Smallholder experiences with dairy cattle crossbreeding in the tropics: from introduction to impact

Abstract

Crossbreeding of indigenous tropical and improved western dairy cattle breeds as tool to improve dairy cattle performance on smallholder farms has been widely advocated, criticised and yet applied. The government of Ethiopia supported this technology for decades but adoption rate is low. Constraints are documented but there is little information about farm level introduction and development of crossbreeding. A total 122 smallholders with mixed crop livestock farms and at least 8 years of successful crossbreeding were interviewed using a pre-tested questionnaire in two contexts in Amhara Regional state in north-western Ethiopia. Crossbreeding initiator was either uncoordinated government extension or a coordinated development project, also implemented with governmental support. Qualitative and quantitative data on farmers' motivations, crossbreeding introduction, initiator support, breeding adaptation and impacts at farm level were analysed. Results show that even though motives vary between contexts the underlying reason to introduce crossbreeding was economic profit. To be able to introduce crossbreeding support of initiators (e.g. extension) and other farmers was essential. The crossbreeding introduction context had some influence. Governmental actors were the main source of support and supplier of exotic genetics but the farmer network acted as safety net filling gaps of government support. Breeding strategies focused on performance increase. A lack of basic understanding of crossbreeding has been identified. A surprising, probably biased, result was general satisfaction with initiator support and with breeding services. It was challenged by the high proportion of farmers unable to follow a breeding strategy due to insufficient bull and/or semen supply. Crossbreeding changed the smallholder production system to a high input -high output system. Except for crossbred adaptation problems, challenges were ranked context specific and influenced by the initiator. Farmers perceived crossbreeding as success and recommended it. We conclude that farmers can realize income increase with crossbreeding. The complexity of this technology, high initial investment and the need for support services and external production inputs are probable reasons why crossbreeding uptake is low. Improving the availability of semen and/or bulls must be the top priority for breeding service providers to enable farmers to follow a breeding strategy and reach a suitable and sustainable herd performance. Access to investment capital, input supply, strong technical support and market linkages are crucial for successful crossbreeding.

Review: Sustainability of crossbreeding in developing countries; definitely not like crossing a meadow…

“…According to the same study (Karugia et al, 2001), economic performance on the farm level appeared little improved by the introduction of exotic genes, and the authors speculated that a scenario considering a genetic improvement of local Zebu scenarios may yield the best farm-level performance. In Ethiopia, a recent survey of Roschinsky et al (2015) showed that depending on the context, income improvement could be the main motivation for dairy cattle smallholders to adopt and maintain crossbreeding.…”

“…Generally, most of the external reasons for the sustainability of a crossbreeding program can be linked to one or all of three interdependent factors, namely, the access to adequate Crossbreeding in developing countries stock, the opportunity of improved livestock to express its genetic potential and the efficiency of the market chain. The first prerequisite for the success of a given crossbreed program is that performance of crossbred animals must match farmer expectations, which helps ensure that smallholders have the motivation to implement or maintain crossbreeding within their farm (Quddus, 2012;Roschinsky et al, 2015).…”

“…Efficiency of the market chain As stated earlier, crossbreeding generally increases dependency on farm external input (feed, drugs, improved stock) and technical support (Roschinsky et al, 2015). The question of how smallholders can obtain those inputs, as well how their outputs are commercialized, must be adequately addressed to ensure the sustainability of any crossbreeding program.…”

“…in terms of climate, diseases and feed availability) and low complementary socio-economic support have raised doubts about the sustainability of crossbreeding in some regions or for some breeding systems. On the other hand, when local conditions allow its proper implementation, crossbreeding has induced substantial increases in animal performance, as well as farmer income (Roschinsky et al, 2015).…”

Gender equality, resilience to climate change, and the design of livestock projects for rural livelihoods

“…An influential study (Ayalew et al 2003) on dairy goats in highland Ethiopia found household welfare to be improved by better management of local goats, and adoption of crossbreds was unnecessary. There is a good case to be made for crossbreeding if dairy cattle are to be promoted (Roschinsky et al 2015), but, as we discuss below, such activities are not appropriate for interventions aimed at gender equity and poverty alleviation.…”