TRENDS IN CATTLE DIVERSITY AND CATTLE PRODUCTION IN EUROPE

 

2.1 Introduction

Cattle started living in close proximity to humans in Central Europe approximately 7500 years ago (Benecke, 1994) and in the Northern parts of Europe a thousand years later (Gkliasta et al., 2003; Cymbron et al., 2005). Since then cattle have played an important role in food production as well as in social, cultural and political development of the European societies and individual farmers. Currently, the FAO database DAD-IS lists 534 cattle breeds in European countries, of which 464 are classified as local or regional. Cattle have been used for many purposes from food production to transportation, and from draught power to social insurance. They have also been pets and ritual animals, like bulls in Spain. Today, many cattle breeds have been developed for either milk or beef production, and production is also geographically concentrated and specialised. Many European cattle breeds have disappeared (130, according to DAD-IS), or are now under threat of extinction. The key questions remain: what have been the main drivers for this trend in cattle diversity and in animal production in Europe, and what does the future hold for the local breeds?

In the following we will give a brief overview of the history of cattle production and cattle diversity development in Europe, illustrated by the selected breed cases from eight European countries examined in the EURECA project. The investigations are based on existing literature, farmer questionnaires, analysing nationally recorded data, and expert views. The breeds selected for the study represent milk, beef and dual-purpose cattle breeds. In this chapter we focus mostly on the local breeds in North, West and South-West Europe.

The map  shows us where the local breeds are located. The breed cases that are examined are:

• Brandrode Rund – Deep Red Cattle (Netherlands)

• Groninger Blaarkop – Groningen White Headed (Netherlands)

• Maas Rijn IJssel – Meuse Rhine Yssel (Netherlands)

• Ferrandaise (France)

• Villard de Lans (France)

• Reggiana (Italy)

• Modenese (Italy)

• Lãnsisuomenkarja, Lsk – Western Finncattle (Finland)

• Itäsuomenkarja, kyyttö – Eastern Finncattle (Finland)

• La Pie Rouge de Type Mixte – Dual-Purpose Red and White (Belgium)

• Blanc Bleu Mixte – Dual-Purpose Belgian Blue (Belgium)

• Alistana Sanabresa (Spain)

• Avileña-Negra Ibérica – Avilena-Negra Iberica (Spain)

• Polska Czerwona – Polish Red (Poland)

• Kerry cattle (Ireland)

• Estonian Native (Estland)

2.2 Interest in breeds and breeding increases

A predominant view, supported by genetic research, is that European cattle breeds descend from aurochs domesticated in the Near East about 11,000 years ago and brought to Europe through the migration of human populations and trade (e.g. Clutton-Brock, 1999; Grigson,1980). In the course of time, cattle became locally and regionally differentiated, as they adapted to the different local environmental conditions. The way in which people were using, feeding and maintaining cattle also affected the further development of breed characteristics, such as size, behaviour, phenotype and productivity. The selection of animals has been based on human needs and values, which have varied from place to place over time. As an indication of regional differences among cattle breeds, the name of a breed usually includes its geographical origin in addition to factors that describe the phenotype of the animals (e.g. Avileña-Negra Ibéria, Spain; Groningen White Headed, Netherlands).

In many European countries there have been various forms of initial work since the 16th century, focusing on the appearance and performance of the cattle. The work stems from an interest in exploring and comparing the characteristics and differences among breeds. In addition, the efficiency of cattle farming has become more important, especially since the 19th century as many European societies suffered from famines. On the other hand, industrialisation and urbanisation started to change food consumption habits putting a great stress on the rate of cattle production. Cattle products also became an important trading commodity (Carlson, 2001; Tervo, 2004).

