The opportunities to enhance effectiveness of insitu conservation of animal genetic resources

1
The opportunities to enhance effectiveness of
in-situ conservation of animal genetic resources

• Gustavo Gandini
• Department VSA - University of Milan, Italy
• Conservation of animal genetic resources in
  Poland and in Europe achievements and dilemmas
• 31st May 2nd June 2007, Balice, Poland

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In situ and ex situ conservation techniques
in situ ex situ
in zoos
in protected areas
in conservation farms
in experimental herds
in educational herds
in the original production systems
outside the area in which their evolved
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Utilisation and Conservation
Conservation strategies to protect breeds at
risk
Utilisation the use and development of animal
genetic resources for food production and
agriculture
utilisation
conservation
Conservation through utilisation
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Conservation through utilisation - Objectives -

• Flexibility of the genetic system
• insurance against changes in market or
  environment
• opportunities for research
• Sustainable utilisation of rural areas
• opportunities for development for rural
  communities
• maintenance of agro-ecosystem diversity
• maintenance of rural cultural diversity

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Conservation through utilisation - General
strategy -

• To minimise costs and risk of failure, we should
  aim to
• Self-sustaining populations (with in situ, costs
  equal the difference between the profit from
  farming the average commercial breed and the
  local breed)
• Participation of stakeholders

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Opportunities for Self-sustaining Populations

• Establishing breed economic performance
• Improving infrastructure, technical assistance
• Optimisation of production systems
• Genetic improvement
• Increasing market value of breed products (food,
  cultural and environmental services, etc.)
• Economic incentives

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• opportunities for self-sustaining populations
• Establishing breed economic performance
• Production and functional traits
• Services and roles (vegetation and/or landscape
  management, cultural, tourism, etc.)

• In order to
• enlighten possible strong point
• inform policy decision
• design incentives
• create market values

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Difference in profitability between Reggiana and
Holstein breed on standard 305-d milk production
(ST) annual milk production (R1) revenues from
annual milk and meat production (R2) R2
including feeding, milking, replacement, and
insemination costs (R2-C) (Gandini et al., J.
Dairy Science, 2007)
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opportunities for self-sustaining
populations Optimisation of production systems

• Re-organisation of traditional production
  systems
• seasonal planning of production,
• changing age/weight at slaughter,
• introducing crossbreeding,
• organic production
• etc.

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Cinta Senese pig strategies to optimise the
extensive system
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opportunities for self-sustaining
populations Improving technical assistance

• Development of infrastructure and technical
  assistance
• networks for milk collection and processing,
• slaughterhouses,
• networks for products development and
  commercialisation,
• etc.

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opportunities for self-sustaining
populationsSelection and local breeds

• Selection, by improving genetic ability, can
  increase breed profitability
• selection schemes should take into account
  control of inbreeding
• breeding goals should respect characteristics
  and values of the breed

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Selection and inbreeding rate
M F 10 50 10 100 10 1000
Mass selection (Santiago Caballero, 1996)
n12 n6 .019 .025 .018 .022 .019 .0
22 1 n n. of individuals scored per sex,
family/generation heritability .4
No selection (Wright, 1931) .015
.014 .013
With BLUP selection, inbreeding rates from 2.5
times (heritability 0.4) to 4 times (heritability
0.1) higher than with no selection (Wray and
Thompson, 1990)
Tools to select with control on inbreeding are
today available !
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Selection in a small breed Reggiana cattle
Expected selection response in standard deviation
units per year (inbreeding rate per generation
0.007) Local breed Italian
Holstein Freisian Milk kg 0.07 0.24 Fat
kg 0.08 0.30 Protein kg 0.10
0.34
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Genetic improvement in local breeds for which
traits ?

• Genetic improvement should
• avoid to match the quantitative performances of
  highly selected breeds
• maintain characteristics contributing to low
  production costs
• maintain their links with the farming area, that
  can add value to their products
• maintain the environmental and cultural values
  of their farming systems

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opportunities for self-sustaining
populations Increasing the market value of breed
products links between products and breeds

• Ongoing process in Europe, but experiences
  poorly documented
• the link product-breed can improve breeds
  economic profitability
• several options e.g. the link as part of a
  protected designation of origin (PDO), or used to
  further differentiate a product within a market
  already differentiated (e.g. within a PDO)
• the overlap of an exotic breed might hamper the
  creation of a link
• the link product-breed-environment might be more
  appropriate than the link product-breed.

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Niche products linked to specific breeds
Difference in profitability between Reggiana and
Holstein breed milk sold to dairy industry
(S-Milk), S-Milk and economic incentives to
Reggiana cows (S-MilkIp), milk production sold
as generic (Holstein) and branded (Reggiana)
Parmigiano Reggiano cheese (S-Cheese). (Gandini
et al., J. Dairy Science, 2007)
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Niche products linked to specific breeds
Evolution of number of dairy co-operatives (),
and herds (?) producing branded Reggiana
Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, and branded cheese
produced per day (? kg).
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Increasing the market value of breed products
ecological and cultural services
In Europe, most natural areas are agro-ecosystems
maintained by farming local breeds. The decline
of these production systems is associated to loss
of these agro-ecosystems and cultural landscapes,
risks of natural fires, floods. Local breeds
often played a central role in the life of rural
populations are historical witnesses, and today
are often custodian of local traditions and play
a role in the protection of the local cultural
heritage. The decline of these production systems
is associated to loss of rural cultural
diversity. Is it possible to develop a market
value for the ecological and cultural services
from local breeds ?
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A quantitative assessment (Willingness to pay -
WTP) of the environmental and cultural services
of the Valdostana cattle - mountain farming in an
area with presence of summer tourism
WTP-additional price() for Fontina cheese
Residents Tourists M
ean 11.5 7.8 SD 10.3 6.9
WTP (Euro) to attend the Battle of the
Queens Residents
Tourists Mean 6.20
3.30 SD 5.70 3.50
WTP (Euro) - tourism tax Tourists Mean
1.00 SD 1.10
The real challenge how to convert these research
findings into action mode ?
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opportunities for self-sustaining
populations Economic incentives

• Since 1978, EC incentives payments for endangered
  local breeds.
• Worthwhile investigating more specific incentives
  (elimination of milk quotas, etc)
• Economic incentives should be designated to
  accelerate achievement of self-sustainability

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Stakeholders

• Given the intimate relationships between
  community, livestock and environment
• stakeholders (e.g. farmers, hobby breeders,
  breeding services, food distribution companies,
  local/regional agricultural and environmental
  authorities, tourism agencies, cultural
  societies) should participate in conservation of
  AnGR
• AnGR conservation should fulfil the dual purpose
  of social-economic development and maintenance of
  genetic variation

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Closing remarks

• Several options to enhance in-situ conservation
• Some documented experiences
• Need to implement these options into field
  conservation
• supported by research
• reporting-sharing successes and failures