Accuracy (%) is based on the amount of performance information available on the animal and its close relatives – particularly the number of progeny analysed.

Accuracy is also based on the heritability of the trait and the genetic correlations with other recorded traits. Hence accuracy indicates the “confidence level” of the EBV.

The higher the accuracy value the lower the likelihood of change in the animal’s EBV as more information is analysed for that animal or its relatives. Even though an EBV with a low accuracy may change in the future, it is still the best estimate of an animal’s genetic merit for that trait. As more information becomes available, an EBV is just as likely to increase in value, as it is to decrease.