Current status of sheep farming in India

Sheep, with multi-facet utility (for meat, wool, skin, dung, and to some extent milk) plays a significant part in the Indian agricultural economy. India is having the second greatest number of sheep & goat in the world after China and has indigenous breeds with good productivity. Sheep are better adapted to India’s arid and semi-arid tropical zones with marginal and sub-marginal lands. Sheep are possibly the most ideal small ruminants to exploit the scant vegetation available in dryland environments through rangeland management and reseeded pastures. The sheep farming sector in India needs marketing infrastructure facilities for value addition such as meat processing, warehousing, cold storage, and refrigerated trucks and there is a notable shortage of public-private partnerships. However, being advanced in veterinary infrastructure at ground level, and the expanding demand for sheep-sourced products generates an untapped opportunity for the export & value-added products. The current paradigm change in government policies is enabling farmers to move to scientific sheep farming which can assist and boost the productivity and farmer's revenue in India.