Assessing the total economic value of threatened livestock breeds in Italy: Implications for conservation policy

•A choice experiment was used to valuate benefits of conserving threatened Italian cattle breeds.•We assessed the proportion of use to non-use values these breeds have for society.•More than two thirds of respondents would contribute to a conservation programme.•Local respondents and respondents from distant cities expressed similar preferences.•WTP was highest for the indirect use values of the breeds.

The total economic value (TEV) of two threatened Italian cattle breeds (Modicana and Maremmana) was investigated using a choice experiment survey. Most respondents (85%) support breed conservation, their stated willingness-to-pay easily justifying EU support. The high landscape maintenance, existence and future option values of both breeds (around 80% of their TEVs) suggest that incentives mechanisms are indeed needed in order to allow farmers to capture some of these public good values and hence motivate them to undertake conservation-related activities. The positive direct use values of both breeds (around 20% of their TEVs) imply that niche product markets aimed at enhancing the private good values associated with conservation could also form elements of a conservation and use strategy for these breeds.