Threat of extinction drives pigs to Stuttgart

A remarkable collection of pigs, sheep, goats and even donkeys were paraded through the centre of the German city of Stuttgart last week, during a protest to raise the awareness for the extinction of rare livestock species.

Protesters gathered as several UN congresses on biological diversity will be held in the former West German capital of Bonn this month, the German agricultural website Proplanta reported.

In downtown Stuttgart, members of the public were informed about the theme of extinction of livestock varieties, as the changing of consumption and production patterns have caused many predominantly landraces to get close to extinction.

Registered
According to the protesters, of the 6,500 livestock species, registered at the world food organisation FAO, already 740 have become extinct and for another 40% it is feared the same might happen.

About 20 pigs from the rare 'Schwäbisch-Hällisch' Landrace were present in downtown Stuttgart. Pictures of the event can be found here.

Related websites:
â€¢ UN Convention on Biological Diversity
â€¢ Proplanta (in German)

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