The work of the MilkIT project to enhance dairy-based livelihoods in India and Tanzania through feed innovation and value chain development approaches was recently reported in IFAD’s 2016 annual report. Continue reading
Multi-stakeholder innovation platforms were set up at different levels as part of the milkIT project, resulting in more milk sales, more interactions and better linkages among different value chain actors in India, and, in Tanzania, access to a larger variety of better feeds. This video explains how the milkIT project worked with innovation platforms Continue reading
The milkIT project hypothesis was that improvements in milk markets would lead to increased productivity by farmers. This video explains the approaches followed: linking farmers to markets (using market ‘pull’ to drive productivity increases) and farmers’ productivity increases which will attract the market to them. Continue reading
The Feed Assessment Tool (FEAST) was one of the key tools used in the milkIT project to assess local feed resource availability and use, guiding targeting and appropriate intervention strategies. This video explains how FEAST was used in the project: Continue reading
During the December 2014 MilkIT project, we caught up with B.K. Bhatt who works in the Integrated Livelihood Support Project (ILSP) financed by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). He reflects on some of the reasons why he worked with the project and what it has contributed to his work. 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
In December 2014, the MilkIT project (Enhancing dairy-based livelihoods in India and Tanzania through feed innovation and value chain development approaches) held final workshops in Lushoto and Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. On 11 December, team members met in an ‘Outreach Meeting’ with various stakeholders and partners. The aim of the meeting was to continue synthesizing the key insights of the project through interactions with a wider community. 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
The International Livestock Research Institute has adopted an innovation platform approach as a route to dairy development in the hills of Uttarakhand. Continue reading
At last week’s Tropentag 2014 conference Thanammal Ravichandran, Nils Teufel and Alan Duncan gave a presentation on the use of innovation platforms in the ‘milkIT’ project in India. The study evaluates the process of IP functioning and conflict management through a qualitative “innovation storyline”. The IP meetings were regularly documented with details of issues discussed, actions planned and follow up activities. Continue reading
Feeding innovation 