Individual people imported breeding animals from abroad, and in some countries these activities were supported by the state as well. For example, in the mid 19th century the Finnish Senate provided financial support for the import of the Ayrshire breed to improve the native breeds (Lilja, 2007), and French ‘Conseil Général’ supported the purchase of Auvergne or Swiss bulls. On the other hand, from early on, the state also regulated cattle imports. This was necessary to prevent the spread of new diseases which might have been introduced by imported cattle, as happened in Finland in the late 19th century. In the Netherlands cattle were imported from Germany (red and white) or Denmark (black and white) after cattle disease outbreaks, like cattle fever, or after the rivers had been flooded and the cattle population was decimated.

The development of herdbooks in various parts of Europe can be seen as a sign of a growing interest in cattle performance and breeding. The first herdbooks were established in Great Britain as early as in the 18th century (Lush, 2008). Records on animals in the breeds were at first maintained by dedicated individuals, but eventually breeding associations were formed to control and maintain registration. Some of the local breeds examined in the EURECA project already had their own herdbook at the start of the 20th century (Eastern Finncattle, Finland; Ferrandaise, France; MRY, Netherlands), whereas in some other breeds the recording scheme was founded as late as 1970 (e.g. Avileña-Negra Ibéria, Spain).

Agricultural shows have acted as an important forum for the local, regional or national farming communities to promote and encourage improvements in cattle breeding in many countries. The first cattle shows were organised as early as the late 18th century. The traits of the cattle and differences between breeds (e.g. the favoured colour and other exterior traits) were discussed and debated at the fairs, and later reported in the press. Local breeds that participated in these shows were compared with other local breeds as well as with imported cattle breeds. The French Ferrandaise breed had the place of honour at the regional agricultural show, in Clermont-Ferrand in 1863, and the Italian Reggiana breed was present at the Vienna Expo in 1873. In Spain, animals of local breeds are found in old documents from the ‘Exhibición General‘ in Madrid (1857), where local animals were compared with imported animals mostly Brown Swiss and Friesian. In addition, documents of exhibitions in the 19th century and early 20th century refer to ‘vaca del pais’ (i.e. ‘cow from the country’) as opposed to the specialised animal brought from outside (M.A.P.A., 1887).

In the late 19th century local breeds also had a political significance outside agriculture. In Finland the awareness of national identity increased in the late 19th century, and the real and pure Finncattle, unlike their foreign relatives, were considered as part of the national mindset and became a subject for some artists’ work. A sense of patriotism was cited as a reason for breeding them (Lilja, 2007).

2.3 Local breeds in and between the wars

In the late 19th and early 20th century there was more systematic work on improving cattle to meet the growing demand for food. At that time in several countries there were institutional arrangements that supported cattle breeding activities, e.g. the establishment of agricultural extensions and breeding organisations. Investments were made in research on animal production and breeding. It was realised that efficiency could be increased by improving the feeding and breeding of the animals. In addition, the trade of agricultural products between countries increased, for example Dutch Friesian cattle were sold to the US because of their milk production. In Finland the income from exported butter was used to buy foreign cereal products. Governments started to regulate cattle breeding and decided both in Italy and the Netherlands that only sires registered in an official herdbook were allowed to reproduce. In both countries this implied that bulls of many local breeds were no longer official breeding bulls, because for these breeds no official herd book was established at that time.

The influential development in agriculture was interrupted by the World Wars. The local breeds suffered from the war periods in many ways: a lot of cows were killed due to the war activities. These breeds were slaughtered by the invading troops (Finland) or by hungry citizens (France) for food. In addition, cattle breeds were moved from their original regions to new places with the people that were evacuated during the war (e.g. Eastern and Northern Finncattle), and cattle were even exported to other countries (Villard de Lans, France). Right after the Second World War the first task in many countries was to prevent famine among the human populations and safeguard the self-sufficient nature of the national food production system. Local cattle breeds, that were often dual or even multi-purpose, were well-suited to this purpose, because they provided both milk and meat and therefore generated a respectable income for small farms (e.g. Dual-Purpose Red and White and Belgian Blue in Belgium; Eastern and Western Finncattle, Finland; and MRY, Netherlands).

