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and development of commercial uses for all
forms of New World camelid (llama, alpaca,
vicuña, and guanaco).
The Camelid Congress is organized by the
“Association of Llamingueros INTIÑAN” and
the Archdiocese of Riobamba, with endorsement
from the United Nations’ International Fund of
Agricultural Development (FIDA) and Argentina’s
Biodiversity Foundation, and is chartered to
develop and promote all camelids, particularly
the South American camelids.
Over 200 scientific presentations and talks
were offered at this year’s event, including guest
speakers from all over the world: Dr. Jane Wheeler
(USA-Perú), José de Lucas Burneo (Spain),
Raúl Rosadio (Perú), Domingo Hoces (Peru),
Carlos Gutiérrez Vázquez (Peru); Hugo Lamas
(Argentina); Martin Schwark (Germany-Bolivia);
Dr. LaRue Johnson (USA); Marcelo Aba
(Argentina); Claudio Giambelli (Italy), Daniel
Olivera (Argentina); Dr. Ahmed Tibary
(Morocco-USA), Teodosio Huanca (Péru), and
Stewart White (USA-Ecuador), among others.
In addition to the scientific presentions,
there were also llama and alpaca show ring com-
petitions, with over 230 animals participating.
International judges this year included Wilson
Pintado (Ecuador), Horacio Ruiz (Argentina),
Dr. Bill Hedberg (USA), Rómulo Ingala (Bolivia),
and Godofredo Mamani (Peru).
The Congress also included some thirty work-
shops related to the processing of camelid fiber,
both commercially and by cottage industries in
South America.
The next Congress will take place in the
Arica-Parinacota Region of Chile (exact site yet
to be determined), in November 2012. Congress
organizers specifically asked readers of
Alpacas
Magazine
to plan now to attend, as they would
like to see an increase in attendance by alpaca
aficionados from Canada, the United States,
Australia, and New Zealand. Congress attendees
look forward to learning more about the scientific,
healthcare, and commercialization endeavors
of businesses and individuals in these countries.
Stay tuned to
Alpacas Magazine
for further details.
Photos on this page © 2010 Guillo Vila Melo