YEREVAN, MAY 21, NOYAN TAPAN. 415 Holstein, Simmental and Schviz pedigree calves with a high milk yield capacity will be imported this year from Europe into Armenia with state budgetary allocations of 500 mln drams (about 1.6 mln YSD). NT correspondent was informed by the head of the Cattle Breeding and Pedigree Stock Farming Department of the RA Ministry of Agriculture Ashot Hovhannisian that as of May 8, 258 calves were already brought into Armenia and given to 4 big cattle breeding farms of the country. In his words, another group of 157 calves will be imported into Armenia in June. In his words, the calves will be leased to farms. In particular, farmers will have to pay the cost of animals during 4 years: 10% of the cost in the 1st year, 20% - in the 2nd, 30% in the 3rd year and 40% - in the 4th year. The department head said that big farmers of Armenia have expressed an intention to import another 136 pedigree calves with their own resources. The ministry of agriculture will assist the farmers with selecting the calves on the spot and transporting them. According to him, 196 calves were imported into Armenia in 2007. Their average daily milk yield made 23-25 kg, exceeding threefold the average milk yield of domestically bred cows. The government-approved Program on Cattle Breeding Development envisages increasing the annual number of imported calves to two thousand by 2015.

---