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Romania Livestock
Prior to the dramatic increase in grain cultivation in
the
nineteenth century, livestock raising, sheep breeding in
particular, was the most important economic activity in
the
country. But with the diversion of grazing land and a
perennial
shortage of fodder, livestock raising fell into decline.
After a
drastic reduction in livestock inventories in World War
II, herds
were gradually replenished, but the number of horses
continued to
decline, as agriculture became more mechanized. Cattle
were raised
throughout the country, particularly in the foothills of
the
Carpathians. Sheep predominated in the mountainous areas
and
Dobruja. Pigs, poultry, and rabbits were raised on a wide
scale.
Private farmers, who produced a large share of
livestock
brought to market, operated under dire conditions. The
state
theoretically was obliged to provide fodder to the
livestock
breeders it contracted to fatten animals. But fodder and
proteinrich mixed feeds were not made available in the necessary
quantities, especially in the 1980s, when imports were
drastically
curtailed.
Data as of July 1989
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