Analysing intensification, autonomy and efficiencies of livestock production through nitrogen flows: A case study of an emblematic Amazonian territory

With increasing demographic growth, there will be an ever increasing demand for greater food production over the turn of this century. Seen from today's productivist point of view, this is not too difficult a challenge to meet. Besides socio-economic and geopolitical considerations, it is now of the utmost importance to consider any such increase in food production from a global environmental perspective. Man-made changes to the environment are numerous, some perhaps irredeemable. The essential human activities of agriculture, animal production and fisheries also affect the environment and some quantitative data are available on such impacts. Each progress in increasing agricultural resources (reclaiming new land areas for agriculture, increase in land productivity, intensification of animal production etc.,) is not without disadvantages (deforestation, pollution of underground water through different contaminants). Intensification of land animal production, facilitated also by progress in biotechnological methods leads to increased contamination of the natural food chain and to the concentration of effluents. Aquatic production, currently undergoing tremendous progress, is also facing several such dangers: over-exploitation of natural resources; slow disappearance of natural breeding grounds; increased pollution of water through industrial, agricultural and aquacultural activities. Every such menace to the future of food production has its solution. Even the application of already available knowledge can prevent further deterioration of our land, air and aquatic environment for sustained production. But, local socioeconomic pressures and lack of concern or education often prevent us from obtaining the ideal balance between food production and environment.

Nutrition, animal production and the environment

Egypt's rural population contains a high proportion of farmers with very small farms. Average farm size, now thought to be less than 2.5 feddan, continues to decline under the pressure of the growing rural population. More than two thirds of the farming units are less than three feddan in size. Often it is asserted that a two to three feddan farm is necessary for "subsistence" or to avoid the need to work for others. Surprisingly, however, this study indicates that smaller farmers are not very active participants in hired farm labor markets. How, then, can such farmers survive? We contend that livestock production provides a vital alternative source of employment, food, and income to the small farmer.
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\nLivestock production may represent an important survival strategy for Egypt's small farmers. The authors discussed the problems in drawing upon national statistics as a source of information about livestock. Survey data found that livestock production generates a higher proportion of income on small farms than on large farms, and showed that small farmers devote more labor to livestock than to crops.
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\nLivestock production provides attractive opportunities for Egypt's farmers, particularly small farmers, to augment farm incomes as well as to obtain vital human food nutrients. An estimated sixty-five percent of all equivalent animal units were found to be on farms with three feddan and less. More than three quarters of the edible milk and dairy products are home consumed on farms on this size. Given the fact that livestock production is so heavily concentrated on these small farms and that they consume such a high proportion of what they produce, it follows that these farms cannot be counted upon to supply a very significant amount of dairy and other livestock products to Egypt's growing off-farm population. But data presented here indicates the opposite. Because they are so much more productive than larger farms, the amount of livestock products w hich is marketed by small farms exceeds that marketed by larger farms, when measured on either a per feddan or per animal unit basis.
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\nIs the intensification in livestock production which Egypt has experienced during the past two decades a temporary or a long term phenomenon? Apparently, it seems that livestock intensification cannot normally succeed in developing countries, in the face of high human population densities and the resultant competition for crop land. Data presented in this study seems to indicate that just the opposite may be true in Egypt during the current epoch. Why? Will the current situation last?
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\nEgypt's farm population has continued to grow on a fixed base of land. The average farm size has become smaller it is currently estimated to be about 2.4 feddan and the farm family labor available per farm and per unit area of land has increased. Evidence presented here indicates that livestock production has a much greater capacity than crop production for utilizing additional family labor. This factor favors livestock production, aside from the favorable relative price situation which exists.
\nLivestock production has normally been intensified when declines in grain price have been the stimulus for a shift from arable to relatively more !intensive livestock farming."[14] Clearly, government policies have held grain and other crop prices relative to livestock prices. Without doubt this has contributed to livestock intensification. Should the Egyptian government decide to permit crop prices to rise towards their international trading equivalent, then the current incentives to produce livestock would be greatly reduced

