There are very different types of herbivores relying upon grasslands biomass in Europe and contrasting animal populations across Europe
In France
This graph shows that a decrease of milk cows is concomitant with the increase of suckler cows.
The numbers of other domestic herbivores have also varied. Three important movements should be emphasized:
- Sheep: (dairy sheep and sheep for meat): in the majority of European countries their numbers have been decreasing, particularly numbers of sheep for meat.
- Goats: poorly represented in Europe, they are notably present in France and Greece. They show a very high constancy in all areas. They are almost exclusively intended for milk production.
- Equines: a category that almost disappeared at the end of 1970s, their main function being as draft animals. Today we observe an expansion of the equine herd in practically all European countries. The growth rate in France was over 10% per year over the past five years, with today more LU in equines than in sheep. They are now almost exclusively used for recreational or sports purposes. The peculiarity of this class of herbivores is that 25% of them are raised off the farm.
In United Kingdom
Analysis of the United Kingdom situation shows a regular decrease of dairy cows, a slight increase from the middle of the 1980s amongst suckler cows, and as a result of these two evolutions, a major decrease amongst other cattle (heifers and male cattle).
In Germany
Analysis of the German case made since 1991, a reunification date, shows, as for other countries, a significant decrease in the number of dairy cows (7.000,000 in 1990 to approximately 4.000,000 in 2009), a very small increase in the number of suckler cows, and consequently once again, a reduction in the herd of other cattle.
In Ireland
Irish analysis shows, unlike other countries, a very high stability of the dairy cow herd, an increase in the herd of suckler cows, and consequently, a stability of the other cattle.
The country is characterised by a large herd of cattle and an extremely high proportion of permanent grasslands.
In Poland
Mixed Grasslands
The table below shows mixed crops grown in Poland according to climatic conditions.
| Legumes | Grasses | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Warm Areas | Humid Areas | |||
| Humid Soil | Dry Soil | Humid Soil | Dry Soil | |
| Red Clover | Perennial Reygrass | Meadow Fescue | Timothy | Meadow Fescue |
| White Clover | Perennial Reygrass + Meadow Fescue | Meadow Fescue + Smooth Bromegrass | Timothy + (orchard grass) | Meadow Fescue + Smooth Bromegrass |
| Lucerne | Timothy (orchard grass) | Tall oat grass (Dactylis)) | Timothy (orchard grass) | Tall oat grass (Dactylis) |
Dairy System and Policy
After Poland joined the European Union, its dairy system changed dramatically. Infrastructures needed to be upgraded to meet the standards, causing some to cease all activity, modernising the farming process for others.
Table below assesses of the situation of Polish farms in 2005 ¹
| Number of Farms | Less then 5 | from 5 to 10 | from 10 to 20 | from 20 to 50 | More then 50 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 583,000 | 73,000 | 50,000 | 20,000 | 2,000 | 727,000 |
| In % | 80 % | 10 % | 6.9 % | 2.8 % | 0.3 % | 100 % |
| Part of the Herd | 33 % | 17 % | 23 % | 18 % | 10 % | 100 % |
| Part of the National Collection | ~8 % | 20 % | 33 % | 25 % | 14 % | 100 % |
| Evolution Trend | Strong Decrease | Stable | Increase | Strong Increase | / | |
| Characteristics | Family farms have on average less than 10 ha of land. They live off of self-consumption and direct sales. These farms have generally been unable or unwilling to adjust to European standards. They often combine dairy production with a calf breeding. With a decrease in collection points, they are gradually disappearing. | With an average of 10 to 20 ha of surface, these farms still alternate pasture and forage (6 months each). They generally diversify with other soil-less productions. The number of farms that increased their herd (and thus crossed into the next category) is counterbalanced by the arrival of micro-farms which slightly increased. | Generally young farmers, stared up using government aid, their farms are mostly modern and (over-)equipped, mixing traditional and more recent practices. | These farms have appeared most often due to a huge modernisation of family farms, employing full-time stuff. They have also benefited from government aid. | Mainly businesses that purchased former state farms. They keep mostly keep their dairy cows in stables. These farms are the preferred partners of dairy industries. |
¹ based upon study by: Barbin G., You G. (2009). Structures de production et systèmes fourragers laitiers en Pologne. Fourrages, 197, 11-24.
In North Africa
Algeria
Algeria is an arid or semi-arid area where rainfall rarely exceeds 400 mm/year. Intensive crops are not possible and livestock represents the main element of their production systems. Sheep which make up this livestock feed mostly on grains, by-products of cereals, as well as vegetation left to fallow.
Using Legumes in Fallow
In these dry areas, fallow crops are an essential element of erosion reduction. For many years the importance of leguminous forages has been recognised in these areas. Legumes enrich the soil with organic and nitrogenous materials, reducing root diseases and the presence of nematodes in cereals, limiting soil erosion and promoting water binding in the soils. They also have the advantage of being directly grazed by small ruminant livestock.
The use of legumes is particularly adapted for the genus Vicia (V. sativa, V. ervilia, and V. villosa). Their association with a forage cereal (oats, barley or triticale) is common and the quality of produced hay is excellent.
The fallow is often followed by a cereal crop of barley or wheat in more humid areas.
In North America
Quebec
Key Statistics
- Forage production occupies 50% of all cultivated land
- 800,000 ha are used for hay; 200,000 ha for seeded pasture
- 17 agricultural administrative regions count 9,000 dairy farmers
- a majority of them are located in the regions surrounding the city of Quebec, in the southern semicircle going from east to west.
In South America
Brazil
Key Statistics
- Since 1970, the cattle herd has grown at the rate of about 5% per year in this region.
- In 2006, the Brazilian Amazon had 50 million cattle..
- In 2006, there are still 60 million hectares dedicated to livestock pasture.
Since the 1970s we have witnessed a development of the cattle herd in Brazilian Amazon region. Formerly owned by large landowners, cattle are now mainly owned by small family farms with less than 500 ha, thereby becoming an important (if not the only) source of income in this period of massive rural exodus. These farms combine dairy and suckler cows: young calves grow up with their mothers and are sold for fattening while young heifers are kept to increase the herd size.
Feeding of livestock solely by pasture grazing is the main feature of this region. There is no stock stored for the “bad season”. These pastures are set up on deforested surfaces obtained by burning, and become monospecific plots Brachiaria spp.
These plots do not remain usable for very long. They are quickly invaded by weed flora (“weeds”), leading inexorably to their degradation and uselessness. Farmers than proceed with deforestation of other plots to which they apply the same treatment, leading to the gradual deforestation of the Amazon.
By preventing the weed invasion of pastures, it would be quite possible to avoid burning, the leading cause of deforestation in the Amazon rainforest.
Knowing the importance of primary forests like Amazon for maintaining and protecting biodiversity, as well as fixing carbon dioxide (whose over-presence in the atmosphere accelerates the greenhouse effect and thus global warming) it is crucial to deal with this problem.