The diversity of primate species needed, the uncertainties related to 
foreign supplies, the competition among sponsors for these supplies, the 
high costs and long time required to establish primate production pro¬ 
grams, coupled with the many performers and sponsors involved, all make 
a coordinated national approach essential. It is imperative that every 
breeding activity be justified and carefully planned to avoid unnecessary 
duplication of effort, unnecessary costs, or failure to provide for 
certain projected needs. 
It is recommended that a balanced, nationally coordinated 
program of domestic primate production be established. 
A program of domestic primate production must consider: 
* the species and number of primates required, 
* anticipated supply of primates from foreign sources, 
* the probability that these foreign sources may be curtailed, 
* the status of wild populations of each species, 
* the cost of domestic production, 
* the breadth of use of each species, and 
* our ability to efficiently breed each species in captivity 
when determining the species and number of primates that should be bred 
domestically. 
Unfortunately, many of these factors cannot be determined precisely.^ 
However, several general conclusions can be drawn from the available 
data: 
1. An adequate domestic production level is required to ensure 
a continuous supply of primates for critical health activities. 
This level must be sufficient to provide breeding nuclei to 
permit expansion as required. 
2. It is not practical to expect to meet all of our requirements 
from domestic breeding at this time. Domestically bred animals 
are more expensive, and we cannot efficiently breed some 
species in captivity at the present. Moreover, there may 
be a need to return to the diversity of natural populations 
for certain research activities. 
Chapter IV, Information Requirements and National Primate Program 
Monitoring, addresses this issue. 
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