Livestock production plays a key role in tropical Latin America in a changing economic environment. This study focuses on documenting the transformations of extensive production systems by using superior forage germplasm supplied by regional research systems. The adoption of improved Brachiaria grasses was evaluated from 1990 to 2003 to estimate its impact in terms of animal productivity and income in Central America and Mexico. Information on seed sales in the local market made it possible to estimate the areas planted and the value of additional milk and beef production attributable to adoption. Mexico presents the highest volume of marketed seed and of area established with improved pastures. Among Central America countries, Costa Rica was outstanding in terms of the high volume of seed sold and the area planted, followed by Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama. The annual growth rate of seed sales was very high during the study period, reaching 32% in Mexico, 62% in Honduras, 45% in Nicaragua, 39% in Costa Rica, and 54% in Panama. The area planted with Brachiaria species during this period totaled 6.5% of the total surface of permanent grasses in Mexico, 12.5% in Honduras, 1.0% in Nicaragua, 18.7% in Costa Rica, and 0.1% in Panama. Excluding Nicaragua and Panama, where adoption is low, Brachiaria grasses account for 24%-55% of total annual milk production and for 5%-18% that of beef. These figures clearly demonstrate that those adopting new Brachiaria cultivars are farmers mainly oriented toward milk production and, to a lesser extent, beef. In monetary terms, the value of additional production attributable to the adoption of Brachiaria grasses in the selected study countries was estimated at US$1084 million per year, 78% corresponding to milk and 22% to beef. Due to the magnitude of the livestock sector in Mexico, adoption generates slightly more than 80% of production profits. Study results indicate that the investment of public funds in Central America and Mexico to support the International Network for Evaluation Tropical Pastures (RIEPT, its acronym in Spanish) paid off in terms of adoption of improved grasses and significant increases in the supply of milk and beef, fundamental items in the diet of consumers from all income levels in the region.

