The breed Camel of the Canary Islands joins the 100% Indigenous Breed Label
Since the 100% Indigenous Breed Label was created in 2013 through the Royal Decree 505/2013 of June 28th, the trust of livestock breeders’ associations has been constant and currently, the label comprises 66 breeds of seven different species. To the classic species (cattle, sheep, goats, swine, poultry and equidae) is now added the only breed of camelids existing in the Official Catalogue of Livestock Breeds of Spain, namely the Camel of the Canary Islands.
In 2012, the Camel of the Canary Islands was admitted as an indigenous breed in the aforementioned Catalogue, becoming thereby the only European indigenous breed of this species. Ten years later, the Association of Breeders of the Camel of the Canary Islands has gone one step further by requesting to join the 100% Indigenous Breed Label in order to identify its meat, milk, skins and processed and derived products. In this way, the Association of Breeders of this camel aims to increase its visibility and seeks to make the breed known to the general public.
The 100% Indigenous Breed Label is an instrument for the conservation of biodiversity because through labelling, consumers are provided with information on the breed from which the products originate. In doing so, the consumer is made aware about the history of the breeds and about the genetic heritage that underlies these products.
Biodiversity conservation is an essential action in order to guarantee the sustainable development of the planet. Biological diversity represents a source of wealth since it provides an innumerable amount of resources without which our life on planet would not be possible, for instance food itself, textile fibres, chemical compounds for manufacturing or pharmaceutical industries, building materials or fuels.
It is everyone’s responsibility to preserve this genetic heritage for future generations, since “there is no spare part”. Hence, one of the priorities of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food remains to be the National Programme for Conservation, Improvement and Promotion of Livestock breeds, in which the 100% Indigenous Breed Label is included.
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