Cuban Creole pig conservation and its implications on biodiversity ...
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Cuban Creole pig conservation and its implications on biodiversity and family farming I Santana 1 , Baldomero Molina-Flores 2 , M Rueda 1 1 Instituto de Investigaciones Porcinas. La Habana, Cuba 2 Food Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Animal Production and Health Division. Rome, Italy "Animal biodiversity and family farming: facts from the field" HAUTE ECOLE PROVINCIALE DU HAINAUT - CONDORCET 14 November 2014 - Ath, Belgium
Transcript of Cuban Creole pig conservation and its implications on biodiversity ...
Cuban Creole pig conservation and its implications on biodiversity and
family farming
I Santana1, Baldomero Molina-Flores2, M Rueda1 1 Instituto de Investigaciones Porcinas. La Habana, Cuba
2 Food Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Animal Production and Health Division. Rome, Italy
"Animal biodiversity and family farming: facts from the field" HAUTE ECOLE PROVINCIALE DU HAINAUT - CONDORCET
14 November 2014 - Ath, Belgium
Pig production in Cuba
• Socio-economical role - rural communities
• Main source of animal protein - food security
• Pig production sectors:
– Specialized sector or state owned pig units: breeding animals - national breeding program
– Production sector or private pig units: organized in different kinds of cooperatives
• Small scale producers and family-based farming business - Cuban Creole pig
Cuban pig sector constrains
• Dependent on climatic conditions:
– climate change
– ↓ availability of natural resources
– emerging pathogens
• Increasing specialisation/intensification:
– poor management of farms
– ↓ access to quality sustainably produced feed
– loss of genetic and ecosystem diversity
Global Agriculture Challenges
Environmental constrains
Unsustainable use of natural resources!
Cuban Creole pig
• Iberian pig descendant: black, middle size, fatty-type breed
• Predominantly hairless (lampiños) with some haired individuals (entrepelados).
• Existence of wattles (mamelas) and hull-shaped hoof (casco de mula)
• Remarkable loss of local genetic diversity in the past decades
• Intensification of pig production and introduction of exotic/commertial breeds
• Endangered breed: 2.3% annual reduction rate within the period 1999 to 2008
• Population expected ↓10% by the end of 2014
Dynamics of Cuban Creole Pig population between 1999 - 2008
20
27,8
33,4
33,7
32,8
33,9
35
31,7
31,4
42,4
40,2
38,3
34,8
25,7
26,5
23
22,7
21,5
37,6
32
28,3
31,6
41,5
39,6
41,9
45,6
47,1
15,00
20,00
25,00
30,00
35,00
40,00
45,00
50,00
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008
CR XCR XCB
LOCATION N°. of sows
San Pedro Genetic Center. Artemisa. La Habana 120
CPA “10 de Octubre”. Cabaiguán. Sancti Spíritus 40
Genetic reserve farms with some control 220
Estimated Total 380*
*Population at risk!
Certificated herds of Cuban Creole Pigs in the country
Cuban Creole pig (2)
• Lower productivity than commercial hybrids
• Valuable traits: hardiness, adaptation to local conditions and feed resources, etc.
• Ideal for low-input family farming production systems
• Natural extensive farming, unconventional feeding and local alternative solutions
• Cuban Creole pig genetic diversity - national breeding programme - emerging challenges
Traditional Creole pig farming in Cuba
• Agro-silvo-pastoral interaction system
• Sustainable use of particularly special Cuban ecosystems
• Cuban oak (encino) and royal palm (palma real) forests
• Biodiversity conservation reserves - carbon sinks role
• Ecosystems degradation - forestry and intensive agriculture
• Adding value
- enhancing family farming opportunities - conservation of biodiversity - sustainable use of natural resources
Roystonea regia
Quercus oleoides spp Sagraeana
The future of the Cuban Creole pig
and its family farming systems
• Conservation
– characterization and evaluation of its potential
– preservation in pure herds under strict genetic control
• Economic sustainability
– use of local feeding resources with low production costs
– promotion of better tasting, healthier and environmentally-friendly meat
– promotion of agro-ecotourism in pigs farming areas
Acknowledgements
TCP/CUB/3402 project “Using two Pig Semen Processing Centers as a way of breeding pigs in suburban and rural areas of
Havana and Artemisa provinces”
THANKS!
