For IVF, the eggs are taken directly from the ovaries using a specially designed ultrasound probe and needle, in a procedure called ovum pick-up (OPU). The eggs are then transferred to a laboratory, fertilised and grown into seven day old embryos.
At seven days old, the embryos can then be transplanted back into recipient animals fresh, or frozen for later use, just like conventional MOET.
When using IVF, a single straw of semen can be used on the eggs from multiple cows, which allows a saving on semen costs.