Doha: Qatar, with the support UNESCO Doha, will develop the country's first Camel Farm. The initiative forms part of Qatar's efforts to combat desertification, a serious environmental problem which the country is currently facing.
The proposed Camel Farm will be used as experimental plots to combat desertification to restore the country's ecosystem, viable production of commercial farm products and reduction of water usages for fodder production. The UNESCO, in collaboration with a team of experts of different scientific disciplines, will soon identify an ideal location for the proposed farm.
"Although camels are the most suitable domesticated animals for the desert, intensive grazing has been pointed out one of the primary reasons for the degradation of Arab region's desert ecosystems and biodiversity loss in many camel rearing countries. The over population of 'grazing camels' is the major reason attributed to the phenomenon. Development of modern farms is the best alternative being suggested by the experts to combat the menace," a blue print on the proposed Camel Farm prepared by the UNESCO said.
The grazing area will be protected from human interference and excessive camel grazing by a fence and an ongoing daily patrol. The camels will stay in a fenced area where they would be fed on indigenous plants and access will be given to water. Specific fodder will be produced adjacent to the farm, such as indigenous desert plants and halophytes. However, a limited number of animals will still be allowed to graze in the desert because camels are important pollinators as well as seedlers in the desert ecosystem.
The entire Camel Farm will be built in an eco-friendly way. The farm will be developed in an arid region, where solar radiation levels are generally high. It would use solar cells to generate electricity directly from sunlight or wind power to be used for the entire farm. The possibilities of using camel dung as fertilizer for fodder production can also be explored.
The UNESCO has also plans to highlight the commercial aspect of developing the Camel Farm. Citing its successful experiment in Dubai, the first modern Camel Farm in the region, the UNESCO document says that some 600 camels produce about 6000 litres of milk per day, which is commercially sold in Dubai.
"The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) estimates that the global market in camel milk is worth over $10bn. Camels can produce four times more milk in the desert environment than domestic cattle. Camel milk is a rich source of proteins with potential anti-microbial and protective activity.
Camel farms have several advantages over cow farms in the local weather conditions. Cow farms in the Arabian Peninsula require an air-conditioned environment for milk production. Cows can produce 25 litres of milk per day but only in an air-conditioned environment. In natural conditions, the milk production would be less than 5 litres.
"Camels have a high productive potential. Before the oil boom, camel was the main food source of the Bedouins of Arabia. Camel products are also resistant to several cattle diseases, like Foot-and-Mouth, Rinderpest and Bovine Pleuropneumonia etc. In the time of global warming, growing deserts and increasing scarcity of water and food, camels would be an alternative sustainable solution to these problems", the UNESCO document says.
© The Peninsula 2007
