Conserving poultry biodiversity: choosing is not always losing!

R. Boonen

Conserving poultry biodiversity: choosing is not always losing!

In: Ethical futures: bioscience and food horizons

Author:

R. Boonen

R. Boonen Centre for Science, Technology and Ethics, Kasteelpark Arenberg 30 – bus 2456, B-3001 Leuven, Belgium; Ruben.Boonen@biw.kuleuven.be

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Type:: Chapter

Pages:: 130–134

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.3920/9789086866731_021

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This paper considers the notion of biodiversity in chickens (Gallus gallus). Biodiversity consists of a genetic, an aesthetic and a culture-historical aspect. To ensure future food production, genetic diversity needs to be protected. It is generally thought that genetic diversity is very low for commercial poultry breeds, because the animals are – within their own breeds – phenotypically very similar and only two companies control worldwide layer and boiler selection. Studies show however that this is not necessarily true. The broiler male lines that were used in these studies show a higher heterozygocity than local chicken breeds and different subspecies of Gallus gallus. Studies also show that although genetic diversity within old breeds is rather low, they represent a rather large part in the founding-father genomeequivalent, which makes them interesting to maintain genetic diversity within the species. Because conservation of breeds is rather expensive, one has to choose which breeds are worth conserving and which are not. A problem here is the ill-defined term ‘breed’, because – in the end – a breed is whatever breeders say it is. Since biodiversity also relates to aesthetics and to culture/history, which cannot be expressed in an objective, numerical value, estimating the total value of a breed is not just a simple calculation. One has to take these difficulties into account while making a well-founded decision about which breed is worthy of conservation and which is not. Depending on the goal – which diversity has to be saved? – different groups of breeds are required. The author argues that there is no need to conserve all breeds, because some breeds are strongly related – genetically, historically or aesthetically – to others. Choosing is not always losing!

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Ethical futures: bioscience and food horizons

E-Book ISBN:: 9789086866731

Publisher:: Wageningen Academic

Print Publication Date:: 30 Oct 2009

Subjects
- Life Sciences

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Conserving poultry biodiversity: choosing is not always losing!

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Ethical futures: bioscience and food horizons

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