Open AccessDairy Cattle Cross-breeding in Ethiopia: Challenges and Opportunities: A Review
Author(s) -
Berhane Hagos Gebrehiwet
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of dairying, foods and home sciences/journal of dairying foods and home sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 0976-0563
pISSN - 0971-4456
DOI - 10.18805/ajdfr.dr-157
Subject(s) - crossbreed , breed , artificial insemination , dairy cattle , milk production , microbiology and biotechnology , production (economics) , biology , insemination , zoology , agricultural science , animal breeding , economics , pregnancy , genetics , macroeconomics
A dairy cattle crossbreeding has been started in 1930s to improve cow milk production, using exotic breeds such as Holstein Friesian and Jersey to exploit breed complementarities of milk production and reproductive traits. Crossbred cows with 50% to 75% blood level able to produce more milk whereas, reproductive performance has decreased as exotic blood level exceeds beyond 50%. Environment and genotype mismatch, lack of appropriate breeding policy and recording system, poor infrastructure, lack of trained man power, improper use of artificial insemination and low adoption of breeding technologies are some of the constraints of dairy cattle crossbreeding in Ethiopia. Defining the suitable breed and blood level for specific production system, continuous skill updating for artificial insemination technicians and introducing appropriate recording system are the most critical points that should be considered during proposing of cross-breeding program for dairy cattle. The purpose of this review was to look at the challenges and opportunities of dairy cattle crossbreeding programs in Ethiopia.