The Maltese are the largest consumers of rabbit meat in the world, with an average per capita consumption of 10 kg of rabbit every year. The Italians follow, with a consumption rate of 5 kg per head.

Inaugurating the national rabbit show at the Old Railway Station in Birkirkara, Rural Affairs Minister George Pullicino congratulated the Malta Rabbit Club, which had put up the exhibition almost every year since it was established in 1963.

The club has more than 300 members and has an international standing. Its president, Joseph Gauci Maistre, sits on the Council of the World Association of Rabbit Science and on the Observatory of Rabbit Breeding for countries in the Mediterranean basin.

Mr Pullicino said Maltese consumers still went for locally bred rabbits, and this was a strong point for the industry. He encouraged breeders to continue improving their product.

A Rabbit Club member was embarking on an initiative to export 250,000 rabbit skins yearly, he said.

The exhibition will be open all day and closes late this evening.

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