| | This international conference entitled, Industrial and rural activities in the goat sector including science, innovation and development, came at an important time for goats. Climactic changes, world energy problems, and the fight against poverty are all global issues that we in the goat industry are facing. |
Goats and the Canary Islands
The Canary Isles were conquered by Spain in the 13th and 14th centuries, and goats were already present on the isles. Canarian people have been raising goats for several centuries, and today goats are the most important livestock resource in the archipelago (more than 400,000 heads).
There are three native dairy goat breeds in the Canary Islands – all with a common ancestor, the Paleocanaria goat – and almost 100% of their milk is used to make traditional cheese. The wild population disappeared during the last century although there are still signs of the ancient population in their domesticated offspring. Furthermore, recent studies using a linking network analysis of mitochondrial D-loop sequences has shown that Canary Island goats had an important influence in the building of American goat herds.
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