Meat sheep farming systems according to economic and productive indicators: A case study in Southern Brazil

Abstract

This study aimed to characterize 24 representative sheep production farms from five mesoregions in the state of Paraná, Southern Brazil, so that economic and productive improvement strategies could be proposed. The representative farms for each region were defined at meetings with sheep farmers and technicians via the rapid appraisal methodology and represent 65% of the state's flock. The information of each representative farm was collected between March 2015 and February 2016. Principal component analysis was used to verify the relationships among the different variables that characterized the farms. These characteristics were: number of ewes (V1), total cost per kilogram of revenue-generating product (V2), feeding costs (V3), labor costs (V4), facility and equipment depreciation costs (V5), and gross margin in the production cycle (V6). Cluster analysis was performed, resulting in three distinct groups: one including eight, another seven, and the third, nine farms. The results aided in classifying the farms into groups with similar characteristics, such as production scale, reproductive efficiency, technical and managerial control, appreciation of cooperatives, and availability of continuous technical assistance. The production scale, reproductive and productive efficiency, adoption of technologies, and cooperative organizational structure can be emphasized as positive performance benchmarks and were the most important aspects to achieve positive economic results.

Análisis de la competitividad del sistema extensivo de producción ovina de pequeña escala en el sureste hidalguense.

“…Esto puede dificultar la adopción de tecnologías al sistema productivo (Zenda and Malanen, 2021). Sin embargo, los años de experiencia reportados en este trabajo, se encuentran dentro de los parámetros para sistemas ovinos de pequeña escala en México (Marín-Bernal y Navarro-Ríos, 2014; Salinas-Martínez et al, 2022), pero son inferiores a la media internacional (13.5 años) (De Camargo et al, 2021;Serrano et al, 2022). En consecuencia, la experiencia en la actividad fue aprovechada de manera eficiente por los productores, al observarse una alta productividad de las granjas, a pesar del bajo nivel de escolaridad reportado.…”

Analyzing Technical and Economic Performance for Developing Corn-Based Sheep Farming in Rural Indonesia

“…Sheep farming, as a subsistence activity, plays a significant social and economic role in various regions. Frequently, sheep production is integrated with crop farming to increase farmers' income [1][2][3]. Moreover, within the community, sheep farming holds a crucial role in supporting household economies, serving as a means of savings or for emergency needs [4,5]; it also provides a source of food [4,6], and acts as a substitute for beef [7].…”

Impact of Acute Blood Loss on Clinical, Hematological, Biochemical, and Oxidative Stress Variables in Sheep

“…Sheep farming in Brazil presented an interesting pattern in the last decades, which include a large decrease in sheep herds, with a reduction of almost 30% from 1990 to 2002, mostly due to reduction of wool production, followed by a return of grow beginning at 2002 driven by meat production [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]. By 2020, the total sheep heard in Brazil was higher than 20.5 million heads, with 70% of those located in the northeast region [ 4 ].…”