Editorial Prof. Dr. W.Bessei & Prof. Dr. Isabelle Ruhnke - Is backyard always backward?

EDITORIAL

W. Bessei Professor, Farm Animal Ethology and Small Animal Science, Contact: werner.bessei@uni-hohenheim.de
Isabelle Ruhnke, Professor Poultry Diseases, Contact: Isabelle.Ruhnke@fu-berlin.de

When following the discussion about extensive poultry farming, one often encounters the argument that this section of agriculture is old-fashioned, inefficient, and not sustainable. Some may say that supporting this type of production would even hinder the development of professional poultry production in general due to biosecurity reasons. On the other hand, there are concerns that intensive poultry production with commercial hybrids deprive small-scale poultry farmers in developing countries of an important source of income and accelerate the extinction of many local breeds. Looking at the trend in poultry production in recent years, it is clear that neither of these extreme views is valid. There is no doubt that the continuous global increase in poultry production is based on the use of hybrid breeds under intensive farming conditions. Intensive poultry farming is and continues to be the main source of egg and poultry meat supply for growing populations in urban areas. However, it has also been shown that intensive poultry production has no influence on the production and consumption of products from small-scale extensive farming which serve a completely different market. This supports the important task of conserving native poultry breeds. The author of the current article has studied the diversity of extensively farmed native poultry species and breeds in developing countries in depth. The paper is presented in two consecutive parts: Part I Contributions of native poultry to food security, wealth creation and sustainable livelihoods under resource-limited conditions. Part II The role and current state of native poultry species and breeds.