**3. Population of major milk producing species of the animals**

Pakistan has 44.4 million cattle and 37.7 million buffaloes, producing 20 and 34 billion L of milk, respectively [5]. The indigenous breeds of buffalo and cows are considered as poor producers with lactation yields of 1800 and 1195 L [8] that remained constant across years. The population of major milk producing animals is increasing at a constant rate of 3.3% per annum (**Figure 4**).

### **3.1 Buffaloes**

Buffaloes are the major milk producing animals in Pakistan, representing about 46% of the total dairy herd and providing 62% of total milk production [5]. The three principal breeds are Nili, Ravi and Kundi. The Nili and Ravi breeds have originated from within a large tract evolved in between the great rivers of Ravi, Sutluj, and Chenab, indicating deltas of Nili- and Sandal-bars. Most famous cities of this tract are Faisalabad, Jhang, Lahore, Sahiwal, Okara, and Sheikupura. The Kundi

### **Figure 4.**

*Population dynamics of major milk producing species of large ruminants with percentage increase per year from 2006 to 2016. Source: Economic survey of Pakistan (2016–2017).* 

 breed has been found all over Sindh province especially on the both side river Indus from Kashmore in the north to Shah Bandar in the south [9]. The Nili Ravi breed has evolved as a result of crossbreeding between the breeds: Nili and Ravi. The animals are massive and comparable to large imported breeds regarding feeding requirements. Their milk contains high contents of fat (**Table 1**; [10, 11]), which makes it possible to compare energy outputs in milk between buffalo and imported large dairy breeds of cows. There are currently breeding and performance evaluation programs established at various livestock research centers under the funding and supervision of the government, but farmers are largely excluded from the results of this research, thereby limiting its benefits. Buffalo farming at commercial levels is not common in the country because of less feed efficiency and other reproductive as well as managemental issues associated with the buffaloes. Therefore, the few set ups which were established in the past, e.g., Landhi Cattle Colony, Karachi and Fazal Dairy Farms, Muzaffargarh, are gradually shifting from buffalo to imported cattle.

### **3.2 Cattle**

### *3.2.1 Indigenous dairy cattle*

The cattle population is slightly larger than that of buffaloes, but cows produce on average only about 58% of the yield of buffaloes. All Pakistan's indigenous cattle


### **Table 1.**

*Proximate parametric composition of raw milk from bubaline and bovine species.<sup>1</sup>*

### *Current Standing and Future Challenges of Dairying in Pakistan: A Status Update DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.83494*

are Zebu (humped type, *Bos indicus*). There are 15 recognized breeds in the country, of which Red Sindhi and Sahiwal are well known internationally as tropical dairy cattle breeds. The home tract of Sahiwal cattle includes, Faisalabad, Jhang, Okara, and Sahiwal districts of central Punjab and Multan district of southern Punjab whereas that of Red Sindhi includes Dadu, Hyderabad, Karachi, and Thatta districts of province Sindh and Lasbela district of Baluchistan [9]. Cattle have traditionally been bred to produce bullocks for plowing and on-farm operations. Pure breeds account for 43% and nondescript for 44% [12].
