Insurance is about protection against loss — and so, in many ways, is conservation. The similarities between these two industries mean both could gain from a closer relationship. The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) recently announced the trial of an innovative insurance scheme for traditional herders in northern Kenya. But it has been almost impossible … Continue reading
Category Archives: Livestock Systems
Women in agriculture: Land O’Lakes looks at the opportunities
There is a joke circulating among development agencies in Uganda that updates the ‘give a man a fish’ slogan: “Give a man a fish and he’ll eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he’ll feed himself forever. Teach a woman to fish, and she’ll feed herself, her family, her neighbors and her … Continue reading
Mixed crop-livestock farming could help adaptation in Africa
According to new research (see related article), African farms with both crops and livestock could be more resilient to climate change than farms that only grow crops. The research suggests that policy makers should support farmers in making the switch to integrated farming. Read more … (European Commission) Continue reading
Is an integrated farm more resilient against climate change?
This paper by S. Niggol Seo in the journal ‘Food Policy’ examines whether an integrated farm that owns both crops and livestock is more resilient under global warming than a specialized farm in crops. Using around 9000 farm surveys across Africa, we explore how farmers choose one of the farm types and how the net … Continue reading
Optimal long-term stocking rates for livestock grazing in a Sahelian rangeland
A recent paper in the African Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics presents a model for calculating the optimal livestock stocking rate in a semi-arid rangeland that accounts for stochastic rainfall, the ecological feedback effect and variable prices. The model is developed for rangelands dominated by annual rather than perennial grasses, such as the African … Continue reading
Livestock and global climate change
In May 2008, the British Society of Animal Science, INRA (Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique), the European Association for Animal Production, ICARDA (International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas) and many other partners and sponsors, organised a conference on Livestock and Global Climate Change, held at Hammamet, Tunisia in May 2008. The … Continue reading
Guinea pigs to help ease DRC food crisis – scientists
Scientists are examining how to increase guinea pig production to boost food security in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where inhabitants keep the rodents as “micro-livestock”. The researchers were originally puzzled to find guinea pigs in the DRC at all. Read more … (afrol news) CIAT Blog Continue reading
Livestock, feed and food security
Tara Garnett of the FCRN examines “some of the arguments surrounding the relationship between what we feed and how we rear farm animals, and the availability and accessibility of food for human consumption. Does livestock production foster or hinder food security? In what ways are the contributions of intensive and extensive systems to food security … Continue reading
Intensive versus extensive livestock systems and greenhouse gas emissions
Tara Garnett of the FCRN explores “the different ways in which one might view the contributions that livestock in intensive and extensive systems make to greenhouse gas emissions. Why do people draw different conclusions about intensive versus extensive systems? How far do these conclusions reflect differing approaches to quantifying emissions, to considering land use, and … Continue reading
Pakistan: First-ever national rangeland policy on the cards
The long wait spanning more than 62 years for having the national rangeland policy is almost over. Alarmed by the rangelands and pastures’ degradation and adverse impacts of climate change on them coupled with growing loss of biodiversity, the Ministry of Environment has finally come up with a draft strategy to ensure sustainable development and … Continue reading
ILRI Clippings 