Ostrich meat has never been successful in Spain. In 1993, the first ostrich farms were established in Spain. Ostrich farming developed rapidly, until 1995, the farms were managed by people outside animal production. With this, they sought to make profitable in a short period the investment made through the sale of birds to have new farms.
Due to the lack of information, these farms became "animal warehouses", where the vast majority of specimens were sold, and the rest spent their entire lives on these farms.
The Spanish livestock sector opted for this exotic animal, which generated high expectations, finally it turned out to be a failure. Its rapid spread ruined many ranchers. Environmental factors, the climate and high production costs have been some of the reasons why ostrich farms have failed in Spain.
Some ranchers lost income by waiting for an improvement in the market that never came. Its commercialization is limited in volume and inconsistent in supply. It is mainly sold in large cities and local markets, aimed mainly at the catering sector and occasionally at retail.
The reality was different at the beginning, since there were high hopes that ostrich meat would succeed in Spain. It is a red meat with hardly any fat, and in addition, the ostrich eggs were also healthier. The beginnings of the commercialization of this meat, coincided with mad cows so it pointed out that everything was going to be fine.
Why has ostrich meat failed in Spain?
What happened so that ostrich meat did not succeed? According to Federico Castelló, CEO Royal School of Poultry; “The complexity of these birds was not taken into account. Of every 100 eggs, 30 chickens will still die, they have a high mortality, something that does not happen to you with other species. An ostrich eats 5 times more than a chicken, so the meat, even if it is healthier, will always be more expensive, because it costs more to produce it», he declared for the Vozpópuli newspaper.
The boom in farms of imported ostriches from Africa to Spain during the 90s has disappeared. Despite multiple commercial opportunities and good features such as lean meat, low-cholesterol eggs, feathers and fur for accessories, ostrich meat has been a complete failure, as the complexity of these animals has been underestimated.
To this day, the increase in the cost of feed, the economic crisis and the gastronomic rejection by the consumer, has caused this sector to practically disappear.
