Abstract
This special issue contains a collection of papers dealing with various aspects of Integrating livestock and crop production systems in different parts of the world. Drafts of some papers were presented and discussed at a 2-day international workshop in Quzhou, Hebei, China, during October 9-12, 2019. The workshop was combined with a 2-day field trip to visit dairy and poultry farms and rural villages in Hebei. The workshop was organized by the National Academy of Agriculture Green Development of China Agricultural University. There were 13 Chinese and 11 international scientists (from five continents) and 20 Chinese postdoctoral researchers and PhD students participating in the workshop.
Highlights
This special issue contains a collection of papers dealing with various aspects of Integrating livestock and crop production systems in different parts of the world
The objectives of the workshop were (1) to discuss experiences with integrated/integrating crop and livestock production systems across the world, (2) to discuss institutions, markets and technologies needed for integrating crop and livestock production, and (3) to discuss and identify knowledge gaps, and to explore opportunities for joint research
Just three plant species and just three animal species predominate in current crop and livestock production systems; these species together provide more than 60% of all energy and protein intake by humans[8]
Summary
This special issue contains a collection of papers dealing with various aspects of Integrating livestock and crop production systems in different parts of the world. Just three plant species (wheat, rice and maize) and just three animal species (cattle, pigs and poultry) predominate in current crop and livestock production systems; these species together provide more than 60% of all energy and protein intake by humans[8] The success of these species is related to their high yield potential, nutritive value, versatility and to globalization. The population doubled, the labor surplus in agriculture became available for the industry and cities rapidly grew in population This revolution was not so strong outside Europe and North America, and did not greatly affect the nature of mixed farming systems in other continents. Cereal yields doubled or tripled, allowing the human population to rapidly grow further It affected the nature of mixed farming systems, because mechanization made draft animals unnecessary and mineral fertilizers made animal manure unnecessary in crop production. A decrease of the consumption of animal-derived food by especially people in affluent countries is seen as a possible solution[29,30]
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