Slovak breeders will supply some 22,000 lambs to domestic stores this year, while only 8,000 lambs were sold to them three years ago, Zuzana Nouzovska, general secretary of the Agriculture Ministry's Service Office told a news conference held in Liptovske Revuce (Zilina region) on Monday. After years of decline, Slovakia has managed to increase the number of sheep and goats to 306,000, said Nouzovska. The sale of lambs is beginning in Slovakia at the moment. Slovak Sheep and Goat Breeders Association chairman Igor Nemcok said that this year some 50,000 marketable lambs have been prepared for several slaughterhouses. However, some of them will be exported. "Our lambs are lucrative goods for foreign customers, and that's why they are so much in demand," he said. Slovak Chamber of Agriculture and Food vice-chair Miroslav Stefcek highlighted that sheep breeding in Slovakia has been stabilised after a long critical period. "Compared to the past, when we were dependent on exports, now more than half of the lambs remain in Slovakia. Unlike other types of meat, such as pork, poultry and beef, whose stocks are still decreasing, we can see positive growth in the case of lamb," he said. The costs related to sheep-breeding have risen by 60 percent when compared to previous years. The Agriculture Ministry's plan is to increase the number of sheep in Slovakia to 500,000 by 2035.
Source: TASR
