Trends and spatial variation in water and land footprints of meat and milk production systems in Kenya

Abstract

A B S T R A C TGlobal consumption of livestock products is increasing steadily due to human population growth, poverty reduction and dietary changes raising the demand for already scarce freshwater and land resources. Here, we analyze the changes associated with direct and indirect use of freshwater and land for meat and milk production in three production systems in Kenya between the 1980s and 2000s. We use two resource use indicators, the water footprint (m 3 /year) and land footprint (ha), to assess changes in freshwater and land use for cattle, goats, sheep and camels in arid, semi-arid and humid production systems. We estimate actual water and land use using Kenya-wide data for yields, feed composition and feed conversion efficiencies. Our results show that the amounts of freshwater and land resources used for production are determined mainly by production volumes and feed conversion efficiencies. Total water and land footprints of milk production increased for goats, sheep and camels but decreased by half for cattle in arid and semi-arid production systems, in correspondence with similar changes in the total numbers of each livestock species. Green water and grazing land footprints dominated in all production systems due to the predominance of indirect use of water to support forage production. The per unit meat footprint for cattle increased significantly between the 1980s and 2000s in all production systems, due to adverse trends in feed conversion efficiency, while changes in the water and land footprints of other animal products were small, due to modest changes in all influencing factors. In contrast, national average footprints per unit of beef and milk show a modest decrease due to a relative shift of production to the more resource-efficient humid production system. Given the potential increase in demand for livestock products and limited freshwater and land availability, feed conversion efficiencies should be improved by rehabilitating degraded rangelands, adopting improved breeds and using appropriate feed composition.

Serosurvey ofCoxiella burnetii(Q fever) in Dromedary Camels(Camelus dromedarius)in Laikipia County, Kenya

“…During this period, camel milk production in Kenya rose from 335,000 tons to 937,000 tons, and meat production from 15,000 tons to 651 000 tons (FAO ). Kenyan land use for milk production has increased for camels at a time when land use for cattle ranching concurrently decreased by half (Bosire et al., ). Camels in Kenya are used primarily for milk production, with a shift from subsistence to market production having increased significantly in the last decade (Musinga et al., ; Hussein Abdi, ; Anderson et al., ; Noor et al., ).…”

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“…Ran et al (2016) indicate that feed quality, digestibility, and feed conversion efficiency impact livestock water productivity. Bosire et al (2015) found diet composition can determine the magnitude of the water footprint of milk, because diet translates into better feed conversion and more efficient use of freshwater. White (2016) showed that management to reduce water consumption of dairy cattle improves the use of protein and energy.…”

Water Footprint of Milk Produced and Processed in South Africa: Implications for Policy-Makers and Stakeholders along the Dairy Value Chain

“…Despite the significant amount of water used in feed production, we found that the feed conversion efficiency for lactating cows is too low. The low feed conversion efficiency leads to a higher water footprint of feed rations [12]. We therefore suggest that careful management of rangelands and pastures to improve feed availability and quality as well as breeding programs that aim at enhancing growth rates and milk yield per cow can improve feed conversion efficiency.…”