Livestock breeding is widespread throughout Armenia, and hayfields and pastures represent almost 60% of all agricultural lands. Pastures of sub-alpine and steppe habitats are particularly important for cattle breeding, and thousands of hectares of high mountain pastures are used during summer. A wide range of animals are raised in Armenia, and these are listed below. However, there has been a general reduction in livestock numbers since the collapse of the Soviet Union and land privatization (Table 4.3).

· Cattle represent the most important type of livestock (over 50%), much of which represents dairy production, although cattle are also reared for meat (providing 37% of meat in the country); by-products include leather and manure. Cattle farming occurs throughout the country, but cattle populations have declined dramatically (> 40%) since 1986 (Table 4.3).

Table 4.2 Crop production in pre-privatization (1985) and post-privatization (1990, 1995) periods

· Sheep and goats are raised for wool, milk and meat across Armenia, and are often kept in mixed herds. However, numbers of both sheep and goats in the country have halved since 1986.

· Pigs have been raised in Armenia since 1965, and pig farming reached a peak in 1986 when populations totaled 344,000 head. Since then pig numbers have declined dramatically; pigs are now bred by both private and state farms.

· Poultry raised in Armenia include chickens, geese, ducks and turkeys, of which chickens are far the most popular, and are used as a source of eggs, meat and feathers. In addition, a number of farms breed quail for their meat and eggs. Poultry numbers have also declined dramatically, from 12 million in 1986 to 2 million in 1996.

· Horses were once an important livestock item, with approximately 42,000 horses being bred annually up to the 1940s. However, agricultural intensification and transport improvement reduced reliance on horses, and relatively few are now bred (c. 7,500).

· Rabbits are used as a source of food to supplement meat from other livestock. Rabbit numbers have also declined dramatically since 1986.

· Bees have been kept in Armenia since ancient times, for the production of honey and beeswax, and around 130,000 bee-hives were recorded in 1994.

· Wild animal farming has developed relatively recently, mainly for fur production. Species involved include: silver fox, marten, rabbit and coypu.

Livestock production was severely affected by the economic crisis and transition to a market economy in the years following the breakup of the Soviet Union. Previously, the agricultural sector supported around 75% of the total workforce, with over 80% of agricultural lands being in livestock production. This sector has now declined dramatically, and has been substantially restructured (Tables 4.3 and 4.4). Key reasons for post-privatization decline in this industry include low stocks of animal fodder and low prices for animal products.

Table 4.3 Changes in livestock numbers

in Armenia (1985-1995)

Table 4.4 Post-privatization structural impacts

on animal production (1993-94)