading to a shift towards other agricultural exports.
2. Instead of raising prices, the industry must improve productivity by adopting management and breeding practices of leading wool growers.
3. Wool productivity gains can be achieved through better farm management, but the industry is divided on what types of farms to run.
4. To enhance overall productivity, the industry should redirect funds to a genetic research company focused on selective breeding.

Analysis

The key takeaway here is that the wool industry must increase overall productivity, and this can be done through better farm management, which includes genetic selection.

The author outlines two types of farms: professional operations that exceed market returns. He thinks we should adopt their management and breeding practices. The other type is family farmers who accept lower returns. He doesn’t explicitly disapprove of these, but we can infer he’s not a fan of their low profitability.

His recommendation is that farms should invest in genetic research and base their operations on this. He argues that productivity is best improved if the best sheep are identified and bred, because these sheep produce wool worth way more than average. This will presumably benefit both types of farms.