Current Trends in the Transhumant Cattle Sector in Greece

• Main Authors: Athanasios Ragkos, Anna Siasiou, Vasiliki Lagka, Ioannis Mitsopoulos, Zaphiris Abas
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Agroprint Timisoara 2013-05-01
• Series: Scientific Papers Animal Science and Biotechnologies
• Subjects: bovine transhumant herds, bovine farming system, greece, transhumance
• Online Access: http://spasb.ro/index.php/spasb/article/view/193
• ISSN: 1841-9364; 2344-4576

Bovine transhumance is characterized by the seasonal movement of livestock between winter and summer pastures. The system is well-known for Mediterranean countries, including Greece, where its role is multifunctional, because of its complex interactions with the environments and local societies. Unlike the dairy farming sector in Greece, whose salient features are the emergence of large-sized farms which are heavily dependent on fixed capital endowments and the provision of feedstuff, the transhumant system is much more flexible, by taking advantage of excessive family labor and by reducing feeding costs through grazing. The total number of transhumant farms in Greece has diminished during the last decades this farming system remains an essential activity in less favored areas of the country; the bovine cattle transhumant system, in particular, provides an efficient alternative to the capital-intensive dairy farming system. The purpose of this study is to provide a presentation of the current condition of the transhumant bovine cattle farming system in Greece. Through a survey of all relevant public services, data concerning the number of transhumant farms and animals as well as their movements in 2011 are presented. The survey reveals that the larger amount of transhumant farms is present in the lowlands of Thessaly and of East Macedonia-Thrace and move towards the mountainous rangelands of less favored areas, particularly those of West Macedonia. The mean transhumant bovine farm size does not exceed 100 animals, as nearly 76.1%, of the total rear less than 100 cattle. Thessaly is the region which accommodates the major part of transhumant farming in Greece; this is also the case for transhumant cattle, as 51.4% of all transhumant farms in the country have their winter domiciles in Thessaly.