Animal Health / Biotech / Cattle / Diagnostics / Disease Control / East Africa / ILRI / Kenya / Markets / PA / Pastoralism / Vulnerability

Kenya is working towards disease-free livestock zones to improve its livestock trade

Herding cattle in Kenya (photo on Flickr by davida3 [Davida De La Harpe]). ‘The [Kenya] government has unveiled a plan to improve trade in livestock by vaccinating 61 million livestock in the next financial year. ‘According to budget estimates released on Thursday, the animals will be vaccinated against foot and mouth disease and other trade-sensitive diseases. … Continue reading »

Markets / East Africa / ILRI / PA / MarketOpps / Dairying / Kenya / Uganda / Rwanda / Cattle

East African Dairy Development project: Kenya cows + chilling plants = milk markets (and profits) for farmers

A Kenyan dairy farmer feeds her cow (photo on Flickr by eadairy). ‘A chilling tale of cows in Kenya shows how market access is key to impact investing. . . . ‘It started with a mid-term report I was handed called Milking for Profit. The report details a project that works to uplift subsistence dairy … Continue reading »

Markets / South Asia / Value Chains / ILRI / Partnerships / PA / MarketOpps / Pakistan / Intensification / Event

ILRI and Lahore livestock institute talk collaboration for development of Pakistan’s livestock sector

A farmer herds his cattle in Sindh Province, Pakistan. Some 30–35 million rural Pakistanis are engaged in livestock raising, with families typically keeping 2–3 cattle or water buffalo and 5–6 sheep or goats, which help them to generate 30–40% of their household income from livestock; find this and more recent information on Pakistan’s livestock sector here (photo … Continue reading »

Feeds / Forages / Goats / ILRI / Markets / PA / Small Ruminants / Southern Africa / Value Chains

Small stock connections lead to better business for goat keepers in Zimbabwe

Feed is scarce for livestock in the dry season, farmers can lose up to 30% of their herds in these three months (photo on Flickr by ICRISAT/Swathi Sridharan). Willie Dar, director general of the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), highlights the success of taking a ‘value chain’ approach to improving goat … Continue reading »

Agriculture / Animal Production / Capacity Strengthening / Crop-Livestock / CRP12 / CRP37 / East Africa / Ethiopia / Event / Extension / Innovation Systems / Intensification / IPMS / Livestock / Markets / Research / Value Chains

Commodities, innovation and action research in Ethiopia: Livestock live talk at ILRI on 27 March 2013

The Improving Productivity and Market Success (IPMS) of Ethiopian Farmers project is coming to an end. IPMS aimed to transform agricultural productivity and rural development in Ethiopia through market-oriented agricultural development. Project staff worked with the Ethiopian Government to try new and innovative approaches and technologies. The team worked to achieve this objective through four main … Continue reading »

Markets / East Africa / Value Chains / ILRI / PA / MarketOpps / Dairying / Tanzania / Project / Launch / CRP37

Dairy market hubs giving Tanzanian farmers better access to services given funding boost

Irish Minister of State for Trade and Development, Joe Costello, signs the guest book at the MoreMikIT office launch in Morogoro, Tanzania, 12 Mar 2013; witnessing the event are ILRI’s Amos Omore and Stuart Worsley (second and third from left) (photo credit: ILRI/Amos Omore). ‘Ireland’s minister of state for Development and Trade Joe Costello earlier this … Continue reading »

Africa / Agriculture / ILRI / MarketOpps / Markets / PA / Report

Africa’s food market could reach trillion dollars by 2030–World Bank

The Butcher Shop by Ferdnand Leger, 1921 (via WikiPaintings). ‘A World Bank report launched last week has suggested that Africa’s farmers and agribusinesses could create a trillion-dollar food market by 2030. ‘However, the pre-condition for such a development would be for agri-business SMEs to expand their access to more capital, electricity, better technology and irrigated … Continue reading »

Animal Production / Animal Products / Buffalo / ILRI / India / Markets / PA / South Asia / Value Chains

Small-scale buffalo-keeping in India goes big time–With exports a quarter of world’s beef market

Buffalo in a village homestead in the Himalayan foothills of northern India (photo credit: ILRI/Susan MacMillan). ‘Alas for the sacred cow: Beef exports from India are expected to surge 30 per cent this year, giving this country a quarter of the world market. ‘This is a good-news story in a lurching economy. Livestock industries, from eggs … Continue reading »

CRP2 / Event report / ILRI / Livestock / MarketOpps / Markets / Research / Value Chains

CTA ‘Making the Connection Conference’: Lessons for livestock value chains in developing countries

The Niamana Livestock Market in Bamako, the largest in Mali (photo credit: ILRI/Stevie Mann). This post is written by Jo Cadilhon, an agro-economist in ILRI’s Changing Demand and Market Institutions team. It’s been three weeks now since I attended the conference on Making the connection: Value chains for transforming smallholder agriculture organized by CTA in … Continue reading »

Dairying / East Africa / ILRI / IPMS / Markets / Value Chains

Dairy value chains in Ethiopia: First-hand experience–what works and doesn’t–gained in field tours

On 9 November 2012, a group of value chain practitioners, consultants, advisors and professionals visited one of the dairy value chain sites of the Improving Productivity and Market Success of Ethiopian Farmers Project (IPMS) in Ada District, Ethiopia. The group comprised participants of an international conference on Making Connections: Value chains for transforming smallholder agriculture. The … Continue reading »