Non conventional meat

With the emerging concern on environmental cost more specifically greenhouse gas emission related with conventional livestock rearing for meat has come to a problematic situation. Therefore, animal scientists and human nutritionists collectively try to develop a new trend of rearing non-conventional livestock for meat purposes. Some of the non conventional species are already being exploited to commercial levels. This presentation attempts to discuss some key points about non conventional livestock in a brief and simple manner.

1. Non-Conventional Meat
I.W.A.S.Sujani PGIA/2012/134

2. Introduction
Conventional Livestock Performance
specialization
Marketdemand
Morecontrolledand
intensiveproduction
systems
Commercially
exploited

3. Non-conventional Meat, What & Why?

4. Non-conventional meat species
What?
Reservoirsofvaluablegenetic
resources
Traditionallybeenusedassources
ofanimalprotein,fiber,transport
anddraughtpower
Littlehasbeendonetodevelop
theircommercialexploitation
Why?
Climaticandecologicaldiversity
Differentlevelsofeconomic
developmentinvariouspartsofthe
world
Largenumberofotheranimal
specieswhicharepotentially
suitablefordomesticationand
commercialproduction

5. Justification of commercial exploitation of non-conventional meat
Unconventionallivestockareadaptedtoharshenvironments
Canutilizenaturalresourcesthatconventionalstockcannot
Suitableforcomplementaryproductionwithconventionalspecies
Moreefficientrecyclingofnutrientsthroughintegratingtheminto
intensifiedproductionsystems
Unconventionalanimalsareeasytofeed,manageandhandle,andcan
thereforeberaisedbylandlessandsmallholderfarmers
(Source:Vietmeyer,1984;PichandPeters,1985)

6. Classification of non-conventional meat species
Based on ecological distribution and body size
Classified under 3 categories
-Animals with a large body size and high ecological affinity
-Animals with a small body size and high ecological affinity
-Animals with a small body size and low ecological affinity

7. Alpaca meat
Aviablealternative
agriculturalenterprise
Hardyanimalandan
extremely efficient
grazer.
Usedformeat,leather
andfiber
Meatislean,tender
andalmostsweet
Highinprotein,lowin
fatand lowest
cholesterollevel

8. Camel meat
Lowfatcontentandhighly
nutritious
Potentialtobeusedto
hypertension,pneumonia
andrespiratorydisease
Currentlyfarmingformeat
inAsia,Africa,Latin
AmericaandAustralia

9. Ostrich meat Byfarthehealthiestalternativetoour
traditionalmeat(lowerfat,caloriesand
cholesterolthanbeef,chicken,turkey
porkandfish)
A"redmeat"similarincolourandtaste
tobeef
Hugeportionofallthemeatfroman
ostrichcomesfromtheleg,thigh,and
back
Fastbecomingafavouritewithpeopleas
aleanmeat

10. Cattle
One calf/yr
250 kg (at 24 months)
Ostrich
40 eggs
1800 kg (at 14 months)
Ostriches produce more meat than cattle

11. Comparing ostrich with other meats (per 100 grams serving)
Type of
Meat
Protein (%)
Fat
(Grams)
Calories
(KCal)
Iron (mg)
Cholesterol
(mg)
Ostrich 26.9 3.0 142 3.2 81
Beef 28.1 10.5 209 3.0 83
Veal 33.9 9.4 225 1.2 124
Pork 29.3 15.2 256 1.1 91
Chicken 28.9 7.4 190 1.2 89
Turkey 29.36 5.0 170 1.8 76
Lamb 30.4 9.4 215 1.2 95

12. Deer meat
Deermeatiscalledasvension
Lowinfat,andhighinproteinandminerals
Anexcellentwaytostartanewenterprisethat
diversifiestheirexistingoperationinalowerinput
andmoreenvironmentallysoundmanner
Deerfarmingbeganinthelate1960s
Therearemorethan1.7milliondeeronNew
Zealandfarms
U.S.currentlyproducesonly20percentofthe
venisondemand
Deerconsumelessfodderthancattle,areless
damagingtopastures,maturemorequickly,and
canreproduceforupto20yearsincaptivity

13. Rabbit meat
Breedandgrowsoquickly
Onepairofhealthydoes(females)canproduce
morethan600poundsofmeatinayear
Moreefficientfeedutilization
Excellentsourceofprotein,haslesscholesterol
andfatthanchicken,beef,lamborpork
Almostidealfattyacidratioof4:1omega-6to
beneficialomega-3fattyacids

