engleski

Indigenous sheep breeds in Croatia – organic farming as a conservation effort

There are around 600.000 sheep bred in Croatia, 65% of which are of indigenous breeds. The rest are either imported or mixed breeds The abundance and variety of the local breeds are a result of the breeding tradition, as well as the diversity of climate in which natural and genetic resources had to be used optimally. Declining numbers of indigenous domestic animal breeds in the last century are the result of an increasing technological development and the establishment of greater economic requirements, in addition to socio-economic changes. Therefore, a great deal of attention has been given to the preservation of indigenous breeds of animals. There are nine indigenous Croatian sheep breeds, one of which is critically endangered (Dubrovačka ruda), and two are endangered (Istarska ovca and Cigaja). The main ways to preserve autochthonous breeds include identification, ascertaining size and status of endangered breeds, their genotyping and conservation methods in situ and ex situ. Preservation in situ implies the preservation of the population in its original environment. With respect to that, organic farming could be one of the most suitable ways of in situ conservation for the indigenous sheep in Croatia, considering the fact that the vast majority of sheep are kept extensively. At the moment, organic sheep breeding in Croatia is based on indigenous breeds, which are well adapted to their environment. This practice eliminates most of the problems usually encountered when imported foreign breeds have to be adjusted to the new conditions in extensive sheep breeding. Both governmental and scientific institutions have been actively engaged in the preservation of indigenous breeds through organic farming, one of them being Veterinary faculty in Zagreb. After successful completion of the technology project “ Production of lamb meat certified as organic product of Croatia” , we continue our conservation efforts through scientific project “ Standardisation of physiological blood parameters in indigenous sheep breeds” .

ALTERNATIVE METHODS; BIODIVERSITY; SHEEP BREEDING

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