Improvement of biological efficiency, Animal breeding: contributions to the efficiency of livestock production

Abstract

Biological efficiency is an elastic term that commonly refers to comparisons of some aspect of animal performance at individual or herd level. It is useful in reviewing the opportunities for improvement by animal breeding to stretch the term to cover the biological efficiency of whole industries and thus their ability to compete for resources. Past improvements in the productivity of livestock, especially of pigs and poultry, suggests that genetical progress tends to be contemporary with advances in husbandry, scale, and other aspects of management; that ruminants are relatively backward; and that reproductive rate has so far not contributed fully to the improvements. The conflict of objectives that follows from diversity in production methods that range from hill-farming to factory farming needs resolving. Most of the prospective contributions from animal breeding research imply an emphasis on intensive systems and on efficient food production. Since society at large has other interests as well, there is a case for initiating an articulate and scientific study of the facts, methods and principles of livestock policy with a view to identifying national priorities.