For people living in absolute poverty and chronic hunger, the solution is not to rid the world of livestock, but to find ways to farm animals more efficiently and more sustainably
We need to conserve the most important livestock genetic diversity for possible future use – by poor and rich farmers alike
Livestock feed is a key constraint to the commercialization of smallholder livestock production
While vaccines remain the most cost-effective medical and veterinary interventions for controlling disease, opportunities also exist to improve animal health by improving existing veterinary services and access by poor livestock keepers to those services
Mixed crop-and-livestock farms will, more than the traditional breadbaskets and rice bowls of the past, feed the developing world over the next few decades
Human, livestock and environmental health are inextricably linked, Sixty-one per cent of all diseases are ‘zoonotic’ –that is, transmissible between animals and humans.
Making smallholder production more competitive is a powerful tool to reduce poverty, raise nutrition levels and improve the livelihoods of rural people in many developing countries
Expert opinion agrees that the best way to tap into the potential of the drylands is to build on the foundation of their livestock economies rather than ignoring them or seeking to replace them.
Warm welcome The ‘Improving the Productivity and Market Success of Ethiopian farmers (IPMS)’ project held its ‘Experience-Sharing workshop’ on June 2 and 3 at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in Addis Ababa. After 5 years of continuous engagement in 10 Pilot Learning Woredas (PLW), it was time to take stock of the results. Welcome … Continue reading
Last week, The ‘Improving the Productivity and Market Success of Ethiopian farmers (IPMS)’ project held an experience-sharing workshop at ILRI. Part of the workshop included blind taste tests for participants to assess 5 commodities promoted by the project. See the results: Continue reading
A recent workshop by the Leverhulme Centre for Integrative Research on Agriculture and Health (LCIRAH) and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)’s Agriculture and Health Research Platform brought together health, nutrition and agriculture specialists to explore the development of common tools and methods to evaluate integrated agri-health interventions. More on the workshop Download the … Continue reading
ILRI’s Polly Erickson presents the results of her study, Mapping Hotspots of Climate Change and Food Insecurity in the Global Tropics, produced for the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS), at a seminar at the World Agroforestry Centre (photo credit: ILRI/MacMillan). The US News and World Report writes about a recent study … Continue reading
Below is a round-up of some of the first news clippings generated by the 3 June 2011 launch of an ILRI-CCAFS report, Mapping hotspots of climate change and food insecurity in the global tropics, by Polly Ericksen, Philip Thornton, An Notenbaert, L Cramer, Peter Jones and Mario Herrero 2011. CCAFS Report no. 5 (advance copy). CGIAR Research Program … Continue reading
Time Magazine‘s Bryan Walsh reports this week on report and series of maps detailing where climate change and hunger are likely to intersect in future, with possibly devastating results unless the world’s agricultural researchers manage to help small-scale farmers ‘climate-proof’ their crops and livestock in the coming (drying, flooding) decades. The study was led by scientists … Continue reading
Number of malnourished children per square km, from the advance copy of ‘Mapping Hotspots of Climate Change and Food Insecurity in the Global Tropics,’ by ILRI scientists Polly Ericksen et al., published on 3 June 2011 (map credit: ILRI/CCAFS). The BBC reports on a new study saying that some areas in the tropics face famine … Continue reading
The Guardian‘s Poverty Matters Blog writes today of a research study launched today that indicates that climate change in the tropics poses a food threat to the world’s poor. Blog writer John Vidal cites the report, developed by scientists at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and the CGIAR Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) … Continue reading
A homestead in Thachock Village, Laos (photo credit: Flickr photostream of MAG [Mines Advisory Group]). . . . [P]olicy-makers think they have to choose between feeding the world and protecting the environment—a straight choice. Does it have to be this way? No. To the contrary—we can and must achieve both, or we will fail on … Continue reading
Speech by Edmalem Shetaye on behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture at the opening of the IPMS experience-sharing workshop held at ILRI on 2 and 3 June 2011. Excellencies, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen: It is a privilege and honor to welcome you all to this workshop entitles ‘Market-oriented smallholder Development in support of the … Continue reading
ILRI Clippings 