IntroductionSustainable livestock production remains crucial for attainment of food security globally and for safeguarding the livelihoods of many households in low- and –middle income countries. However, the high prevalence of infectious livestock diseases, coupled with inadequate provision and adoption of effective control measures, leads to reduced livestock productivity, increased animal mortalities, and emergence of antimicrobial resistant pathogens. This study sought to assess the management strategies employed by farmers for priority diseases affecting their animals and the utilization and performance of veterinary services.MethodsWe conducted the study in three districts, namely, Mion, Pru East, and Kwahu Afram Plains South Districts, which represent the main livestock production belts in Ghana. We used questionnaires in surveys, to collect pertinent data from 350 ruminant livestock farmers and 13 professional veterinary officers (VOs) in the study districts. Additionally, we conducted seven focus group discussions (FGDs) with 65 livestock farmers in the study districts. The survey data was analyzed, and we describe the distribution of the priority livestock diseases, the disease management strategies employed, and the performance of veterinary services in Ghana. We also analyzed the raw FGD transcript texts deductively based on the study objectives. To validate findings across the different datasets, we used triangulation.ResultsAlmost all the farmers (98%) reared small ruminants, with about 25% also rearing cattle. The main priority livestock diseases identified includes pestes-des-petits-ruminants and mange infection in sheep and goats, as well as contagious bovine pleuropneumonia and foot-and-mouth-disease in cattle. We found that majority (82%) of the farmers relied on treatment, while only 20% opted for vaccination services. Additionally, the veterinary system in Ghana did not adequately regulate the antimicrobial medications employed by farmers to manage diseases. Thus, in most of the cases, the medicines applied by farmers were not useful for the target diseases. Although our findings show the farmers perceived VOs to perform highly compared to informal providers on most of the attributes evaluated including medicine availability and quality, treatment effectiveness, advisory services, service affordability, and competence, only 33% utilized VOs services. The majority of the farmers (51%) used the services of informal providers, who were better in proximity and popularity with farmers.ConclusionsThe livestock sector in Ghana faces a substantial challenge due primarily to vaccine-preventable diseases. Even though VOs demonstrated superior performance on key veterinary service performance indicators, their services are underutilized by livestock farmers. Additionally, the absence of regulatory oversight by the veterinary system over antimicrobials utilized in animal production contributes to their misapplication by livestock farmers, posing a considerable risk to both public health and food security. It is thus imperative to introduce new initiatives that enhance the uptake of animal vaccines and better antimicrobial stewardship to ensure sustainable livestock production.

Livestock is an integral part of the agriculture system, providing a vital safety net of money and food for a substantial proportion of the rural people, especially the poor and disadvantaged. A reorientation of the production system toward more efficiency and a heightened focus on quality is required to keep up with the rising demand for livestock-based products in both local and international markets, as indicated by recent trends in the livestock sector. Advancements in information and communication technologies (ICTs) have allowed for novel methods of sharing and expanding information and knowledge throughout farming communities, potentially boosting livestock productivity. The study aims to evaluate the ICT devices accessible and used by livestock farmers and farmers’ perceptions about the vital role of ICTs in improving livestock farming in Sierra Leone. The study was conducted in six chiefdoms of the Koinadugu district of Northern Sierra Leone. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to gather information from 262 livestock farmers. The result shows that mobile phone (\(\bar{X}\)=4.63), radio (\(\bar{X}\)=4.51), internet (\(\bar{X}\)=4.23), CD-ROM/VCD/DVD (\(\bar{X}\)=3.76), television (\(\bar{X}\)=3.69), and video player (\(\bar{X}\)=3.52) were the ICT devices that livestock farmers always access. Mobile phone (\(\bar{X}\)=4.53), radio (\(\bar{X}\)=4.21), television (\(\bar{X}\) =3.74), CD-ROM/VCD/DVD (\(\bar{X}\)=3.68), internet (\(\bar{X}\)=3.57), and video player (\(\bar{X}\) =3.51) are livestock farmers' most frequently used ICT devices. The result also reveals that advertising a product, contacting potential buyers, improving access to a new market, providing information on food processing and preservation, increasing product potential, providing information on market prices, and facilitating payment online for livestock products are the strongly perceived role of ICTs in livestock marketing. Low level of education, lack of electricity, low income of farmers, high communication costs, language barrier, and lack of ICT skills, among others, were the main constraints associated with the access and use of information and communication technologies among livestock farmers. Therefore, the government should provide continuous power or backup power for remote farmers to use ICTs for livestock management activities and promote sustainable livestock growth.

