Larger role for veterinarians as livestock sector undergoes exponential growth

Veterinarians crucial in addressing global demand for animal-sourced foods, facing challenges like zoonotic diseases and antibiotic resistance.

Veterinarians are set to play a critical role in tapping new opportunities and tackling emerging challenges as the livestock sector expands to absorb the anticipated demand for animal-sourced foods, both domestically and globally, Animal Husbandry Commissioner, Government of India, Abhijit Mitra said.

Delivering the 25th Graduation Day address at the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Veterinary Education and Research (RIVER) recently, Mr. Mitra said as the livestock sector continues to expand, the role of veterinarians would become increasingly important in ensuring sustainable and responsible livestock production.

“Your contributions will be instrumental in safeguarding animal health, protecting public health, and promoting the well-being of our environment,” he said

While currently about 40% of the world’s protein consumption is from animal source, the demand for food, especially animal-based products like meat and milk will exponentially rise with the global population estimated to touch 9.1 billion by 2050. “Meat production will need to increase by about 76%, and milk production by around 65% from current levels----an additional requirement of about 200 million tonnes of meat and 800 million tonnes of milk per year,” he said.

Turning to the domestic scenario, Mr. Mitra pointed out that while globally, 1 in 5 persons depend on livestock for income and livelihood, in India, 2/3rd of rural communities rely on livestock for their livelihood. This sector which employs approximately 18.8% of India’s population, more importantly, has high proportions of women in the workforce.

In India, the livestock sector has witnessed an extraordinary growth with a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 12.99% annually between 2014-15 and 2022-23. In fact, the contribution of the livestock sector to agricultural Gross Value Added (GVA) has seen a significant increase from around 25% in the early 2000s to over 30.23% in recent years, reflecting a growth of nearly 23%.

“This growth underscores the critical role of this sector in enhancing farmers’ incomes and ensuring food security highlighting the sector’s increasing importance within the broader agricultural economy,” he said.