Pasture research led by the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and national institutions during the 80's and 90's, contributed with new Brachiaria species with various characteristics and uses that were incorporated with success in livestock production systems in the lowlands of Latin America. Brachiaria brizantha, Brachiaria dictyoneura, Brachiaria humidicola and Brachiaria ruziziensis are some of the forage materials released by research institutions in the region. Despite its indisputable advantages, the Brachiaria genus presents limitations because of its low tolerance to prolonged droughts and its high susceptibility to spittlebug, a pest that causes considerable economic losses to the livestock industry. Thus, most recent research in CIAT's Brachiaria breeding program has focused on the development of a second generation of Brachiaria grasses: outstanding agronomic characteristics, establishment vigor, good sprout capacity, high biomass production and nutritional quality, good seed production, resistant to Rhizotocnia and to multiple spittlebug species. The results of this effort have conveyed to the recent release of Mulato grass, the first hybrid of the Brachiaria genus obtained by CIAT's genetic improvement program. In the waiting list of the second generation of Brachiaria grasses is hybrid #4624 (CIAT 36087), to be released in 2005, having a similar forage quality as Mulato and with all the attributes defined for the second generation of Brachiaria grasses. Moreover, several other hybrids are in advanced stages of evaluation and close to being released as commercial cultivars. The potential economic impact of the adoption of new Brachiaria hybrids on livestock production systems was evaluated using the Economic Model MODEXC. Two regions were considered in Colombia: the Northern Coast and the Eastern Plains. In Mexico, the tropical region; and in Central America, its six constituent countries. The model estimates the economic benefits attributable to the utilization of the new materials, disaggregating per country, region, ecosystem, production system and large social groups (consumers and producers). It works with two types of parameters: the technical ones that characterize the new technology and its process of dissemination, and the economic ones representing the conditions of market supply and demand of both beef and milk affected by the technical change. The benefits of the new technology (from the year 2007) were calculated for a period of 20 years and the results were expressed in terms of the net present value (NPV) and annuities. The estimates were made using alternatively an economic framework of open and closed economy. In a closed economy, without international trade, the NPV of the technological benefits was estimated at US$4,166 million, of which 54% would be generated by the marketing of beef and the rest by milk. Most of the benefits were concentrated in Mexico, US$2,831 (68%); followed by Colombia, US$960 million (23%), and Central America, US$363 million (9%). In order to have criteria on the extent of the estimated technological benefits, the value of beef and milk yield during 2003 was calculated in the reference countries. The NPV is equivalent to 44% of the value of that year, ranging between 16% in Honduras and 78% in Nicaragua. The results show the importance of the dual purpose livestock production system. In most countries, more than half of the technological benefits was generated in this system: Colombia 70%, Central America 62%, and Mexico 50%. When a country is self-sufficient and the surplus resulting from the technical improvements is marketed domestically, the benefits are transferred to consumers who are favored with the reduction in prices, making possible for them to increase consumption. In the case of a closed economy, consumers would capture 83% of total benefits. Trade liberalization implies a re-distributive process favoring producers. Export purchases increase total demand and restrain the fall of domestic prices. In an open-market economy, the share of benefits to producers would rise to 46%. Research investment is conceived as a primary mechanism to achieve two of the most basic social goals: 1) poverty reduction and improvement in equity, and 2) the promotion of economic growth. Having this premise, in order to establish to what extent this technical change contributes to the fulfillment of these goals, the acquired benefits were estimated for the most vulnerable population groups: a) The two quintiles of poor consumers, representing 40% of total population, and b) the small producers. In both schemes, open or closed economy, both groups receive more than one-fourth of the benefits from technical change, 27% and 31%, respectively. This is equivalent to a NPV ranging between US$1,137 to 1,303 millions. Because the hybrids require better soils or fertilizer inputs to maintain forage biomass productivity and quality, the study was made with conservative hypotheses about changes in productivity and the size of the area to be planted. Despite the definition of the levels of critical variables, especially those associated with the productivity and the adoption of the new Brachiaria hybrids, conservative criteria were considered in order to avoid overestimating the benefits; it is important to evaluate the sensitivity of these, against undesirable changes of those variables. For this purpose, three alternative scenarios were established: 1) The reduction of 50% of the area cultivated with new Brachiaria hybrids, 2) the reduction of 10% in the yields of the new materials, and 3) the increase of 50% in the total time of adoption. The most critical variable in the determination of the amount of benefits is yield (productivity) of the new technology, in terms of beef and milk per hectare. The elasticity of the benefits regarding the yields was estimated at 2.2 for Colombia and 1.8 for Central America and Mexico. This suggests that if the yield declines by 1%, the reduction of the social benefits is more than proportional. The social benefits are less elastic with regard to the area planted with new Brachiaria hybrids or the time of adoption. For example, in Colombia, if the area with improved materials declines by one percentage point, the benefits will diminish at approximately six tenths of one point. In all the proposed alternative scenarios, the investment in the development of these new pastures are economically attractive, despite the adverse circumstances proposed in these scenarios. The technological benefits expressed as an annuity (a fixed annual payment received for a specific number of years) shows that the investment for the development of new forage options is very low, less than US$ 20 million, compared with the annual benefits resulting from the use of these new materials.