14. Guinea pig meat
Usuallycookedwhole,oftengrilled,
sometimesdeepfried
Consideredafineandvaluablefoodin
Ecuador,PeruandColombia
Low-impactmeatalternativetocarbon-
costlybeef
Don'trequirethelandthatcattledo(can
bekeptinbackyards,orinyourhome)
Docileandeasytoraise
Highfeedconversionefficiency

15. Edible insects
Insectsareanextremelygood
sourceofproteinandvitamins
Moreefficientfeedconversion
thanotherlivestock
10kgfeed 1kgbeef
1.7kgfeed 1kginsects
Only1%GHGemissions

16. Commonly cultivated
species
(a)common cricket
(b)house cricket
(c) palm weevil larvae
(d) mealworm
a
b
c
d

17. Snail meat
Snailisalowfat,highproteinmeat
Francealone,40,000tonnesofsnailsare
eatenperyear
Fatteningthesnailsbykeepinglarge
numbersoftheminsmallspaces,
greenhousesandpens,andfeedingthem
withartificialfoodmixes.
Usuallysnailsaresoldconservedin
differentways:Intinsinasauce,or
frozen

18. Alternative poultry meat
Guinea fowl
PopularinEurope(France,Italy,
Poland),Russia,NorthAmericaandin
Africa
FCRis3.1–3.5
Darkandtastymeat
23%proteinand4%fat(comparedto
21%proteinand7%fatinchicken)
Dressingpercentageis74%

19. Pigeon
Usesquabsformeat
Slaughterjustbeforefull
featherdevelopment/flying
Highflesh:inedibleratio
Meatistender,tastywith
goodflavor

20. •tender and
palatable meat
•marketable age
–6–7 weeks
Duck
•Fatty meat
•Gosling market
is popular
Geese

21. •Large breast
muscle
•Low fat
Muscovy
•Dark and tasty
meat
•Dressing 67 –
72%
Quail

22. Potentials
1.Specific adaptability to ecological niches
2.High reproductive capacity
Short generation interval
Large litter size
Fast juvenile growth
3.Efficient utilization of nutrients
4.Extended utilization of feed resources
Minute feed ––pigeon, guinea fowl, duck, turkey, snail
Household scraps ––guinea pig, rabbit

23. 5.Limited competition with humans for feedstuffs
Utilize roughages and edible byproducts of food processing
6.Flexible adjustment of livestock holding to available resources
Animals are small, prolific and have a fast turnover
7.Low production risk
Small initial investment, fast returns
8.Easy to market or consume at home
Can be transported alive without difficulty; provide cash or meat in small
quantities

24. Constraints
1.Insufficientinformationaboutgeneticresourcesforspecializedproductionsystems
2.Limitedgeneticprogress,duetolackofbreedingstrategies,smallpopulationsizesand
multipurposeproduction
3.Underestimatedimportanceassourcesoffoodandincome
4.Lowprioritygiveninresearchanddevelopment
5.Lackofmanagementskillsandveterinaryinputs
6.Limitedscopeforimprovingbackyardproductionsystems
7.Legislationtoprotectwildspeciesimposeslimitationsontheeconomicutilizationof
undomesticatedanimals

25. References
•Bland,A.,2013,‘FromPetsToPlates:WhyMorePeopleAreEatingGuineaPigs’,Retrievedon15thMay2014from
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/03/12/174105739/from-pets-to-plates-why-more-people-a...
•Drew,K.,2013,'Deeranddeerfarming',TeAra-theEncyclopediaofNewZealand,Retrievedon15
th
May2014from
http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/deer-and-deer-farming
•Lisa,L.,2013,‘RaisingDucksforMeat’,Retrievedon19thMay2014from
http://www.theselfsufficienthomeacre.com/2013/04/raisingducksformeat.html
•Peters,K.J.,‘Unconventionallivestock:Classificationandpotentialuses’,Retrievedon13thMay2014from
http://www.ilri.cgiar.org/InfoServ/Webpub/fulldocs/Bulletin27/uncon.htm
•VanHuis,A.,VanItterbeeck,J.,Klunder,H.,Mertens,E.,Halloran,A.,Muir,G.,&Vantomme,P.,2013,‘Edibleinsects:
futureprospectsforfoodandfeedsecurity’,FAOForestryPaper171.
•Vietmeyer,N.,1984,‘Livestockforthelandless’,CeresNo.98(No.17,No.2):43–46.
•Vos,P.B.,2004,‘Alpacasdollarsandsense’,HobbyFarmsmagazine,Retrievedon17
th
May2014from
http://www.hobbyfarms.com/livestock-and-pets/invest-in-alpacas-15045.aspx