2.4 Modernisation of agricultural production

Soon after the Second World War there was an urgent need to increase production, and consequently new goals were set for agricultural production in order to improve the efficiency and productivity of farming. Many technological innovations contributed to the move towards more efficient production. The intensification of agriculture required investments and there was a need to replace local breeds with high-input high-output breeds to improve the overall efficiency of cattle production.

The introduction of tractors in the late 1950’s resulted in a decline in the local breeds which had been used for draught power until that time (e.g. Ferrandaise, France; Alistana-Sanabresa and Avileña-Negra Ibérica, Spain). In Spain, for example, the triple-purpose animal had suited the needs of the majority of the population: the draught animals had been used to cultivate cereal, the young calves were sold to regional markets and the milk was mostly used for family consumption. The 1960’s were a turning point: draught animals were replaced by tractors and the demand for animal protein increased. These changes severely affected the Spanish triple-purpose breeds, which have always been closely linked to cereal production in Castilla (local breeds were used for draught power purposes, both for collecting the crops from the field and for transporting them to Madrid). Once tractors had arrived, the draught power of cattle was no longer needed and the population size of the local cattle breeds declined rapidly. The increasing demand for animal protein required specialised beef breeds with higher beef production, instead of triple-purpose animals with lower beef production (Fontana, 1981).

Milking machines were introduced on a large scale in the 1960’s and 1970’s. They had been designed primarily for the udders of commercial dairy breeds (Holstein Friesians), which had been selected much earlier for correct shape and teat placement. The conformation of the udder of some local breeds (e.g. Groningen White Headed, Netherlands; Reggiana, Italy) was not satisfactory, and caused difficulties when attaching the milking machine equipment. For this reason, the local breeds were no longer favoured by many farmers.

The development of artificial insemination (AI) and the use of frozen semen enhanced the extensive dissemination of mainstream breeds (such as Holstein Friesians or French beef breeds) and also initiated large-scale crossbreeding with local cattle breeds. This accelerated the introgression of new genes in many local cattle populations. Importing semen from other countries for crossing with the native breeds occurred in the 1950’s in Italy (US Holstein), and in Finland in the 1960’s, when Finncattle were systematically crossed with Friesian cattle. In Belgium, Canadian Holsteins were imported in the 1970’s and crossbreeding in the Netherlands also started in the 1970’s when Dutch Friesians, MRY and other native breeds were crossed with Holstein Friesians. In Spain, Avileña-Negra Ibérica, which is a typical beef breed, was mated with ‘Vaca Holandesas’ (Dutch Friesian) to improve dairy aptitude. This shows that AI also played a role in speeding up the specialisation of breeds in either milk or beef production.

Improved veterinary skills in caesarean techniques paved the way to selecting for double-muscled Belgian Blue cattle notorious for difficult calving. The Belgian Blue cattle were attractive because the demand for good meat quality increased between 1960 and 1970. Therefore, the Dual-Purpose Belgian Blue started to become obsolete, and many breeders started to select double-muscled animals.

In the old days, cattle were simply fed on natural pastures and feed for cattle was collected from marginal lands. Increased cattle production was possible because arable land for crop production was released for intensive feed production and high quality feed was imported from other continents. Chemical fertilisation made it possible to increase the amount of harvested yield per hectare. At the same time feed storage systems were improved and feed could be harvested within a short period and fed many months later. As a result of this development, feed quality was much more consistent throughout the year, which is especially important for the high-yielding breeds (Holstein Friesians) which are much more demanding than the local cattle breeds (e.g. Irish Kerry Cattle; Dutch Deep Red Cattle). All these changes in farming enhanced the use of high-input high-output Holstein Friesians in dairy production.

The modernisation of agriculture was accelerated by national agricultural policy activities. In addition, the EU Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) was first introduced in 1962, and still plays a very central role in European agricultural and rural development today. The goal of the first CAP was simply to increase agricultural productivity by stimulating technical improvement and efficiency of agricultural production, ensuring proper incomes for the agricultural population, stabilising markets, ensuring food availability, and providing consumers with food at reasonable prices (Article 39).

