Nigeriens are likely to take years to recover from selling their weakened livestock at a fraction of its normal value due to drought in the Sahel region. The drought threatens almost 70 percent of herds, according to rough estimates from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). “It can take up to 10 years … Continue reading
Less demanding than cattle and useful sources of protein, milk and hides, small ruminants are highly adaptable and can be reared in urban and peri-urban settings, as well as in the most hostile environments. Read more … (Spore) Continue reading
Worldwide, the livestock sector is growing faster than any other agricultural sub-sector, providing livelihoods for around 1.3 billion people and contributing about 40 percent to global agricultural output. In poor countries, livestock are also a source of renewable energy and fertiliser. However, the livestock sector accounts for a significant proportion of the carbon dioxide, nitrous … Continue reading
Over the next two decades, rapid urbanisation and rising incomes in the developing world are expected to bring about a livestock revolution. In India, this boom in the production of animal products will be driven by a demand for milk, which is projected to increase by more than 80 million tons over 15 years. Smallholder … Continue reading
A severe summer drought, followed by winter temperatures of minus 40-50°C, has resulted in the loss of an estimated 8 million animals – about 17 per cent of Mongolia’s livestock. The extreme conditions, known as dzud, have had a devastating impact in a country where 40 per cent of the population depend on livestock. In … Continue reading
… Every year, over one million cattle in east and southern Africa die from East Coast fever – that’s about one cow every thirty seconds. The hardship caused by the disease to livestock keepers and their families is terrible, and financially, the loss to east Africa alone is around 190 million US dollars each year. … Continue reading
With Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS), or blue ear disease, spreading across Vietnam, large numbers of pig farmers are facing financial difficulty. Pork shortages due to the culling of pigs, or deaths from the disease, combined with restrictions in the movement of animals and public concern over the safety of pork products have seen … Continue reading
This working paper by Azage Tegegne, Berhanu Gebremedhin and Dirk Hoekstra on Livestock input supply and service provision in Ethiopia: challenges and opportunities for market-oriented development was released on 23 June, 2010 Livestock production in Ethiopia has, for long, remained subsistence with limited market-orientation and poor institutional support. Producing for the market requires re-orientation of … Continue reading
The genetic diversity of Africa’s indigenous livestock needs to be tapped before it is lost forever, researchers have warned. They said native breeds had adapted to tolerate parasites or produce “robust” milk yields in harsh conditions. Writing in the journal science, they added that these traits had yet to be unlocked by the scientific community. … Continue reading
On January 13, 2009, Tyson—one of the world’s largest processors of chicken, beef, and pork—and the fuel company Syntroleum broke ground in Geismar, Louisiana, on a “renewable” diesel plant. The fuel will be produced in part with Tyson factory farm byproducts, including animal fat and poultry litter. (“Litter” is the euphemistic term for poultry poop … Continue reading
ILRI Clippings 