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.
…David Nkedianye, a researcher at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in Kabete, said greenhouses are threatening to edge the pastroalists out of their traditional lands. “The water issue is a very controversial one. How do you extract so much water for greenhouse agriculture in an arid area where one of the key concerns is … Continue reading
The work of ecologist Robin Reid, who spent 15 years conducting pastoral research at the Nairobi headquarters of the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) is featured in a current segment of the American television program ‘60 Minutes’, which aired last Sunday, 3 October 2009. View the segment on the 60 Minutes website here: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/1998/07/08/60minutes/main13502.shtml Read … Continue reading
Millions of African families could be saved from destitution thanks to a much-needed vaccine that is being mass-produced in a drive to protect cattle against a deadly parasite. East Coast fever is a tick-transmitted disease that kills one cow every 30 seconds – with one million a year dying of the disease. Calves are particularly … Continue reading
The anticipated climatic changes will present mixed fortunes for pastoralist communities in Uganda and her neighbours. This is according to an Oxfam briefing paper Survival of the Fittest which says that pastoralist communities across East Africa are starting to learn to live with the reality of climate change, adapting as they can to its impacts. … Continue reading
Millions of African families could be saved from destitution thanks to a much-needed vaccine that is being mass-produced in a drive to protect cattle against a deadly parasite. East Coast fever is a tick-transmitted disease that kills one cow every 30 seconds – with one million a year dying of the disease. Calves are particularly … Continue reading
Cary Fowler, in the latest issue of the Enews from the Global Crop Diversity Trust, argues that previously hidden national vulnerabilities were exposed in the 2007-8 global food price crisis. He says that crisis revealed weaknesses in national security, weaknesses that many capital-rich but land-poor countries are addressing by buying up farmland in developing countries … Continue reading
The United States African Development Foundation (USADF) signed three grants to support livestock markets in Benin. The grants will benefit l’Association Locale de Gestion du Marché à Bétail Auto-Géré de Gogounou (ALGMB), l’Union Communale des Professionnels des Eleveurs de Ruminants d’Abomey (UCOPER Abomey), and l’Union Communale des Organisations Professionnelles des Eleveurs de Ruminants de Dogue … Continue reading
One year after a financial crisis that began in the United States tipped the world into a severe recession, leaders from both rich countries and fast-growing powerhouses like China agreed on Friday to a far-reaching effort to revamp the economic system. The agreements, if carried out by national governments, would lead to much tighter regulation … Continue reading
Last week, the world mourned the loss of Norman Borlaug, the agronomist credited with saving as many as a billion people from starvation by introducing high-yield crop varieties. Borlaug’s success in establishing food security — dubbed the Green Revolution — came at a time when the planet was far less populated than today. When he … Continue reading
The international conference at Oxford University dubbed “4 degrees and beyond” is the first of its kind to consider the global consequences of climate change beyond 2 degrees Celcius. Amongst the speakers include Dr. Philip Thornton of the International Livestock Research Instutite, speaking on sub-Saharan agriculture. “A leading climate scientist has presented new research findings … Continue reading
ILRI Clippings 