The objectives of this study were to: (a) estimate milk and beef yields obtained from cows grazing pastures in different stages of degradation; (b) estimate income losses as a result of the degradation process; (c) estimate the proportion of pasture areas found in each stage of degradation within the six administrative regions of Honduras; and (d) identify different strategies and costs to recuperate degraded pastures. Data came from two surveys executed during a workshop carried out in March 2004. The subjective perceptions of 25 livestock producers and 8 extension agents of the 6 administrative regions of Honduras were obtained to estimate the losses of animal productivity within the farm, region, and country. A 4-level scoring of pasture degradation was defined -- where 1 was for the best condition (i.e., non-apparent degradation) and 4 was for the worst (i.e., severe degradation). Regressions, explaining the animal productivity losses at each level of pasture degradation, were generated according to the subjective and descriptive information. Comparing the perception of degraded areas, producers considered that in Honduras the extent of pasture degradation is lower compared with extension agents. According to producers, 29% of the pasture area in the country is at Level 1 (i.e., no degradation) compared with only 19% of extension agents. Moreover, producers perceived a lower proportion of pastures in severe degradation (i.e., Level 4, 27%) in comparison with almost 31% perceived by extension agents. In the intermediate degradation levels (i.e., Levels 2 and 3), both groups were similar. The country is forgoing milk and beef production due to the process of pasture degradation. According to estimations from producers, Honduras is loosing 284,106 tonnes of fluid milk and 48,271 tonnes of beef (live weight) annually for having pasture areas in Level 4 (i.e., severe degradation), equivalent to 48% of the annual production of milk and to 37% of beef. In economic terms, these losses in milk and beef yields are worth US$63 and US$48 million annually, respectively. The perception of extension agents is even more alarming. Honduras could produce 66% more milk and 50% more beef annually if livestock producers renovated their pastures before they reached level 4, equivalent to US$94 million in less revenues from milk sales and US$66 million from less beef sales. Both groups perceive that pastures, in an early stage of degradation (i.e., Level 2), are more economical, practical and rapid to recuperate. Also, as the process of degradation advances (i.e., to Levels 3 and 4), both cost and time of recuperating such pastures increase significantly. According to producers, the recuperation of a pasture from Level 4 to Level 1 costs $140/ha and takes almost a half year (i.e., 5.6 months). Extension agents estimate this cost of recuperation 27% higher ($178/ha) with 5% more time (i.e., 5.9 months). Producers perceive that grasses spend proportionately less time in going from Level 1 to 2 (i.e., 2.9 years) and as the process of degradation continues, pastures remain longer at advanced degraded levels (i.e., 3.1 years in going from level 2 to 3, and around 4.0 years in going from level 3 to 4). Moreover, producers think that the average productive life of improved grasses is about 10 years, while extension agents think that grasses degrade faster, with an average productive life of 8.4 years, 16% less than producers. According to producers and extension agents, pastures degrade at an annual rate of 10% and 12%, respectively. With these rates, Honduras would maintain its current level of degradation between levels 2.48 and 2.65. However, the renovation of pastures at an annual rate of 10-12% does not solve the problem, but maintains it. Producers argued that the current financial situation does not allow the necessary cash flow to renovate their plots, and the option of credit is not viable since real interest rates are high (ie., 10%). After simulating this scenario, it was demonstrated that farmers are able to generate the additional income necessary to pay a credit, but only if this credit is taken with interest rates similar to those found in the international market (ie., 3%). In order to eliminate the degraded areas found in Level 4 at the country level, it is necessary a one-time investment of $57 million according to producers and $84 million according to extension agents. The benefit obtained from this investment would result in a daily increase of 156,000 liters of milk and 26,500 kilograms of beef, equivalent to $22 millions/yr. Therefore, there are significant economic and productive incentives for the private and public sectors to develop and execute a plan of action to recuperate pasturelands in advanced stages of degradation.

A linear programming model was used to analyze the effects of different herd and fodder management levels on agricultural income of small-scale mountain dairy farmers in northern Peru. Results demonstrate that fodder and herd management strongly impact farm profits. There exists considerable potential to improve this situation, as many farmers in the study region are deficient in their fodder and herd management. When moving from average to high management levels, farmers could double their farm profits. In general, high mortality rates, long calving intervals, and inefficient fodder storage practices depress farmers' incomes most. Because of feeding deficiencies, especially in the dry season, recommended extension activities primarily must emphasize fodder storage and improved pasture management, to subsequently also enhance better herd management practices.

Ethiopia has been amongst the principal honey and beeswax producers worldwide for centuries. Beekeeping in Amhara region could be one way of assisting millions of the region’s farmers to improve their cash income, provide additional food, assist in pollination, generate employment and at the same time produce honey, beeswax and other hive products which can bring foreign currency into the country. This paper discusses the constraints and the future prospects on apiculture development of the region. The challenges are many but can be overcome while the opportunities are very encouraging. As a conclusion, developing appropriate policy and beekeeping development strategy that would be applicable to the different production systems will ensure the sustainable development of apiculture sub sector.

An evaluation of the pig enterprise at the Botswana College of Agriculture (BCA) farm using sow productivity and gross margin analysis was carried out. The data were obtained from breeding and financial records of the Landrace and Duroc breeds from 1997 to 1999. Litter size at birth influenced litter size at weaning and both traits decreased with an increase in parities. A positive correlation (0.70) was observed between litter size at birth and litter size at weaning. A negative gross margin was realised due to the high feed costs and low market price of pigs which did not cover production costs

Smallholder poultry as a tool for poverty alleviation has been developed and widely applied in Bangladesh. In this paper, the evolution of the model has been summarized and studies conducted to assess the impact of the poultry model at various stages of its evolution have been critically reviewed. The results indicate that the project has reached the poor though not always ultra poor, the main target of the model, and that participants have benefited positively in terms of income, consumption and nutrition, empowerment of women. However, the results need to be assessed with a high degree of caution because of several methodological limitations of the impact studies. These limitations have been illustrated and suggestions have made for more objective assessment of impact of past projects and for conducting additional research for supporting smallholder poultry as a tool for poverty alleviation.

