The AFP reports that 20% of livestock are in danger of extinction.
Some 20 percent of the world’s livestock species — cattle, pigs and poultry — are threatened with extinction, with one breed disappearing each month, the Food and Agriculture Organization warned.
Over the past five years alone, some 60 breeds of cattle, goats, pigs, horses and poultry have become extinct, the Rome-based UN agency said in a draft document, blaming globalization as the “biggest single factor” in the erosion of livestock biodiversity.
“Maintaining animal genetic diversity will allow future generations to select stocks or develop new breeds to cope with emerging issues, such as climate change, diseases and changing socio-economic factors,” said Jose Esquinas-Alcazar, secretary of the FAO’s Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.
Rearing livestock contributes to the livelihoods of one billion people in the world, the FAO says.
Livestock are the mainstay of human species. Reading livestock is one of the most important aspects of survival and growth in the world for man. Biodiversity is important in generally for a variety of reasons and in this case of global diseases it is far more important.
Business need to understand that like diverse portfolio investments in various financial assets, it is important to have a wide variety of species for overall benefit.
