Preface

My first encounter with landraces was with a Criollo (or Creole) cattle (developed in Central America, called Criollo Lechero Centroamericano) and hair sheep (in México, known as Pelibuey and Blackbelly). It was not until I began editing the first chapter of this book that I realized that I had been living with animal landraces all my life. In later years, and by trade, I learned and worked with some plant landraces (corn, sorghum, sunflower, and some forages and grasses) to complete my agronomy degree.

Landraces are local species of plants and animals that have developed and adapted over time to a localized geographic region. They are important components of our environment and play an important role in the sustainability of the environment.

Every continent on Earth is composed of different regions and every region is composed of several eco-regions or ecosystems. As such, this book discusses landraces in the context of different regions and countries and makes no attempt to generalize or impose conclusions for global application.

This book is organized into two sections on animal landraces and plant landraces. Section 1 includes two chapters that describe the use of ruminants in tropical regions. Section 2 includes four chapters on the benefits of the use of indigenous plants and strategies for improving wheat production.

I would like to thank the contributing authors for their efforts in writing the chapters. I also acknowledge and thank the support provided by the academic and editorial team, as well as the trust and responsibility granted to me as editor by IntechOpen.

> **Arnoldo González-Reyna** Autonomous University of Tamaulipas, Cd. Victoria, Tamaulipas, México

**Prashant Kaushik** Institute of Conservation and Improvement of Valencian Agrodiversity, Polytechnic University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain

**1**

Section 1

Animal Production

Management

Section 1
