MilkIT: Enhancing dairy-based livelihoods in India through feed innovation

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 →

Innovation platforms as a route to dairy development in India

The International Livestock Research Institute has adopted an innovation platform approach as a route to dairy development in the hills of Uttarakhand. Continue reading →

Impact of feed technologies on livestock production in India: Poster summaries from four studies

These posters, prepared for the Tropentag 2014 conference, highlight livestock feeds and milk marketing challenges in India and research by ILRI and partners towards addressing them. Continue reading →

The feeding component in rural and peri-urban smallholder pig systems in Uganda

This poster, prepared for the Tropentag 2014 conference, presents findings from a study by ILRI to characterize the pig feeding systems in Uganda in terms of the use of local feed resources and gender roles. Continue reading →

Forage diversity – an essential resource to support forage development

Poor-quality feed, fluctuating feed supplies and seasonal feed shortages are major constraints to increasing livestock productivity in many tropical countries. Forage diversity is an essential resource for the selection and breeding of superior forages for use in smallholder farming to alleviate these constraints. This poster, prepared for the Tropentag 2014 conference, describes forage diversity activities … Continue reading →

Transformation of beef production in Vietnam – an innovation case study

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 →

Selecting appropriate feed technologies to support livestock intensification in Uttarakhand, India

In Uttarakhand, feed is one of the most limiting constraints to livestock intensification. Although many nutritional technologies are available to improve the quantity and quality of feed and fodder, or to plug seasonal shortages, farmers seldom use these new interventions because, for instance, women who rear animals are already fully loaded with existing domestic and agricultural work, farmers lack access to credit for feed-based investments, or farmers are uncertain which technologies are most appropriate to them. Continue reading →

Investment opportunities for ruminant livestock feeding in developing countries

The World Bank just released a new report that “assesses where the demand for feed [for ruminants in developing countries] is likely to change the most, and where investments in feed are most likely to increase animal productivity and improve the livelihoods of those who raise livestock. It covers policy, institutions, knowledge and innovation as … Continue reading →

Fodder seed field day in Ethiopia is an encouraging sign of sustained innovation

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 →

Tools for livestock feed assessment – lessons from ELF and QuickFeed projects

Earlier this year, ILRI joined national and international partners in two ‘feed assessment’ projects in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian Livestock Feeds project (funded by ACIAR) and the ‘QuickFeed‘ early win project of the Africa RISING program both set out to  test a suite of rapid diagnosis tools to identify promising feed and fodder interventions. At the … Continue reading →