PARC Planning To Promote Local High Milk Producing Animals

The Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) is planning to register local elite animal breeds of cows and buffaloes aimed at their preservation, reproduction, and promotion

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 2nd Jan, 2020 ) :The Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) is planning to register local elite animal breeds of cows and buffaloes aimed at their preservation, reproduction, and promotion.

"According to the plan, we will register at least 100 farmers having such animals and will make an agreement with them to obtain semen from their male animals to be utilized for reproduction to increase population of elite milk producing animals in the country," Dr Muhammad Azeem said.

Talking to APP, he said the local pure elite breeds of cows and buffaloes such as Nili-Ravi, Sahiwal, and Red Sindhi were fast depleting in the country, stressing the urgent need to preserve and promote them.

He said, preserving and promoting such breeds would help boosting the dairy sector on sustainable basis as these elite animals were capable of yielding 20 to 30 liters of milk per day.

Replying to a question regarding import of high yielding cows, Dr Azeem said that settlement of imported animals in the country was not sustainable as there was a difference of weather and climate and in order to preserve them, high input cost was needed such as air conditioning and heavy feeding.

"There are lot of milk producing animals of a range of breeds like Jercy and Friesian cows that are being imported from various countries including USA and Australia but they have not proved viable and sustainable," he said adding the experience of their crosses with the local animals also could not proved to be successful.

"Import of breeds is not the solution to increase milk production, the only solution that we protect and promote our own local breeds that can produce up to 32 liters of milk per day." In case of imported farmers, he pointed out that implementation of embryo technology could be helpful to ensure fertility in cattle as it was cheap and durable.

He informed that "if we want to import semen of high producing animals, then mixing of that semen with the local breeds will be helpful in increasing production".

\395