In mix crop livestock systems, farmers derive their livelihoods using natural resources based strategies and off farm income. In these system livestock is both a source of food, fiber cash income and draught power valued in agricultural production and transport. Using the sustainable livelihood framework the contribution of working animals to income, food security and poverty alleviation is discussed in the context of rural West Africa. We use data collected in selected communities to test empirically the impact of ownership of working animals on poverty alleviation. Specifically, a poverty index is developed based on asset ownership and income from different sources including forest and off farm income. Then, this index is regressed on ownership of working animals and other important socio-economic determinants to provide evidence of the role of draught animals in poverty alleviation. Additional discussion also addresses the issues of constraints to the optimal contribution of working animals to the livelihoods and strategies to further improve the role of these working animals are highlighted.

In the study area predominantly three marketing options were available for the dairy farmers; unorganized vendors, formal / organized dairy cooperatives and integrated contract system. A majority of dairy farmers around 57.3 percent had shifted from one marketing option to another. The rest 42.7 per cent of dairy farmers remained in the same marketing option from the day they began commercial milk production. A major shift from vendors (informal system) to contract (39.5 per cent), followed by vendor to co-operative (24.4 per cent) and co-operative to vendor (19.8 per cent) was noticed. Irregularity in payment and stoppage of procurement by vendor system made dairy farmers shift from vendor system to others. After the weakening of vendor- farmer relationship and initiation of Milk Producer Cooperatives at the village level, there has been a shift from vendor to co-operative system. When the dairy sector opened for private investment coupled with poor performance of cooperatives, farmers shifted towards new marketing option the 'integrated contract system'. Irregularity in payment, distant location of collection centre and inability to milk the animals were reasons for shifting back to vendor from other marketing options. Prompt payments, sustainability of marketing systems in business were major factors responsible for retaining members and attracting new dairy farmers. Dairy farmers with the experiences of various marketing options gave more value to the prompt payment for the milk sold on comparing to milk prices.

Dairy production is a major contributor towards national economies and household food security and incomes in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Milk production in the region is estimated at 1.27 million metric tonnes year-1. However, this level of milk production is inadequate for the existing human population who would require 103 million metric tonnes year-1. In Uganda, milk production only meets approximately 20% of the population's nutritional requirements. As such, methods need to be sought to increase milk production in the region. Research efforts have made strides in identifying the causes of the production-demand gap in the SSA region and a spectrum of interventions to bolster the productivity. Unfortunately, these efforts have by far yielded insignificant results. First and foremost, for exploiting the full potential of the dairy cattle population in the region, among the critical elements often overlooked in research and development processes is the recognition of systematic parametric variations within the sector, which if considered could provide entry-points for targeting intervention efforts. One such high potential entry-point is the recognition of the existence of a dairy intensification "vector" across a country or region, along which exist sections with sequentially marked nuclei of fairly uniform socio-economic and biophysical dairy sub-systems features. To enhance the process of targeting research and development in the Ugandan dairy sector, dairy production systems in the country were categorised on basis of level of intensification of production. Data were collected from 300 households in Mbarara, Masaka and Jinja districts in Uganda. The major variables derived from the data for the categorisation process were those related with milk production, expenditure, income, land area and cattle herds. The data was subjected to a cluster analysis which although produced 16 groups only five had prominent membership (above 5% of the farms). The five major clusters were selected as representative of the dairy production systems. A ranking system was used to develop an intensification continuum for the 5 systems. Herding-on own and communal land (cluster 9) was the least intensive, this was followed by Herding-mainly on own land (cluster 12) and Fenced (cluster 8) respectively. Semi-Zero Grazing (cluster 15) and Zero Grazing (cluster 13) were the most intensive dairy production systems with the latter being at the highest end of the continuum.