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.
Climate change is expected to bring greater extremes in weather conditions, but climate models disagree about which problems – droughts, flooding, temperature increases – are most likely in much of northern, central and western Africa. In east Africa, however, the models largely agree: dry areas will suffer more prolonged droughts and wet areas will see … Continue reading
First pulses, now milk. The common household is compelled to give up on its easy sources of protein. In this issue of ‘Down to Earth’, Ravleen Kaur found that rise in fodder prices, not rise in demand, is pushing up the cost of milk in India. Why is the fodder so expensive? According to Kaul: … Continue reading
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
The Kenya government has offered office facilities to the Consultative Group of International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) Consortium Board. “President Mwai Kibaki made the pledge when he met and held discussions with the CGIAR Consortium Board Vice Chairman Mr Carl Hausmann who paid him a courtesy call at his Harambee House office on Monday.” During the talks, president Kibaki assured the … 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
Tracking the right evidence to demonstrate impact is a conundrum common to many development projects. Providing evidence for change proves particularly challenging for projects where outcomes are unpredictable and changes that result from innovation processes are not immediately visible and are difficult to quantify. However, despite these challenges, adopting a ‘learning by doing’ approach and … 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
ILRI Clippings 