Research in Angora goats under the LEADER II in Portugal

A new LEADER II project will establish Angora goat enterprises on existing farming units in a marginal area of Portugal that do not at present have any goats. As mohair production in Portugal becomes established the fibre will contribute significantly to the rural economy of the region. The present project will be innovative in Portugal, in terms of its organisation and objectives, and aims to offset the current problems facing these areas, such as the abandonment of existing farming units, which is leading to desertification in certain rural areas in Portugal.The introduction of Angora goats to the Cova da Beira region will contribute to the diversification of livestock at the regional and national level. This will increase the national production of mohair fibre, in which both Portugal and the EU as a whole are deficient.group of ten breeders, each starting with twenty females and two males will be formed. The breeders will be linked in a co-operative, which will buy and transform all the mohair fibre produced. To achieve this, the co-operative will subcontract work to textile factories in the region. As the breeders are associated together, they are able to retain complete control of the purchase and transformation of raw material, as well as the commercialisation of the various products, thus benefiting from the added value of the processing stages. This will make a significant contribution to the economic profitability and technical sustainability of their agricultural activities.The project is firmly based on the concept of integration. The encouragement of cooperation, with the use of common facilities (e.g. shearing, technical assistance, etc.) and the synergy of the cooperative will create the necessary economic balance of the farming units and support the systematic and continuous development of quality and efficiency to suit the requirements of the market

Extensive beef cattle production in Portugal: the added value of indigenous breeds in the beef market

O presente documento foi apresentado na 2nd International Conference of the LSIRD Network que decorreu em Bray, Dublin em Dezembro de 1998, tendo integrado os respectivos Proceedings.Beef production in less-favoured areas in Portugal is usually extensive, and along with forestry and agriculture is one of the main sources of income and employment. It has also an important role both in a social and environmental context. Portugal is not self-sufficient in beef production, though the BSE crisis has severely hit beef sales, and it is difficult to envisage consumption making a full recovery in the short to medium term. However, it is possible to see an emergent market for beef produced by Portuguese indigenous breeds from extensive production systems. Beef from indigenous breeds is considered to be a high quality product by producers and consumers, mainly because of the superior taste and structure of the meat resulting from the production methods: differences within breeds, slow growth rate and type of vegetation consumed. This product differentiation has allowed the enlargement of small niche markets and has led to an increase in the value of meat with a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO). The specificity of a product linked with a PDO has a fundamental role in the establishment of the strategies for agricultural enterprises and in rural development. Since Portuguese agriculture cannot compete on quantity or production cost with other competitors, differentiation and quality seem to be the alternatives that may stimulate rural activities in LFAs and create a regional added value able to contribute to sustainable development. Extensive animal production systems can be an important component of environmental and landscape protection, as well as contribute to the decrease of the human and physical desertification of our rural areas

The development of the speciality fibre sector in Portugal

Fine fibre in Portugal is almost limited to wool and, for the moment, the country is still responsible for a reasonable amount of production of fine wool. There are no cashmere goats registered in Portugal, and so no cashmere fibre is available, as is the case with Angora rabbits. Angora fibre used to be produced in Portugal, however due to disease problems, the rabbits died and the production of this kind fibre disappeared in the sixties. Currently, interest in farming Angora goats for mohair production is low. From the initial flocks set up in the late eighties (500 animals), there are now only 250 animals. Due to the small amount of fibre produced and to the rapid coarsening of the fibre with age, the national textile industries have never shown interest in developing technology for processing this particular type of fibre. Because of this, the producers need to send the small volumes of fibre produced to France or England for processing. We think that in order to improve mohair production the resolution of industrial processing must be done at the production level in a modular way. It is also necessary that the official organisms have objective guidelines. Even if it is considered as a exotic breed, there are enough information that allows us to say that angora goats can be perfectly integrated in our traditional sheep management systems, and with fewer management problems that some of our indigenous goat breeds. We think that from the three types of fibre-producing animals referred to, angora goat production is the best option in the short term, since it is the animal that is closest to our traditional system of animal production. The Portuguese Textile Industry, since a long time ago, prepared to process the only animal fibre (wool) currently available in large quantities in the country. All the other speciality fibres are imported for incorporation into garments. Wool seems still to have a role in Portuguese Agriculture, mainly fine wool, which is predicted to be in continuing and strong demand

Incidência da baixa fertilidade em touros no interior centro e sul de Portugal (Resultados de exames andrológicos em bovinos)

