The McMeekan Memorial Award is one of the most prestigious honours in New Zealand’s agricultural science sector, celebrating individuals who have made a significant impact on animal production.
Dr Clarke’s leadership and innovation have transformed genetic technologies for farmed ruminants and aquaculture species, driving measurable improvements in productivity and quality across multiple industries.
During the award period Dr Clarke was Team Leader of Animal Genetics at the Bioeconomy Science Institute’s AgResearch Group, where she spearheaded three major initiatives:
Meat eating quality breeding values for sheep
Through the FarmIQ Primary Growth Partnership, Dr Clarke led the introduction of breeding values for meat quality traits into the New Zealand sheep industry. This technology, now integrated into the Beef + Lamb New Zealand Genetics evaluation system, has accelerated genetic progress for traits such as tenderness and marbling while maintaining growth and yield improvements.
Low-cost DNA sequencing for genotyping
Dr Clarke championed the adoption of routine DNA sequencing technologies, enabling affordable genotyping across species. This breakthrough has had a profound impact on the deer industry - where nearly all stags now come from herds using DNA-based parentage and these methods are increasingly used in goats, salmon, and plant breeding research.
Development of low-cost SNP chips
Her work on SNP chip technology has made genomic selection widely accessible to sheep breeders, positioning New Zealand as the world’s largest user of this technology in sheep. This innovation supports parentage verification and single-gene trait evaluation, enhancing breeding efficiency and genetic gain. The latest chip is now used widely across the New Zealand and overseas primary industries sector and is part of commercial animal DNA testing business unit, GenomNZ, which Dr Clarke has been a key driver of.
A career rooted in applied science
Raised in Fairfield, near Dunedin, Dr Clarke’s passion for science and agriculture began early, with farming in her family background. After attending Taieri College, she completed a PhD in photosynthetic research at the University of Otago and postdoctoral research in Wales on plant thermotolerance. Returning to New Zealand, she joined AgResearch full-time in 2006.
Since then, Dr Clarke has been instrumental in bridging research and industry, working closely with Beef + Lamb Genetics, Focus Genetics, Pāmu, and Cawthron to deliver practical genomic tools that farmers can use. She has led the Beyond the Genome MBIE programme, chairs the International Sheep Genomics Consortium, and heads the Genetics and Genomics of Ruminants Committee for the International Society of Animal Genetics.
Clarke is based at the Bioeconomy Science Institute’s Invermay campus where she has been mentored by and worked alongside previous winners of the McMeekan Award, including fellow Principal Scientists, Ken Dodds and John McEwan.
The award nominee’s John McEwan, Neville Jopson and Jamie Ward stated: “Dr Clarke’s work has delivered tangible benefits to farmers and breeders, strengthening New Zealand’s position as a global leader in animal genetics.”
