Organic sheep and goat farming: opportunities and challenges

Publication date: 26/02/2019
Extent: 18 pages

Contributions by: Georgios Arsenos, Angeliki Argyriadou, Sotiria Vouraki and Athanasios Gelasakis, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece

Chapter synopsis: Organic goat and sheep farming is a highly diverse type of production throughout Europe and other continents. Current practices are geared to achieve a number of objectives, including sustainability and high standards of animal welfare. This chapter aims to characterize organic goat and sheep farming and illustrate the diversity of systems, with a special focus on European countries. The chapter discusses a range of challenges faced by organic sheep and goat production together with some of the ways in which these challenges can be addressed. Challenges examined include nutrient deficiencies, parasitic diseases, udder diseases, lameness, claw and leg problems. Finally, the chapter looks ahead to future research trends in this area.

DOI: 10.19103/AS.2017.0028.17