Economic values of production and functional traits in Egyptian buffalo

Abstract

This investigation was carried out to estimate the economic values (EVs) of production and functional traits of Egyptian buffalo to determine relative importance breeding objectives in Egyptian buffalo to design breeding programs for genetic improvement. Bioeconomic model with socioeconomic questionnaire of eight farms was used to estimate the EVs. The breeding objective involved milk production (MP), fat production (FP), lactation length (LL), longevity (L), age at first calving (AFC), calving interval (CL), clinical mastitis (CM) and stillbirth (SB). The economic value of MP, FP, LL, L, AFC, CI, CM, and SB was 0.33, 3.07, 3.56, 0.174, -0.34, -2.12, -38.59 and -8.01 US$, respectively. The highest emphasis on traits in the estimated EVs of the current study was LL (31.41%). It was followed by MY (29.45%), FY (22.78%), CM (11.71%), CI (3.36%), L (0.675), SB (0.0.589%) and AFC (0.019%). This investigation showed that 50% of those studied traits (production traits) positively influenced profitability, and the other 50% (functional traits) negatively influenced profitability. The current study revealed the importance of economic values for production and functional traits in Egyptian buffalo that enable farmers and producers to adjust their selection programs to achieve the highest profitability.