The ultimate test: Do livestock eat this feed? Yes. (Photo on Flickr by Swathi Sridharan/ICRISAT). In 2012, three CGIAR centres — the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), based in Africa; the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), based in Mexico; and the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), based in India … Continue reading »
Feed is often cited as the first limiting constraint to livestock intensification in smallholder mixed-crop farming systems in developing countries. However attempts to deal with the feed constraint tend to focus on promotion of a fairly standard set of feed technologies with often disappointing results. Our experience is that feed intervention failures can be traced … Continue reading »
This new report from the ACIAR – the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research – argues that the “improvement of production and profitability in smallholder beef enterprises is typically not limited by a lack of promising feeding and management technologies. It is more due to low access to, and uptake of, these technologies. There has … Continue reading »
ILRI scientist Joerg Jores (right) tells German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who visited the ILRI-BecA labs in July 2011, about his livestock disease research (photo credit: ILRI/Njoroge). ‘Owning large livestock is like money in the bank for African farmers, but major diseases significantly threaten their future. ‘Among these are [peste des petits ruminants], a viral disease … Continue reading »
Gabrielle Persely at a March 2011 farewell seminar she gave at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), titled ‘Africa, science and agriculture: A 25-year perspective’ (photo credit: ILRI/Mungai). Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard today announced a new initiative to share Australia’s world leading expertise in food production with the people of Africa. The Government will set … Continue reading »
The UK Meat Trade News Daily reports on pork pathways out of poverty in Viet Nam. ‘Low labour costs and their ability to supply buyers with freshly slaughtered meat, a form most Vietnamese continue to prefer to the chilled or frozen meat from bigger piggeries. These are the conclusions of a three-year research project led … Continue reading »
The rapid growth in demand for pork in Vietnam represents an opportunity for smallholders to improve their incomes. But limited access to improved breeds, inputs, veterinary services and markets has constrained smallholders from benefiting fully from market opportunities presented by this rising demand. Recent pronouncements on government policy have also favoured the development of larger-scale, … Continue reading »
