7049: CONVERSION OF A LAMB PRODUCTION SYSTEM TO ORGANIC FARMING: HOW TO MANAGE, FOR WHICH RESULTS?
(2005) CONVERSION OF A LAMB PRODUCTION SYSTEM TO ORGANIC FARMING: HOW TO MANAGE, FOR WHICH RESULTS?. Paper presented at ISOFAR.
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Summary
Two sheep flocks were managed organically (for two years from conversion onwards) under different lambing strategies (1 lambing/year vs. 3 lambings every two years). The second system was tested as there was a producer’s interest in high productivity that is a guarantee of good economic results in conventional. Reproduction, feeding, lamb production, carcass quality, health (particularly internal parasitism), economic return of the flock, grass production, and pasture biodiversity were evaluated. The lambs were bred under low therapeutic input. The economical advantage of increasing lambing frequency was not demonstrated, whereas this strategy complexified management and resulted in higher internal parasitic infection of the lambs, and finally showed a lower stability. There were difficulties in establishing a very high feed self-sufficiency in both systems, especially the more intensive system (4 points lower), due to harsh climatic conditions; following this five-year experiment, we are changing our strategy to provide nitrogen in the systems.
| Document Language: | English |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | lamb, meat, parasitism, economics |
| Subject Areas: | Animal husbandry > Production systems > Sheep and goats Animal husbandry > Health and welfare |
| Research affiliation: | France > INRA - Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique International Conferences > ISOFAR conferences |
| Total budget (Euro): | 0 |
| Orgprints ID Number: | 7049 |
| Contact: | BENOIT, Marc |
| Deposited On: | 02 February 2006 |
| EPrint Type: | Conference paper |
| Published?: | Published |
| Peer Review Status: | Peer-reviewed and accepted |
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