## 4 Discussion
The current efforts to undertaking risk status assessments of diversity of livestock breeds on national, regional, and global levels including the status of breeds regarding their risk of extinction, should contribute to improved effectiveness of identifying and achieving enhanced conservation measures, and should help to draw attention to socio-economic factors that can contribute to enhanced utilization of especially local or traditional breeds currently in decline, as reported by [PERSON] and co-workers [39]. The low economic yield of this bovine breeds for farmers has to be balanced by a higher value to consumers; namely regarding the labelling of local products and creating niche markets to raise the value of local products and support sustainable, regional, small-scale production systems. In this sense, improving simultaneously the productivity of the systems and their sustainability are determinant to assure biodiversity preservation and economic and social development of the local communities, through the exploitation of existing potential for maintaining and promoting this cultural heritage and its connected knowledge systems, as well as their products, also associated to the potential use of such items to promote the regions through agro-tourism [44]. In addition, there is a growing necessity to produce quality meat, not only in its organoleptic qualities but also in regarding health warranties. The production of autochthonous breeds in Portugal can carry out these functions. Autochthonous breeds result from adaptation to often adverse environmental conditions that provide them with survival skills and disease resistance that other breeds do not have. However, in terms of productive levels, these breeds cannot compete with exotic breeds, and if they are not preserved, they may disappear. This is the case of the Jarmelista breed. Therefore, it is necessary to highlight the identity of these breeds as a determining and fundamental factor for the maintenance of the region's biodiversity through their sustainable and biological breeding and production, in addition to the valorisation of their quality attributes, by adding value to the retail price of the products in order to compensate the farmers for the low productivity of the extensive systems [20]. [PERSON], et al. [45] recently presented a diagnosis of the challenges and problems facing the current food system to ensure a growing world population's subsistence. The first challenge is to increase production and at the same time, to introduce major transformations to obtain a sustainable food system, whose central strategy is to improve the efficiency of resource use. Agricultural systems are in constant evolution, and because of that, there is an increasing need to count on sustainable alternatives for resource use. From the challenges to sustainability, some of the most important are the rational use and management of natural resources and the promotion of sustainable production and consumption patterns. Economic growth is decoupled from pressures on ecosystems towards greater eco-efficiency of the economy and sustainable resources management. It seems that maintaining autochthonous breeds can be essential not only in the cultural context but also in a social, economic, and environmental perspective. Moreover, local food specialities can positively affect the attractiveness of tourist destinations and contribute to the regions' economic sustainability [46]. Similarly, to our study, and within a similar agro-system context, [PERSON] [47] identified for the Calvana breed from Tuscany, with very high risk of extinction, the actual or potential contribution of the Alternative Food Networks to biodiversity conservation and formulated policy recommendations for local rural development. For that, this author proposed Calvana beef to be sold mainly through conventional distribution channels locally and a marketing strategy to escape producers' costs-price squeeze.