Breeding criteria and willingness-to-pay for improved Azawak zebu sires in Niger

In Niger, the growth in local demand for milk and meat makes it necessary to consider a genetic improvement of indigenous cattle. In Toukounous breeding station, the Azawak zebu has undergone over 50 years of line breeding for milk and meat production traits. To understand the diffusion potential of improved Azawak sires in Niger, this study proposes to estimate the values that cattle keepers ascribe to different breeding criteria. In a first participatory stage, the breeding criteria used by cattle keepers were first listed and their relative importance was semi-quantified in three different production zones: agricultural, peri- urban and pastoral. The willingness-to-pay (WTP) for chosen breeding criteria have then been estimated through stated preference methods with 150 breeders. From participatory surveys, the most important attributes in sire choice were reproductive performance, feeding requirements, and docility. The criteria considered for conjoint analysis were feeding requirements, docility, meat or dairy type, reproductive performance, coat color, and tail length. The WTP was 149 € for low feed requirements, 139 € for docility, and 132 € for a long tail. The meat or dairy type of the sire showed a lesser importance in the decision-making.