EN 
LV An international forum “Cattle Export – Challenges and Opportunities” and an experience exchange trip took place
This year, on December 3, the association “Farmers' Council” organized and invited both farmers and all interested parties to attend an international forum: “Cattle Export – Challenges and Opportunities” within the framework of the BREEDEXPO project. The forum took place at the Ozolnieki Community Center in Ozolnieki, while the experience exchange trip took place in Kurzeme and Zemgale, as well as in Sēlija.
The forum was opened by Kaspars Ādams, a member of the board of the association “Zemnieku saeima” and the head of SIA “Liellopu izsoļu nams”. The forum presentation cycle was started by Antra Briņķe, Deputy Director of the Veterinary and Food Department of the Ministry of Agriculture, informing about future challenges in the field of animal health. Subsequently, Leena Suojala, a veterinarian at the Central Union of Farmers and Forest Owners of Finland, spoke about the use of antimicrobials in Finland and whether there is a possibility of reducing them. Tatjana Pastare, a senior expert from the Housing Supervision Department of the Food and Veterinary Service, introduced the requirements for transporting animals. The first part of the forum was concluded by two foreign experts: Tanel Bulitko, General Manager of the Estonian Livestock Breeders’ Association, who spoke about Estonia’s experience in cattle export, while Hannu Myllymäki, Development Manager of the FABA Cooperative, informed about Finland’s experience in cattle breeding and export.
In the second part of the forum, all attendees participated in a panel discussion, where they could ask questions of interest to Kaspars Ādams, a member of the board of the association “Zemnieku Saeima” and the head of SIA “Liellopu izsoļu nams”, Tanel Bulitko, general manager of the Estonian Livestock Breeders' Association, and Hannu Myllymäki, development manager of the Finnish cooperative FABA.
Meanwhile, on December 4 and 5, we organized experience exchange trips to farms in Kurzeme, Zemgale and Sēlija. Project partners from Estonia and Finland participated in the trip. On December 4, we went to the farm SIA “Lāses AM” and A/S “Agrofirma Tērvete”, while on December 5 we were at SIA “Liellopu izsoļu nams”! Thank you to the hosts for the hospitable welcome and the participants of the trip for their desire to get to know farming in Latvia!
PRESENTATIONS FROM THE FORUM:
- Challenges of animal health_Use of antimicrobials for cattle in Finland – any possibilities to reduce_Leena Suojala.pptx
- Estonian Experience in Cattle Export_Tanel Bulitko
- Faba - cattle breeders coop_Hannu Myllymaki
- Future challenges in animal health_Antra Briņķe
- Requirements for transporting animals_Tatjana Pastare
