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Bali cattle national asset that needs to be preserved
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Prime commodity: Bogor Agricultural Institute (IPB) professor Ronny Rachman Noor calls for the government to increase the population and productivity of Bali cattle. (Courtesy of the Bogor Agricultural Institute/File)
T
he government needs to increase the population and productivity of Bali cattle, a national asset other countries do not have, an expert has said.
The Bogor Agricultural Institute’s (IPB) animal husbandry professor Ronny Rachman Noor said on Thursday that Bali cattle had often been undervalued by the government because they were local livestock.
“In fact, Bali cattle have many advantages other cattle species do not have,” said Ronny at the IPB campus in Baranangsiang.
Not only are they resistant to diseases and extreme environments, the expert said Bali cattle could digest food with a high fiber content. Bali cattle have one of the highest carcass percentages in the world. Its meat has the lowest cholesterol level compared to other cows.
With all of those advantages, Ronny said, Bali cattle had become a prime commodity many countries had become interested in, either for pure-breeding or cross-breeding to get mixed bred cattle with better productivity.
“Bali cattle are one of the only domesticated cattle species whose ancestors are still alive. This species is directly descended from buffaloes we can still find at Ujung Kulon National Park and Baluran. The ancestors of most cattle in the world are extinct already,” said Ronny, who has researched Bali cattle for 30 years.
He further explained Bali cattle had been acknowledged internationally as originating in Indonesia. “This super germplasm needs to be protected with national policies so it can be conserved optimally,” said Ronny. (ebf)
