Relevance. Horse breeding in the Trans-Baikal Territory due to the natural and climatic conditions has played and will play an important role in the life of the local population, largely determining its economic well-being and life. Horse breeding for residents is a national industry, and this was at all stages of the development of the region [1, 2, 14, 15].

Meat is one of the main sources of proteins, vitamins, polyunsaturated fatty acids, macro- and microelements in the human body [9, 18]. The best in taste and dietary qualities of meat products are obtained by slaughtering young horses raised at year-round grazing [3, 6, 13, 17].

The purpose of the research is to assess the production of young horse meat with pasture-breeding horses in the conditions of the forest-steppe zone of the Trans-Baikal Territory, and the nutritional value and environmental safety of foals.

Materials and Methods. Experimental data were obtained at the Agricultural Production Cooperative “Kalinin Stud Farm of the Aginsky Region of the Trans-Baikal Territory”. The object of research were foals of the Trans-Baikal breed at the age of 6 and 18 months.

The meat productivity of horses was studied by generally accepted methods. The chemical composition, the content of heavy metals, pesticides and radionuclides, vitamins and minerals were determined at the testing centre of the Aginsk Veterinary Laboratory according to regulatory documents and methodological guidelines [7, 8, 10 12, 16], the caloric content of meat is calculated based on chemical analysis data.

Plant samples in the areas where horses were grazed were selected by the envelope method. Samples of pasture grass were taken along the route to determine the chemical and botanical composition. The botanical composition of pasture plants was determined according to the generally accepted method of route observations using a guide. The nutritional value of pasture grass was determined at the Chitinskaya Agrochemical Laboratory according to the generally accepted method.