PROCEEDINGS OF THE FAO/ONEP TECHNICAL CONSULTATION ON ANIMAL GENETIC RESOURCES CONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT

FOREWORD

The term "animal genetic resources" is used to include all breeds, types, varieties and populations of animals that inhabit the earth under both improved and unimproved conditions. The conservation and management of these resources is a subject of great concern to both FAO and UNEP. Br. Ralph W. Phillips, Deputy Director-General of FAO has given an excellent summary of FAO activities in this area in the inaugural address which is included in these proceedings.

In the developed temperate zones of the world, the centuries of slow but effective selection by breeders, followed by the application of scientific breeding programmes during the present century have resulted in high levels of performance being achieved in a small number of breeds of each species. This eventually led to the replacement of many local low-producing breeds in Europe and elsewhere by the high-producing "improver" breeds. The growing demand for animal products in warmer countries has led to this policy being followed world wide. Because of the ease of replacing a population by artificial insemi­nation (AI) there is a danger of genetic attrition on the scale that has already occurred in Europe. Furthermore, this policy of massive grading-up is being applied in climates in which it may not be the most desirable. The genes can easily be imported (e.g. as semen), but the environment to which they are adapted is less easy to reproduce. In many cases a systematic crossbreeding programme is more appropriate than grading up to a temperate breed. Such a programme requires the retention of the local adapted breeds.

As a result of the UN Conference on the Human Environment (Stockholm, 1972) the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) was initiated and one of its tasks is to monitor the breeds of livestock in danger of disappearing for whatever cause. As a result of the joint interest of FAO and UNEP in conservation, joint projects were initiated in 1974 and completed in 1930. The final stage of the projects was a Technical Consultation on Animal Genetic Resources Conservation and Management which was held in Rome during 2-6 June 1980. Its objectives were as follows:

1. To discuss and analyse the current state of the world's farm animal genetic resources with a view to proposing methods and action for improved management of this biological resource to minimize genetic losses.
2. To discuss reasons for the decline in genetic variability, including the decrease in the number of specific strains and breeds of farm animals.
3. To review international, regional and national activities on the management and conservation of animal genetic resources.
4. To recommend national and international action and coordination required in the field of farm animal genetic resources conservation.

It was attended by delegates from 46 countries and observers from four international organizations. A short report on its discussions and recommendations has already been published. The present publication gives the texts of the - working papers.