The Rare Breeds Survival Trust (RBST) has released the 2018 Rare Breeds Danger List report, setting out the current state of the UK's rarest breeds at risk of extinction.

Hitting the highest danger level of breeds most likely to die out are (number of breeding females 2018):

  • Vaynol cows – 12
  • Cleveland Bay Horse - 64
  • Suffolk Horse – 80
  • British Landrace pigs – 138
  • British Lop pigs – 161

UK rare breed animal numbers are at crisis point, with animals that have been around since Viking times in danger of being lost from the British landscape forever.

The UK's rare breed heavy horses (Suffolk, Clydesdale and Shire) which used to plough the fields were ‘called up’ during the First and Second World Wars to pull gun carriages and are now in danger of dying out forever.

South West Farmer:

Suffolk horse by Claire Watson

Action is desperately needed to breed more of these heavy horses.

The UK's appetite for bacon continues to rise with 87 million breakfasts last year (Kantar Worldpanel data). 

However, the demand for pork over the past few decades has led to intensive production of pigs for lean meat with little waste. Rare breed pigs like the Gloucestershire Old Spots and Tamworth do now feature on gastro-pub menus, and the Rare Breed Survival Trust believe it’s very important for consumers to ask for these rare breed animals when they go out to eat.

South West Farmer:

Oxford and Sandy pig by Claire Watson

The British Lop and British Landrace pigs are in extreme danger. Pigs produce large litters of up to 12 piglets but the problem is that celebrity chefs and restaurant owners haven’t heard of these rare breeds so there is no market for them. RBST is working to change this.

Rare breed beef is becoming of greater interest to chefs and restaurants. Highland Cows used to be on the danger list in the 1970s but and are now considered great meat and popular with consumers. Counter-intuitively this is a good thing, because the more people that eat rare breed meat, the greater the demand and the more animals will be bred.

South West Farmer:

Longhorn cattle by Claire Watson

Of greatest concern are Vaynol due to the critically low numbers, with British White cattle also being hit hard with a significant decrease since last year.

Tom Beeston, CEO of the Rare Breeds Survival Trust said: “These rare breed animals are going to end up as dead as a dodo unless their numbers increase dramatically. With the publication of the Danger Watchlist, we are calling on government bodies and consumers to support our work.

“We need more than £10m in the next decade to pay for our Gene Bank, where genetic material is stored so that we can recreate a breed, a bit like the film Jurassic Park. And although it might sound odd we want more people to eat rare breed meat to drive demand for the animals.

“These animals are beautiful to look at, uniquely British and deserve to be protected for future generations.”