In some European countries industrialisation had already started at the beginning of 19th century and was accompanied by rapid urbanisation. It led to a rapid growth in the human population, new division of labour, increased wealth, a widening and diversification of food markets with the cost of decreased self-sufficiency in production, and to alienation from the rural way of life and nature.

The intensification of farming and the aforementioned technological developments made it possible to introduce new products for the consumers. For example, yoghurt and lowfat milk products in many countries became popular among the rising urban population. Moreover, the development of household techniques, like freezers and fridges, increased the consumption of dairy and meat products and made more efficient or specialised production very profitable. In Spain, for example, beef consumption per person went up from 5.9 kg per person per year in 1960 to 14.1 kg in 1975, but decreased again to 7.7 kg in 2004 mainly due to the relative increase in beef prices compared with meat from other animals, and to the preference for ‘easy to prepare’-meat that is low in cholesterol. These changes have also been affected by the cattle feed safety scandals (BSE, dioxin). During the last decades of the 20th century, national food cultures and food demands have changed dramatically and the amount of imported food has increased.

2.6 Decline of local cattle breeds

Most of these developments have been harmful to the local breeds. The desire for increased productivity and profitability has led to specialisation in either milk or beef production and to a decline in the use of dual or multi-purpose cows that was emphasised earlier between the 1950’s and 1980’s. The focus on intensification and specialisation of animal production was also reflected in the breeding goals. The advantages and disadvantages of various local and commercial breeds were debated at many forums, and in most countries the local cattle breeds ended up being the losers in these breed-confrontations. Local breeds were undervalued and thought to be both low-producing and old-fashioned. The farmers themselves felt pressure to switch from the local breeds to the modern and efficient dairy or beef breeds.

The decline in the number of heads of the local breeds took place in various countries at varying speeds and in slightly different ways. In Spain, for example, 74% of registered cows in 1955 used to be of a local cattle breed. In 1986, that percentage had fallen to 26%. Between 1950 and 1980, the number of cows from local cattle breeds went down from almost 1.3 million to 700 thousand. Conversely, between 1950 and 1980 the numbers of Friesian cows went up from 338 to 1,375 thousands heads. Similarly, crossbred cows and cows from specialised breeds duplicated their census (García Dory, 1986). In Finland, as another example, the population of Western and Eastern Finncattle declined dramatically from approximately 500,000 in 1950 to only few thousand today. In the Netherlands, within 30 years the proportion of local breeds in total dairy production decreased from almost 100% to less than 5% (Buiteveld et al., 2009). During this period, complete extinction of local cattle breeds was avoided by the prompt activities of some individual people and farmers, who were committed to keeping the local breeds. The breeds have also survived in remote rural areas.

2.7 New policy turns

Agricultural policies practised in the 1960’s and 1970’s aimed at intensifying agricultural production and accompanied by agricultural modernisation had a dramatic impact on agricultural environment and rural society. They resulted directly or indirectly in (1) product surpluses, (2) growing export subsidies and (3) loss of biodiversity in the agricultural environment including a reduced range of local cattle breeds. Many farmers, like other rural dwellers, moved from the countryside to urban areas to work in industry or services. Those who stayed in cattle production intensified their farming and specialised in either dairy or beef production, with a breed that best suited that purpose.

As a result of these new trends, new regulations were needed. The milk quota system was introduced in 1984 in Europe to stop the over-production of milk. In 1992, agri-environmental measures (Council Regulation (EEC) No 2078/92) were introduced as part of the Common Agricultural Policy to support and encourage farmers to protect and manage the environment on their farmland better. This programme also included a measure for keeping indigenous rare/local breeds. A survey was carried out in Europe by Small and Hosking (2010) to determine how Farm Animal Genetic Resources are supported in both EU member and non-member states. They received responses from 18 countries, and 11 of them used the national allocation from the EU Rural Development Programme to support the conservation of Farm Animal Genetic Resources. All but two paid on a Livestock Unit basis. The intended aim of this measure is to benefit genetic diversity, but there is also expected to be a positive impact on the landscape.

