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• Recent issues of animal welfare and health in sheep grazing

  45-49

  Imre Mucsi

  Views:

  66

  This review paper presents an outlook on animal welfare measures and two potential sheep deceases with the objectives to assist sheep grazing farms in the region. Animal protection and welfare have been controlled by legal acts since 1978. Optimal animal keeping technologies, conditions of pain-free transport and slaughtering are described in specific acts and regulations, deviations from these conditions are fined. In the last decade special attention was paid to a couple of recent sheep deceases internationally: blue-tongue and scrapie. The scrapie, is not a recently recognized decease, but veterinary science turned towards it again as a consequence caused by the problem a cattle BSE decease. Fortunately, Hungary has been free from the scrapie for nearly 50 years. The bluetongue decease was taken to Hungary in 2008 from Western Europe with some imported animals. Strict animal health measures however made it possible for our country to get rid of this decease by now. 

• Some new aspects in the evaluation of grazing animal production

  41-46

  Geza Nagy

  Views:

  53

  The first part of this review papers presents the history of tall fescue endophyte toxicosis, which used to be a real constraint on grazing beef industry in southern US. The second part reviews some up-dated scientific publications, dealing with vitamins, fats and fatty acids in grass, grass products as well as in animal products produced on these feedstuffs. The papers cited prove that inclusion of grass or conserved (hay, silage) grass in the diets for cattles (beef and dairy) pigs or poultry (broiler chicken and leying han):

  - reduces the fat content of the body
  - improves some vitamin contents of animal products (milk, butter, meat, eggs)
  - improves the unsaturated fatty acid contents of the same animal products.

  The consumption of these high quality animal products consequently may contribute to better human health status of consumers. 

• Recent points of fertilization, plant protection, grazing and food safety on grasslands

  71-76

  Gyorgy Burges

  Balint Nagy

  Zsolt Varga

  Geza Fischl

  Views:

  79

  The purpose of Hungarian rangelands is looked upon in many different ways in our changing world. Environmentalists view the problem from an ecology centered point of view, while economists from an economy centered one. The third approach prefers a kind of rangeland management which can meet all expectations. Grassland and pasture management should be carried out in accordance with operative veterinary, phytosanitary, human and food safety regulations. An internationally acknowledged code includes all principles associated with these regulations. Food production will certainly gain greater significance, resulting in growing interest in rangeland management in the near future. Thus methods listed in this article should be kept in sight. 

• Multiple uses of grasslands: Papers of the „Challenges and Aspects in Grassland Management” conference held on 22-23 May 2008.

  5-8

  Geza Nagy

  Views:

  78

  In recent decades grassland science has identified all those products and services, which grasslands can provide for society. Among commodity goods traditional (meat, milk, leather, fibre, medicinal plants, animal excreta for heating, animal power to cultivate crops) and new products (labelled food from grasslands, biodiversity as gene pool for plant breeding, grass for energy) have been discussed. Non commodity benefits of grasslands are discussed in global (mitigation of climate change, air quality, water resources, soil health, carbon sequestration, maintenance of gene pools for biodiversity), regional (aesthetic or landscape values, conservation of watersheds, facilitation of tourism and hunting, avoidance of disasters such as avalanches and landslides, buffer zones for power lines, rehabilitation of landscape damages in mining areas) and local (preservation of grassland based cultural heritage) contexts. These products and services are investigated from the points of sustainability and multifunctionality. Existing grasslands and turfs in the county are categorized according to their basic functions. It is concluded that grasslands are the only ecosystem that is able to fulfil so mary tasks and requirements. Future prospects of grassland use in Hungary are outlined from the point of multifunctionality. Production functions of grassland are facing a slight increase due to organic farming. Ecological function will maintain their high importance. Remarkable increase is expected in amenity uses of grasslands.