BREEDING HERITAGE OF MEAT CATTLE HUSBANDRY IN UKRAINE – VOLYN MEAT BREED

Volyn beef cattle is the “flagship” of Ukrainian breeding science and an integral part of Ukrainian beef cattle breeding. Military operations in Ukraine and a number of other factors, including socio-economic ones, caused a decrease in the population of the breed, which in 2023 amounted to 1903 heads, which are placed in three breeding herds. The aim of the study was to chronologically establish the stages of breed formation, the size and level of the main breeding traits in dynamics. To analyze the exterior, interior, productive, genetic and biotechnological features of the breed in different sex and age groups. Since 1974, the best world material for meat cattle breeding has been attracted based on local cattle in the area of western Polissya. The long-term process of creating a breeding methodology and target standards with the direct participation of people from production gave the expected results in the form of the desired genotypes L3/8A3/16G3/16M1/4 or L37.5A18.75G18.75M25%. Further consolidation of the array of animals according to the main economically useful traits with the simultaneous formation of a genealogical structure made it possible to test the breed in 1994, and later in 2010 the intrabreed type. The improvement process goes through 9 factory lines and over 44 families. In addition, related groups of breeds are involved, which were selected as “parental forms”. The current level of economically useful traits of the Volyn meat breed allows us to state the prospects and further attractiveness of breeding by owners of various forms of ownership.