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.
An air quality scientist at UC Davis, Professor Frank Mitloehner, has been in the press talking about implications of his research on livestock production and GHGs. He has been quoted as saying it is “scientifically inaccurate” and a “distraction” to encourage a reduction in meat consumption as part of an effort to combat climate change. … Continue reading
USDA’s Agriculture Research Service (ARS) and National Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA) held a two day workshop on March 23rd and 24th to discuss research priorities in the area of animal health. The workshop was well attended by a mix of industry, academia and government representatives. The goal of the workshop was to develop … Continue reading
It is becoming difficult to keep pace with the speed at which the global warming scam is now unravelling. The latest reversal of scientific “consensus” is on livestock and the meat trade as a major cause of global warming – one-fifth of all greenhouse gas emissions, according to eco-vegetarian cranks. Now a scientific report delivered … Continue reading
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
Kenya is vulnerable to avian flu given its position along migratory bird routes and proximity to other high risk countries. This raises concern about the effect an outbreak could have on economic development. We use a dynamic computable general equilibrium model of Kenya to simulate potential outbreaks of different severities, durations and geographic spreads. Results … Continue reading
Genetically modified fish could soon be on the table The Belgian blue is an ugly but tasty cow that has 40% more muscle than it should have. It is the product of random mutation followed by selective breeding—as, indeed, are all domesticated creatures. But where an old art has led, a new one may follow. … Continue reading
This ILRI learning module by Sylvester Dickson Baguma Ponniah Anandajayasekeram and Ranjitha Puskur on Writing convincing research proposals and effective scientific reports, Part B: scientific writing was released on 24 March, 2010. During one of the interactions between the management of the Capacity Strengthening Unit, and the Graduate Fellows of ILRI, the students identified the … Continue reading
A new multimillion dollar research program by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research aims to alleviate climate-related threats to the food security, livelihoods and environment of people living in the developing world. One of the key intellectual forces behind this initiative has been the International Research Institute for Climate and Society’s Jim Hansen. He’ll … Continue reading
“Farmers are tired of people going to take water samples, soil samples, crop samples. They are fatigued. Farmers want to see benefits.” Mary Njenga, agricultural researcher, Kenya View the video… (GCARD) Continue reading
In the last fifteen years the world witnessed the emergence of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) or Mad Cow disease in the United Kingdom, Hendra virus in Australia, Nipah virus in Malaysia, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in China, Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) or Bird Flu in Southeast Asia, and most recently Pandemic H1N1 Influenza, … Continue reading
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