Input and output of nutrients and energy in urban and peri-urban livestock holdings of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

Abstract

Urban livestock farming responds to increasing consumer demand for fresh meat, milk and eggs and contributes to farm households’ food security. The current study investigated inputs and outputs of nutrients in peri-urban livestock systems of Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, by quantifying, during 16 months, homestead feeding of small ruminants, beef and dairy cattle, and pigs, along with the animals’ feed intake on pasture, body weight changes, milk yields and faecal excretion. Eighteen farms considered representative of the major livestock systems in the city were selected to this end, and 1342 valid feeding records constituted the database. Across animal species, homestead feeding entailed an annual influx of 100–1600 kg dry matter (DM), 17–51 kg nitrogen (N) and 7–15 kg phosphorus (P) per tropical livestock unit (TLU) of 250 kg body weight; the subsequent excretion of faeces resulted in an accumulation of 210–860 kg DM, 5–6 kg N and 1–3 kg P per TLU and year in the peri-urban space. With a city population of about 190,000 TLU, nutrient depletion of the feed-supplying rural hinterland is expected. Despite highly variable feedstuff quality and availability, farmers’ feed offer supplied more nitrogen than animals required in 68% of all cases, and in 81% of all cases dietary imbalances between protein and energy supply contributed to suboptimal feed utilisation at the individual animal level, reducing biological and economic performance. To address these problems, farmers must receive appropriate information about feed quality, ration formulation, and group-specific feeding strategies.