| Cattle Breeding Centre[1] | |
| Former Names: | Reading Centre for the Artificial Insemination of Cattle, AI Centre |
| Map Type: | United Kingdom Berkshire |
| Altitude: | 250NaN0 |
| Building Type: | Animal Research Centre |
| Address: | Church Lane, RG2 9BZ |
| Owner: | University of Reading |
| Current Tenants: | Housing estate |
| Coordinates: | 51.413°N -0.9459°W |
| Completion Date: | February 1943 |
| Demolition Date: | 1991 |
The Cattle Breeding Centre was a veterinary research centre at Shinfield in the United Kingdom.
The site opened in February 1943 as the Reading Centre for the Artificial Insemination of Dairy Cattle.[2] It had Shorthorn and Guernsey cattle. In January 1944 the site produced the world's first calf produced by artificial insemination, working with the Agricultural Improvement Council.[3] Another site had been opened at Cambridge in November 1942.[4]
The site closed in 1991.
On Thursday 15 November 1979, the site was visited by President General Suharto of Indonesia; the President had come to power in a coup in 1965, and the visit was attended by protestors from Reading University Amnesty International group.[5] On Wednesday 29 October 1980, the site was visited by the second President of Botswana, Quett Masire.[6]
The site was demolished by the University of Reading and sold for housing (360 houses) in 2003.
The site was east of the A327, south of the M4, around a half-mile east of the former headquarters of Berkshire County Council. A short section of the National Cycle Network 50 runs east–west past the former site.
The site worked with artificial insemination (AI) of cattle and pigs.