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Reflections by Werner Stür

Barriers to uptake of improved feeding strategies

Africa-RISING Quick Feed Project Inception Workshop, Addis Ababa, 7-8 May 2012

Structure of presentation

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• An agronomist’s point of view• Why is it not so simple?• What approach should we take?• Which tools are available?• Conclusions

An agronomist’s point of view

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Current situation Production system (draught, capital preservation,

risk management, not used to regular income) Condition of animals (many are thin and in poor

body condition, poor reproductive performance, low milk yields)

Feeding systems inadequate for good animal growth (competition for scarce community grazing resources is getting stronger, stubble grazing, crop residues, general lack of feed and insufficient quality)

Potential for improvements

An agronomist’s point of view (# 2)

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Future scenario Urbanization and rising living standards will

increase demand for meat and milk Increasing labour cost will necessitate change to

less labour intensive practices Mechanization will reduce need for draught

animals Livestock prices are relatively stable compared to

crops Potential for increased livestock production

An agronomist’s point of view (# 3)

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There are technical solutions A little more feed per animal would go a long way

to improving animal productivity Options: Reduce the number of animals, improve

herd structure or grow additional feed Forages: Introduce forage legumes to improve

diet quality; or grasses to increase available feed quantity

Grow specific fodder crops Strategic feeding of available feed resources –

smarter use

Why is it not so simple?

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Technologies are seldom simple Need to identify suitable technologies (and

practices) for different situations Often there are additional conditions for success

e.g. seed supply, fertilizer inputs, labour requirements or the farmer needs special knowledge to be able to apply the technology successfully

Introduction of a technology leads to changes in the production system and leads to more innovation (and this process requires time)

Find robust entry technologies and then work with stakeholders to develop new, more efficient systems

Why is it not so simple? (# 2)

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Smallholder farming systems are diverse Variable soils, climate, water availability Range of crops and animals Different feeding and livestock management systems Technologies need to ‘robust’ to fit a wide range of

situations People and livelihoods differ

Households differ in term of labour, capital and land availability

People have different objectives, interests and willingness to take risks

Technologies need to be targeted Farmers (and other stakeholders) need to be really want to

improve animal production and are willing to invest effort into doing so

Why is it not so simple? (# 3)

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Incentives for increasing production Will the farmer get the benefit of producing a

fatter animal? Or can (s)he sell the additional milk for a good price?

Can the farmer access the required inputs easily and at reasonable prices?

It is not just productivity that matters, but there may be other important factors along the value chain that need to be considered

What approach should we take?

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Need systems-oriented innovation Production, marketing and input supply (value

chain) Work in partnership with key stakeholders Iterative, not one-off Build capacity of people involved (emphasis on

learning) Need to target interventions to particular

situations, farmers and livelihoods

Which tools are available?

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Farmer Participatory Research (FPR) Approach Working with farmers and other stakeholders to find

ways to improve livestock production Learning cycles over an extended period Livestock needs to be important to farmers’ livelihood

and farmers need to be really motivated! FEAST

A diagnostic tool to find out if there is an opportunity for feed interventions

If affirmative, the end point is an agreement to work farmers and other stakeholders to improve feeding systems

It does not come up with best-bet interventions to test

Which tools are available? (#2)

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Techfit Identify suitable technologies for evaluation Entry technologies – a starting point for innovation

that provide significant results to motivate farmers and other stakeholders (provide a vision)

Value chain analysis Market studies; e.g. Rapid Market Assessment

(RMA) Input supply analysis

Livelihood analysis

Conclusions

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One-size-fits all technologies don’t work

We need a systems-oriented innovation process that includes all relevant stakeholders takes account of the range of farming

system and livelihoods in the area places innovation in the context of

the value chain to ensure that farmers reap the benefits of innovations