CHARACTERIZATION OF DAIRY CATTLE BREEDING IN A SAHARAN REGION (GHARDAÏA, ALGERIA): SOCIO-PROFESSIONAL PROFILE OF PRODUCING BREEDERS
Bensaha Hocine, Arbouche Fodil
Abstract
The dairy cattle breeding is one of the agricultural priorities for economic development in the developing countries, like Algeria. In this study, the various aspects of dairy cattle breeding in a Saharan region (Ghardaïa, southern Algeria) characterized in its socio professional regional environment. The main objective was to establish the socio professional characters of breeder by analyzing the diagnosis related to the dairy industry in this region. This was done through the thematic analysis of the relationship between cattle breeding and its socio-economic environment, especially the dairy industry using the raw milk. A survey was conducted on dairy cattle breeding in the region of Ghardaïa. 53 cattle breeders were selected for this survey. The results showed that only 22.45% of the cattle farms were found to use liberal activities off-farm wage, whereas more than 77% of cattle farms were not. This can be justified by the fact that almost 18% of persons were aged over 50 years. Some relations were established between the criteria of milk production and breeder's profile, through some key indicators of the typology. Additionally, the diversity of breeder's profiles, their representations of animals and working with animals, and their logic livestock were reported.