The potential impacts of dietary plant natural products on the sustainable mitigation of methane emission from livestock farming

In a recent essay published in the prestigious series of readings in ethics issued by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations David Fraser discusses the relationship between animal welfare and modern, intensive animal production. His main view is that it is possible to uphold a decent level of animal welfare within intensive animal production and that the best way to promote animal welfare is to reform rather than reject intensive animal production. Fraser is aware that other people hold credible views on this subject; he is also aware that his own views differ from those of influential authors who, approaching the matter from the perspective of animal welfare or animal rights, often criticize intensive animal production. Indeed, it should be noted that Fraser’s chapter in the present volume seems to have anticipated many of the criticisms that I present here and therefore, as far as I can see, has moderated a number of the claims made in the FAO booklet. My comment here is offered to highlight some of the important points on which these two statements differ. The original FAO Ethics Paper is, in fact, largely an argued rejection of the perspective and conclusions of critics of intensification of animal production. Specifically, the FAO document criticizes the following three widely believed propositions: (a) there is a strong link between intensive animal production and problems with animal welfare; (b) the development and maintenance of intensive animal production is driven by the greed and lack of care of the producers; and (c) the way forward is either vegetarianism or a return to traditional, extensive, smallscale, multipurpose farming. Regarding (a) the FAO paper asserts that intensive production systems has some positive effects on animal welfare, and moreover that there is no reason to think that intensive production systems cannot be developed so as to provide high levels of

This discussion explores the opportunities and challenges in enhancing food production and security in the context of climatic variability in Sub Saharan Africa. The promotion of sustainable use of plant and animal products with emphasis on satisfying basic human needs, improving people’s standard of living, enhancing food security and reducing poverty have taken a center stage in Sub Saharan Africa. However, the efforts in this direction are being impacted negatively by climate change, through animal and crop production which have not been spared due to the natural disasters and environmental challenges which have affected all regions of Sub Saharan Africa indiscriminately. Climate is a particularly important driver of food production systems performance at the agriculture end of the food chain. It can affect the quantities and types of food produced as well as production-related income especially for the poor resource farmers. In order to be able to adequately address food production and security in the context of climate, there is need for the region to carry out thorough climatic vulnerability and adaptation assessments. Supporting research and training of experts to carry out vulnerability and adaptation assessments on crop and livestock production is crucial in order for respective countries to develop climate change adaptation measures to meet the obligation on food production and security. Sub Saharan Africa’s agro-ecological regions are variable and need to develop specific adaptive measures to reduce vulnerability to climate change. Due to the changing climatic conditions which the continent has already witnessed many severe climatic induced vulnerability such as decline in rainfall amounts and intensity, reduced length of rain season and increasing warm and occasionally very hot conditions has affected food production and security. Crop and livestock production systems will need to adapt to higher ambient temperatures, lower nutritional value of feed resources and new diseases and parasites occurrence. It can be seen that the present crop and livestock production systems based on pastoral or rangeland grazing husbandry systems, ecological destruction through climatic variability and overgrazing due to high stocking rates in areas where feed and water has been compromised due to high temperatures caused by climate change does not augur well for future livestock productivity. The understanding of climate change variables and their impacts is the first step in climate change research and prerequisite for defining appropriate adaptive responses by local crop and livestock farmers. Sustainable crop and livestock production supporting rural development should be compatible with the goals of curbing the effects of climate change. Production priorities should be directed towards promoting local crop and livestock genetic resources by providing comprehensive research support services on the impact of climate change. Both crops and livestock play important roles in farming systems, as they offer opportunities for risk coping, farm diversification and intensification, and provide significant livelihood benefits and food security. The discussion therefore, concludes that the effectiveness of biophysical responses of crop and livestock production systems to specific environmental challenges that are anticipated as a result of climate change, and then the range of adaptive measures that might be taken by local producers to ameliorate their effects will be the prerequisite for defining appropriate societal responses and meet food security targets.

