What is animal breeding?
Farm animal breeding is the activity in farm animal production providing the next generation of farm animals. Animal breeding ensures a continuous improvement of farm animals, generation after generation. Different animal traits are measured and the best animals are used a parent-animals. In this way, breeders provide livestock farmers with a next generation of animals. Farm animal breeders have an essential contribution to a healthy and sustainable food supply chain.
Breeding:
Breeding:
- Farm animal breeding includes all farmed animal species both on land and in water.
- Animal breeding and reproduction is at the top of the animal production pyramid and hence defines the quality of all animals used in agriculture.
- Farm animal breeders indirectly influence food safety and public health, product quality, efficiency, environment, animal health and welfare, and genetic diversity.
- Breeding is society sensitive because it drives changes in the genetic make-up of animals and the use of new technologies (e.g. genomics, computing sciences).
- A Code of Good Practice for Farm Animal Breeding and Reproduction encourages transparency and supports the dialogue of breeders with society.
Sorts of breeding:
- Cross-breeding: individuals of different breeds or lines are used to mate.
- Pure breeding: the same breed or lines are used to mate.
- Inbreeding: two close relatives mate.
Animal breeding
Important for the breeding industry is to create a sustainable breeding environment, to reach long term views and condition. Sustainability in animal breeding and reproduction means the extent to which animal breeding and reproduction, as managed by professional organisations, contribute to maintenance and good care of animal genetic resources for future generations.
"A future with a sustainable animal agriculture can be created with the contribution of animal breeding and reproduction"
The need for animal breeding
Global demand for animal products is expected to double in the next decades due to an increasing global population and global wealth. Animal products from a great source of protein that are essential in a healthy and balanced diet. To fulfil this growing demand, global animal production should increase while taking into account issues of environmental sustainability, food safety, and animal welfare. The breeding sector can contribute to finding solutions that are cost and resource efficient, diminish or eliminate environmental pressure, are adaptive to climate change, are beneficial for animal health and welfare, improve food quality and safety, and that meet the needs of citizens, both today and in the future.
This requires healthy, robust and efficient animals with improved animal welfare.
Global demand for animal products is expected to double in the next decades due to an increasing global population and global wealth. Animal products from a great source of protein that are essential in a healthy and balanced diet. To fulfil this growing demand, global animal production should increase while taking into account issues of environmental sustainability, food safety, and animal welfare. The breeding sector can contribute to finding solutions that are cost and resource efficient, diminish or eliminate environmental pressure, are adaptive to climate change, are beneficial for animal health and welfare, improve food quality and safety, and that meet the needs of citizens, both today and in the future.
This requires healthy, robust and efficient animals with improved animal welfare.
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Animal health and welfare
Breeding organisations must ensure the health and welfare of their animals. Read more. |
Efficiency
Animal breeding and reproduction has to respond to social, economic and competitive pressure. Read more. |
Environment
Improved biological efficiency reduces production waste and contribute to environmental efficiency. Read more. |
Food safety and public health
Improvement of food quality has become more important in animal breeding. Read more. |
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Genetic diversity
Breeding programmes are designed to make optimal use of genetic variation. Read more. |
Reproduction techniques
Safe and efficient breeding is made possible by the development of reproduction techniques. Read more. |
Sustainability
Farm animal breeding and reproduction contributes to a sustainable animal agriculture future. Read more. |