Heritage livestock breeds provide benefits to small farms
Heritage livestock breeds benefit both farmers and consumers with their hardiness, adaptability, flavorful meat and genetic diversity and have developed over generations to maintain these traits and to adapt to their environment, farming practices and purpose.
Some heritage breeds are currently threatened and facing extinction. Currently, 20 percent of the world’s cattle, goats, pigs, horses and poultry breeds are at risk of extinction, according to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization, which raises the question of how this happened and how the trend can be reversed.
The heritage impact
Heritage livestock breeds are vital because they possess unique traits, including self-reliance, fertility, maternal instincts and foraging abilities which enable them to thrive in diverse environments, according to the Livestock Project.
The Livestock Project is a new initiative at Iowa State University’ Center for Food Security and Public Health, which started in 2021 with grant funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The project has discovered heritage breeds are particularly well-suited for sustainable farming and natural habitats, offering resilience and adaptability in the face of changing conditions.
“They also have unique resistance to disease and parasites,” states the Livestock Project. “This resistance developed from generations of natural selection and contrasts with current commercial breeds which have lost these traits after breeding for productivity and efficiency.”
While heritage breeds have kept their resistance attributes, they often cannot compare on a production or profitability level. As modern ag has moved toward mass production and uniformity, heritage breeds have dwindled.
“Heritage breeds are essential for farmers who face environmental challenges, struggle with inbreeding issues or seek niche markets to remain competitive and profitable,” states the Livestock Project.
Maintaining successful heritage breeds can ensure a secure food supply and foster qualities essential for the long-term health of livestock populations.
An example of this is the traditional Cornish chicken, which serves as the foundation for the global broiler industry.
Heritage cattle
According to the Livestock Project, heritage breeds exist across species, such as Dutch Belted cattle, Arapawa goats, Navajo-Churro sheep, Mulefoot hogs and Java chickens.
These breeds are from all over the world, but some are endangered and close to extinction.
The Livestock Conservancy, an organization dedicated to protecting America’s endangered livestock, track heritage livestock breeds which are currently being threatened. The conservancy classifies species into severity of extinction and categorizes them by North American breeds, breeds imported before 1900 and breeds imported after 1900.
Census numbers for livestock breeds are gathered from breed associations throughout the year, along with their reports of trends, issues and triumphs.
The list contains over 150 breeds of donkeys, cattle, goats, horses, sheep, pigs, rabbits, chickens, ducks, geese and turkeys.
The breed list reports the American yak, which was imported to North America in the late 1800s and early 1900s, is in critical condition.
Today, purebred descendants of American yaks are distributed across many U.S. states and Canadian provinces, but after more than a century of genetic separation, the purebred yaks of North America represent a unique and important genetic resource.
Other cattle breeds on the priority list include the Texas longhorn, which have been raised on open range since the Middle Ages and were used as oxen and for their hides, meat and milk.
Breeds prior to the 1900s that made the list include Dexters, Red Devon and Guernsey cattle, while breeds imported after the 1900s include the Belted Galloway and Lincoln Red cattle breeds.
Other heritage breeds
According to the conservancy, in 2025, the Barbados Blackbelly sheep was reported to be threatened.
Barbados Blackbelly are a landrace hair sheep breed originating in the 1700s, known for their heat and parasitic tolerance.
They are excellent foragers, can breed year-round and frequently deliver multiple lambs, making them well adapted for semi-tropical areas and more temperate climates in the U.S. and Canada.
Also in 2025, Araucana chickens were added to the list in the critical category, as the population of purebred Araucanas in the U.S. is estimated to be around 400 birds.
“Most Araucana chickens in the U.S. are raised for exhibition and their fascinating, blue-colored eggs. They can be proficient egg layers, with good hens laying approximately 250 eggs annually,” states the organization.
In the U.S., Araucana chickens have ear-tufts and are “rumpless,” meaning they have no tail. The rumpless trait is due to the absence of tail bones and does not affect their health or productivity.
Thanks to hard work by the organization, in 2024 the Meishan pig was able to move from critical to threatened.
Today, Meishan pork is growing rapidly in popularity, which supports healthy growth of the breed’s population.
The conservancy states, “Spanish goats are also improving, moving from threatened to recovering – a success story for one of several regional American breeds on the list.”
Spanish goats have achieved a secure spot in profitable animal production. The breed is documented as a logical “best choice” for goat meat production through research done by organization.
Melissa Anderson is the editor of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.
