In Europe intensive livestock production is often seen as harmful for the environment and animal welfare – think of cattle fed on grains which would be better used for human consumption. And producing lots of waste in concentrated areas which is difficult to deal with. In Africa, the mantra tends to be that intensification of … Continue reading
Targeting of legumes to niches in smallholder systems is the core objective of the Legume CHOICE project. Continue reading
This report shares results and lessons on productivity-enhancing feed interventions developed through MilkIT, a project to promote milk production in India and Tanzania. Continue reading
We recently published a paper looking at how the Ethiopian dairy innovation system has functioned to support the development of the Ethiopian dairy sector and what have been the major technical, economic, and institutional constraints in the process. Continue reading
At this week’s international conference on Integrated Systems Research for Sustainable Intensification in Smallholder Agriculture, Iddo Dror presented a poster on ways that ILRI is leveraging instructional design and learning theories to improve productivity in smallholder systems. The poster is about a learning package to support use of the FEAST tool. Continue reading
FEAST was originally developed as a decision-support tool to help in identifying appropriate feed interventions in smallholder systems. During the MilkIT Project FEAST was used in both India and Tanzania but in different ways and with different benefits. We reflected on the use of FEAST during our final project meeting in Lushoto Tanzania and produced a rough poster outlining the various ways in which FEAST was used and what the benefits of use were. Continue reading
The MilkIT (enhancing dairy-based livelihoods in India and Tanzania through feed innovation) project comes to an end in December 2014. The project team in India recently produced a video documenting some of the project’s experiences, zooming in on innovation platforms, womens’ empowerment, and enhanced forage availability. Continue reading
We recently published some work comparing dairy feeding and breeding practices among smallholders in Ethiopia and India. Continue reading
During the Fodder Adoption Project our Vietnam case was particularly successful building as it did on previous forage development efforts in Vietnam led by CIAT. Through the Fodder Adoption Project and previous projects the livestock system in study sites moved from a subsistence system to one based on marketing of improved cattle to distant markets. … Continue reading
During the lifetime of the Fodder Adoption Project ILRI established local innovation platforms at various field sites around Ethiopia. The idea behind these was to provide a forum for key livestock feed stakeholders to get together and jointly plan actions to improve the livestock feed situation for smallholder farmers. One such innovation platform was established … Continue reading
Feeding innovation 