Só está disponível o resumo.A eficiência reprodutiva em bovinicultura é fundamental na viabilização económica das explorações. No atual quadro comunitário de apoios, esta eficiência é evidente, determinando o montante das ajudas a receber pelos produtores, que dependem da fertilidade dos bovinos. Entre janeiro de 2012 e setembro de 2015, foram avaliados através de exame andrológico, 223 touros reprodutores com idades compreendidas entre os 13 e 156 meses, em 35 explorações de carne, no interior centro e sul de Portugal. Cerca de 57% dos exames foram efetuados nos meses de setembro a dezembro, devido à maior procura deste serviço por parte dos produtores, para preparação da época de cobrições sequente. Foram avaliados touros das raças: Limousine, Charolês, Alentejana, Mertolenga e Cruzados. Foram aprovados 72,6% dos touros, reprovados 14,8% e recomendada a reavaliação a 12,6%. Para os parâmetros motilidade individual e massal, mais de 50% dos touros avaliados apresentam esperma de muito boa e de boa qualidade; 91% dos reprovados apresentam esperma de má qualidade. Em 95% dos touros aprovados, a condição corporal é adequada (≥5). Entre os reprovados, 15% apresentam condição corporal inadequada (≤4). Considerando duas classes de idade média, 36% dos touros aprovados, têm menos de 24 meses de idade. Entre os touros reprovados, apenas 6% apresenta idade inferior a 24 meses e 56% tem idade superior a 5 anos. Indicador do efeito da idade em sistemas de produção extensivos. De entre os touros classificados para reavaliação (n=28), apenas 12 foram reavaliados e destes, 50% foram reclassificados em aprovados. Em conclusão, 21% dos touros apresenta baixa a nula fertilidade e uma perda económica evidente, reforçada pela sua permanência em épocas de cobrição sucessivas. Os touros reprovados poderiam prejudicar a produção de cerca de 1155 vacas, induzindo uma perda de rendimento de cerca de 577 mil euros, nas 35 explorações abrangidas por este apoio técnico.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Extensive beef cattle production in Portugal

Portugal, located in the Mediterranean region, one of the "Hot Spot" of the planet, has a huge variability in terms of topography, soils, climate, agriculture, traditions, resulting in a high diversity of animal genetic resources, represented by 15 native cattle breeds, most of them threatened. A significant percentage of extensive beef cattle production in Portugal is based on the use of animals, differing from north to south region, with good maternal aptitude, hardiness, a low growth performance and exceptional adaptation to the environment where they live, and especially to the local feed, naturally produced. In the north of the country and the Azores, dairy breeds predominate, while in the south beef breeds are most prevalent. Portugal is not self-sufficient in beef production, however it is possible to appreciate an market for beef produced by indigenous breeds from extensive and organic production systems. Beef from indigenous breeds is considered to be a high quality product, mainly because of the superior taste and structure of the meat resulting from the production system: slow growth rate and type of vegetation consumed. This product differentiation has allowed the enlargement of small niche markets and has led to an increase in the value of meat with a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) or with organic beef. Since portuguese agriculture cannot compete on quantity or production cost with other competitors, differentiation and quality seem to be the alternatives that may stimulate rural activities in Less Favoured Areas (LFAs) and create a regional added value able to contribute to sustainable development. Extensive animal production systems can be an important component of environmental and landscape protection, as well as contribute to the decrease of the human, physical desertification of our rural areas and animal genetic resources

Alternativas económicas na suplementação de ovinos de leite em pastagem : resultados preliminares

O presente trabalho foi desenvolvido no âmbito do Projecto Sheep 4.0, com o objetivo de potenciar a sustentabilidade dos sistemas de produção de ovinos de leite, integrando uma avaliação de efeitos alimentares, económicos, sociais e ambientais que permitirá imprimir um selo de sustentabilidade à produção extensiva.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Estudo das possibilidade de utilização da inseminação artificial em ovinos da raça Merino da Beira Baixa

Resumo.Estudo das possibilidade de utilização da inseminação artificial em ovinos da raça Merino da Beira Baixa

DOP - Valor acrescentado em sistemas extensivos?

Em Portugal, a produção de bovinos de carne ocorre em áreas desfavorecidas e é normalmente extensiva. Com a floresta e a agricultura, é uma das principais fontes de receita e emprego desempenhando, também, um importante papel no contexto social e ambiental. Portugal não é auto-suficiente em relação à produção de carne bovina e devido à crise da BSE torna-se difícil prever, a médio e a curto prazo, a recuperação deste mercado. Podemos prever um novo mercado a partir da produção de carne de raças autóctones em sistemas extensivos. Produtores e consumidores consideram que a carne de raças autóctones é um produto de elevada qualidade, com características organolépticas próprias que resultam de métodos de produção diferenciados. Este facto permitiu o alargamento dos pequenos nichos de mercado, que tradicionalmente consumiam este tipo de produtos, e um aumento de valorização à produção das carnes DOP. Como a agricultura portuguesa não pode competir em quantidade e preços com outros países, a diferenciação parece ser a única alternativa para estimular a actividade rural nas zonas desfavorecidas, criando uma mais valia regional, necessária para um desenvolvimento agrícola sustentado. Através da manutenção dos nossos sistemas extensivo de produção animal conseguir-se-á limitar outros tipos de problemas de que se destacam a protecção ambiental, a defesa paisagística e a desertificação humana e física do nosso espaço rural

Is merino wool disappearing in Portugal: Merino Beira Baixa case

In Portugal we are facing a fast decrease in the production of good quality wool. This situation can be seen from a qualitative and quantitative point of view by looking at the most extreme situation, which involves almost the extinction of a Merino breed - Merino Beira Baixa (MBB)- due to its inability to produce high milk quantities when subjected to the better hadling of the more intensive production systems. The changes in the production systems and the need for higher milk production for the production of PDD cheese (Protected Designation of Origin - EEC Regulation 2081/92), but without indexation to the milk of the MBB sheep breed (as opposite to other cheeses made exclusively with milk from one specific breed), has led to the massive introduction of extotic sheep breeds specialising in milk production. In the last decade, the MBB animals have decreased by more than 90%, and urgent actions is needed to prevent the disappearance of one more indigenous breed