Donkey

Advances in knowledge on donkey milk as a dietary ingredient for sensitive consumers, like infants with food allergies, adults with inflammatory problems and aged people, have attracted interest in donkeys as a dairy species. Donkey milk production differs greatly from that of conventional dairy species. Data on milking technique and routine, animal housing and management, milk yield and composition, also related to animal nutrition, welfare, and milk microbiology, are reviewed within the scenario of an agromedical dairy chain. This innovative dairy enterprise is growing in many countries, often as an activity supporting environmental preservation programs.