There has also been a focus at the international level on the loss of biodiversity in agriculture. The Convention of Biodiversity (CBD) was negotiated within the framework of the UN Environment Programme in 1992, and was ratified by the European Union and other European states. The three objectives of the CBD are: (1) conservation of biological diversity, (2) a sustainable use of components of biological diversity, and (3) fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising from the utilisation of genetic resources. Although not directly stated in the CBD, these objectives also include animal genetic resources. The nations that have ratified the Convention have accepted responsibility for the utilisation and conservation of the national farm animal genetic resources. Furthermore in 2007, member states adopted the FAO Global Plan of Action for Animal Genetic Resources, which is an important milestone and trigger for European countries to design and further develop a national strategy and action plans for farm animal genetic resources.

2.8 21st century: new opportunities for local breeds?

After a few less glorious decades, the new millennium seems to be offering many opportunities for local breeds. In the late 1990’s new food trends and initiatives like ‘functional food’, ‘local food’, and ‘slow food’ provided an opening for breed-specific products of local breeds, as they could easily be associated with all these trends. Food is considered not only as a means of nutrition, but increasingly as a way of living and part of someone’s identity (e.g. personality, social status): ‘You are what you eat’. Therefore, there are growing markets for niche products, or products differentiated along with various characteristics, such as the method and place of production and/or cultural traditions. It is not only the image of the product, but also the gastronomic characteristics and quality that determine consumption patterns. Milk from many local cattle breeds seems to be very suitable for cheese-making due to its high dry-matter content and protein composition (Eastern Finncattle; Reggiana, Italy; Groningen White Headed, NL) and the beef of some local breeds is appreciated for its cooking quality.

There are already brand-products like (1) Parmigiano Reggiano cheese made with Modenese or Reggiana cattle milk only, and (2) branded Modenese meat, under the Consortium ‘Valorizzazione prodotti bovini di razza Bianca Valpadana Modenese’ in Italy. The Slow Food-movement has also created a ‘presidium’ for some breeds and their products. In France, a special trademark ‘La Ferrandaise’ was created in 1999 and a ‘Ferrandaise’ restaurant was opened. In Spain the first label linked to beef ‘Carne de Avileña’ and the ‘Consejo Regulador de Carne de Avileña’ was created in 1988 to promote and control the meat sold under this specific brand. Later in 1993 the name was changed to ‘Carne de Avila’ to adapt to the EU legislation. In 1999, the association APTA (Aliste Beef Promotion Association) in Spain created a Guarantee Label, ‘Ternera de Aliste’. In the Netherlands, some farmers make branded cheese with milk from either Groningen White Headed or Deep Red Cattle (called ‘Leidse Sleutelkaas’ and ‘Brandrood Kaas’, respectively). In Finland, very recently, new collection of cheeses called ‘Armas-family’ made from the milk of Eastern Finncattle was introduced on the initiative of a Finnish chef, and active co-operation between some Finnish restaurants and local cattle farmers has emerged. There is also an increasing demand for the skins of the Eastern Finncattle cows.

In addition to the new food consumption trends, the policy reforms that have been made in the 21st century offer many new opportunities for the local breeds, but also some drawbacks and threats. According to the CAP reform in 2003 the majority of subsidies will be paid independently of the volume of production. It is assumed that removing the link between subsidies and production will make farmers more competitive and market orientated, whilst providing the necessary income stability. In addition, mitigating the problem of overproduction, subsidies on livestock products and animals have been restructured and there are plans to eliminate the milk quota system, which, however, may put an greater higher pressure on production efficiency.

