The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, and Food Sovereignty of the Government of the Canary Islands has published the order for the call for subsidies for the promotion of native Canarian breeds for 2026, in the amount of 251,000 euros.
Within the scope of these grants, financed by funds from the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, eligible expenses are considered to be those arising from the creation or maintenance of pedigree books, both for personnel and computer equipment or offices, as well as those related to the implementation of officially approved breeding programs and the monitoring of animal performance and genetic evaluations.
In this regard, the councilor for the area, Narvay Quintero, indicated that "native breeds constitute a hallmark of Canarian livestock farming and contribute incalculable wealth from an economic, social, and cultural point of view, in addition to forming a fundamental genetic reservoir that must be preserved, as many agri-food productions on the islands are based on these animals, which have a high degree of adaptation to our environmental conditions."In this regard, Quintero stressed, the Canary Islands Government approved an institutional declaration last June for the recognition of native Canary Islands breeds as genetic heritage, with the aim of promoting the expansion of these specimens as fundamental players in environmental sustainability and for their contribution to primary sector productions.
This recognition encompasses three goat breeds (Tinerfeña, Majorero, and Palmera), three sheep breeds (Palmera, Canaria, and Canaria de pelo), two cattle breeds (Canaria and Palmera), one pig breed (Negra Canaria), one donkey equine breed (Majorero donkey), and one camelid breed (Canary camel), recognized as genetically distinct in the Official Catalog of Livestock Breeds of Spain.
In addition, through that declaration, the protection level of four dog breeds traditionally linked to livestock farming for their herding activities was raised, specifically the Presa Canario, the Canarian Podenco, the Majorero Dog, and the Garafian Shepherd
Applications to avail of this measure will be submitted using the standardized form from January 2 to February 3, 2026, and through the electronic headquarters