This study examines the influence of COVID-19 pandemic on livestock sectors in Sudur Paschim Province (far western province) of Nepal with a focus on the government's response. Analyzing provincial interventions in the livestock sector, we present findings from a primary survey and interviews with livestock farmers, agri-business traders, market agents, and key stakeholders across Kanchanpur, Kailali, Doti, and Achham districts. These districts represent the diverse agro-climatic conditions of far western Nepal. Using mixed methods, we combine qualitative and quantitative data to analyze the impact on livelihoods, business performances, employment, and income for livestock farmers and traders compared to the pre-pandemic scenario of 2019. The pandemic significantly disrupted the livestock and fresh meat production system due to supply chain disruptions, affecting all stakeholders – farmers, producers, suppliers, traders, agro-businesses, and consumers. The repercussions varied among these actors. Dairy farmers experienced a 50-60 percentage income loss, while poultry farmers had to sell birds at half price. The dairy, poultry, and fish sub-sectors were particularly hard-hit. Despite government support, assistance primarily reached well-off farmers and larger businesses rather than smallholders. This study not only underscores lessons learned for Nepal in managing the pandemic and similar disasters but also offers insights for other countries in South Asia facing comparable constraints and opportunities. By investigating the pandemic's repercussions and government interventions in Nepal, this research contributes to better preparedness and response strategies for future crises in livestock and agriculture. SAARC J. Agric., 21(2): 217-226 (2023)

Unravelling the physical, technological and economic factors driving the intensification trajectories of livestock systems

The expansion of livestock farming is one of the main causes of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon. Intensive land use for beef production can cause changes, affecting native fauna composition and species richness. Ants are important organism of soil biota in tropical forests, mainly for their ecological attributes and their remarkable abundance. We investigated the effects of habitat loss by livestock farming on the richness and composition of ground-dwelling ants in the Brazilian Amazon. Ants were captured in five areas of secondary forests and pastures using pitfall traps for 48 h. Our results showed that the ant richness did not differ between habitats (p = 0.89). However, the species composition was different, resulting in two segregated clusters: one formed by forest areas and one by those of pasture. An indicator species analysis underscored the occurrence of three species that can be considered typical of the secondary forest, while a subset of four species from pasture, which probably tolerate land-use disturbance by livestock farming. Our results suggest the importance of maintaining secondary forests for biodiversity conservation and that livestock farming directly affects the taxonomic composition of ant species in the Amazonian biome.

Could animal production become a profession?

With the world human population touching roughly 7 billion by the turn of the century, malnutrition and undernutrition are increasing alarmingly along with food shortages Animal products such as milk, meat and eggs can provide supplementary food of high nutritive value. Hence, intensification of animal production is important. This has been achieved in the developed world (North America and Europe) through several biotechnological innovations such as use of improved genetic stock, better livestock management, improvement in the nutritive value of animal feed and feed conversion efficiency (Orskov, 1993; Perry, 1995). However, in many developing and underdeveloped countries of Asia, inadequate supply of good quality feed is the main factor hindering the intensification of animal production (Ibrahim & Schiere, 1987). According to Devendra (1988), many of the feed resources in South Asia include non-conventional feed resources, crop residues and agro-industrial by-products and are currently designated as wastes.

The subject of research is the scientific and practical aspects of livestock production in Ukraine. The purpose of the article is to determine the economic principles of livestock production in agricultural enterprises. The data of the State Statistics Service of Ukraine, the results of research by scientists and our own developments were used. The following methods of scientific research were applied: abstract-logical, monographic, statistical-economic and systematic approach. Trends in production were established in three strategically important subsectors of livestock farming in the agrarian formations of Ukraine: poultry farming, pig breeding and cattle breeding. Based on the analysis, it was found that the production of livestock products in agricultural enterprises is a specialized area and is concentrated mainly in large and medium-sized livestock complexes. To solve the problematic issues of agribusiness development in Ukraine, which are related to logistics and sales of agricultural products on foreign markets, the need to diversify the directions of production in agricultural enterprises through the combination of crop production and more labour-intensive livestock and processing production units were confirmed. This will make it possible to reduce production risks and seasonality of labour, to increase the wage funds in enterprises, etc. Based on the analysis of the impact of technological factors on the economic efficiency of livestock production in agricultural enterprises, the need for intensification of production through improving the feed base and organizing breeding work, optimizing the turnover and reproduction of the main livestock of livestock and poultry during the year, etc., were substantiated. For the effective development of livestock in agricultural enterprises, it is necessary to improve marketing and sales activities, organization and motivation personnel. Key words: livestock products, agricultural enterprise, production specialization, production diversification, efficient production, production intensification, labour organization.

Knowledge, attitudes, and practices associated with antimicrobial use and antimicrobial resistance among livestock farmers in Botswana.