The European Rural Development Policy has accompanied and complemented the Common Agricultural Policy since 2000. The Rural Development Programme for 2007-2013 aims not only to improve the competitiveness of the agricultural and forestry sector and the state of the rural environment, but also to improve the quality of life in rural areas and to encourage diversification of the rural economy (EC 1698/2005). The programme contains measures on diversification towards non-agricultural activities, support for the establishment and development of micro-business, promotion of tourism, and the protection, development and management of natural heritage. All these measures are contributing to sustainable economic development. It can be argued that conservation and preservation of local breeds fits well with all these aims: the breeds are able to contribute to the efficiency of animal production and safeguard the possibilities for genetic diversification in the future. They are also contributing to the landscape and biodiversity management of rural areas. Breed-specific products of local breeds may contribute to the rural economy and increase the quality of life in both rural and urban areas. The breeds may also have a wider impact on rural society, as they might serve as a source of income and a possibility to stay in the sparsely populated rural areas (Soini, 2007; Soini and Partanen, 2009).

In addition to the agricultural and rural policies, EU has designed new legislation for veterinary and food safety, mainly to cope with newly-discovered health hazards, like BSE and dioxin contamination. Therefore, there is now a considerable amount of food safety legislation, on animals and animal products within the EU, but also in third countries on the exports from these countries to the EU. On the other hand, maintenance of local breeds and development of local food products may be hindered by this kind of legislation, because big investments are needed by a farmer to comply with the regulations. For the small-scale farmer with a few local breed cows, the investments are particularly high for committing to a specific on-farm product (e.g. cheese). Moreover, the EU zootechnical legislation is regulating free trade in breeding animals and their genetic material. It also lays down rules for entering animals into herdbooks and for the recording of performance data and estimation of breeding values and acceptance for breeding purposes.

All in all, the recent policy developments include a number of options for supporting conservation and the use of local breeds, ranging from direct subsidies to reduce the gap in profitability per animal between the local and mainstream breed, to subsidies for (1) nonproductive components like environmental services, cultural heritage and (2) supporting institutions, breed interest groups or breed societies. These subsidies can be implemented in rural development programmes on a national level. It has to be added that national governments often have higher priorities than local breeds.

As a result of developments in agricultural, socio-economic, cultural and policy fields, the status of the local cattle breeds has changed rapidly during the 20th century from a major breed to a marginal one. This development has been taken place in all European countries, although at a different pace and in different ways. However, many common turning points can be identified. As a conclusion it can be argued that although there are still many threats to the local breeds in economic, political and social terms, there are also mechanisms that may promote the self-sustainability of local breeds, or at least prevent their extinction.

2.9 Conclusions

As a result of developments in agricultural, socio-economic, cultural and rural and environmental policy fields, the status of the local cattle breeds has changed rapidly during the 20th century from a major breed to a marginal one. Examples of such developments are (1) the increased interest in breeds and breeding, accompanied with the establishment of herdbooks and agricultural shows, and (2) the modernisation of agricultural production with technological innovations, industrialisation and urbanisation. These developments took place in all European countries, although at a different pace and in different ways. However, many common turning points can be identified.

There are still many threats for the local breeds in economic, political and social terms. Younger farmers do not necessarily understand the value of local breeds, and they often see local cattle breeds as low-yield and old-fashioned. If no-one continues to farm local cattle, there is a risk that this way of living will disappear. The global agricultural and animal market can be considered as a threat as well. On the other hand, there are also initiatives that promote local breeds. They contribute to more self-sustaining local breeds, and at least prevent their extinction. The introduction of breed-specific products is one example of an efficient and effective initiative that promotes local breeds.

As regards the future of local breeds in Europe, there are many ongoing economic, social and cultural processes, which open up new possibilities, such as increased environmental awareness, more sustainable ways of living and individual consumption habits, making livestock production systems more sustainable, (re-)discovering local/regional/national identity, or new functions and roles of farm animals in society (e.g. nature management, care farming, education services).

Written by Katriina Soini and Yvette de Haas in "Local Cattle Breeds in Europe", edited by Sipke Joost Hiemstra, Yvette de Haas, Asko Mäki-Tanila and Gustavo Gandini; Wageningen Academic Publishers, Netherlands, 2010, excerpts chapter 2, pp-22-39. Digitized, adapted and illustrated to be posted by Leopoldo Costa.