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Project R6619 High Potential Production System
Box-Baling Forage Improves Profitability of
Smallholder Milk Producers
Using farmer-evaluated strategies, evaluated strategies were
a practical and economical method developed for increasing milk
for transporting animal feed production from cows and
material was developed. Box-baling goats through better use of
not only reduces transportation indigenous forages.
costs but also increases on-farm
storage. This is one example of Maize stover was identified
how to increase the profitability of as the most important feed
smallholder milk production from resource during the dry
cows and goats through improved season. In Kilimanjaro,
utilisation of cultivated forages and maize is grown 15–20 km
roadside grasses. from the homesteads and is
stall-fed. The high cost of
Background transportation from the
Milk production is progressively more lowlands to upland small-
important on crop/livestock smallhold- holdings, where the animals
ings in Tanzania as it increases cash are kept, is a major con-
income to women, improves child straint to its utilisation.
nutrition and produces manure for Manual baling in a wooden
crops. However, profitable and sus- box increased the weight that
Manual box-baling of forage reduces transport costs. Farmers
tainable milk production is constrained are cutting twine used to secure the bale (maize stover) which can be carried in a pick-up
by the lack of farmer-evaluated is compacted by trampling, then removed from the box. truck by 63% and reduced
strategies on how to make best use of the cost of transport by 33%
indigenous forages and on how to utilisation of forage. With better use of when compared with transportation of
apply new technologies, developed forages, livestock nutrition can be loose stover. Stripping of leaf, sheath
from on-station research, for better improved, particularly in the dry and husk from the stover together with
season when feed is generally scarce. baling increased the pick-up load by
There are a number of options for 140%. Baling in boxes also reduced
improving the use of indigenous on-farm storage space and thus
University of Reading
forage but uptake of research findings facilitated budgeting of feeds. Labour
Department of Agriculture
Reading, UK has been hampered by the lack of costs and total costs of handling
E. Owen information on economic viability and stover changed with baling. Loose
by the farmers’ poor acceptability of material had the highest cost per kg
Selian Agricultural Research these new technologies. dry matter (DM) and bales from the
Institute medium size box (75 x 50 x 40 cm)
Arusha, Tanzania Research highlights recorded the lowest cost per kg DM.
N.F. Massawe Using Participatory Rural Appraisal
(PRA) methodology with smallholder In case studies with six smallholder
Sokoine University of Agriculture farmers in the regions of Kilimanjaro, farmers in Kilimanjaro, data were
Morogoro, Tanzania Mwanza and Morogoro, the project collected for a dairy ‘enterprise budget’
L.A. Mtenga identified some of the reasons for the – this type of budget ignores fixed
low uptake and use of improved costs that cannot be attributed
Livestock in Development technologies. One of the major specifically to the enterprise (unlike a
Crewkerne, UK constraints identified regarding forage whole farm budget), making it more
S.J. Holden, S.D. Ashley production and utilisation was the high meaningful for smallholder farmers.
cost of transportation. Other common Manual box-baling of whole stover
Natural Resources Institute
constraints included inadequacies of increased the annual enterprise
University of Greenwich
Chatham, UK dissemination, farmer resources, budget (margin) per 400-kg cow
D.L. Romney marketing and roads. Based on an (average live weight of local cows) by
analysis of resources available and 11%. For leaf, sheath and husks of
Project completed in1999 the technology developed, farmer- stover the improvement was 22%.
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Uptake Selected project publications
Manual box baling • Masswe, N.F., Owen, E., Mtenga,
technology not only L.A., Romney, D.L., Ashley, S.D. and
reduced transport costs Holden, S.J. (1997) Developing
but also reduced the sustainable forage utilisation to
increase profitable milk production on
space required for
smallholder farms in Tanzania: ap-
storage and thus proach using Participatory Rural
assisted in feed Appraisal (PRA). pp. 23–31. In:
budgeting. The storage Proceedings of Twenty-third Scientific
and budgeting compo- Conference, Tanzania Society of
nent associated with Animal Production, 1996. vol. 23.
manual box-baling Tanzania Society of Animal Produc-
could therefore contrib- tion, Morogoro, Tanzania.
ute towards reducing
• Massawe, N.F., Owen, E., Mtenga,
the fluctuation of feed
L.A., Ashley, S.D., Holden, S.J. and
offered and, hence, Romney, D.L. (1999) Identified
avoid poor animal constraints to improving forage
performance associ- utilisation for milk production in three
ated with feed fluctua- locations of Tanzania: approach
tions. Problem linkage diagram for smallholders in Kilimanjaro. towards partipatory livestock research.
pp.161–162. In: BSAS/KARI
Linkages between researchers, extensionists, Proceedings of International
The case studies in Kilimanjaro policy makers, farmers and other Conference on Food, Lands and
Livelihoods: Setting Research
revealed that weeds contribute stakeholders.
Agendas for Animal Science, Kenya
significantly to the annual supply of Agricultural Research Institute,
feed on smallholder farms. There is, Relevance to sustainable Nairobi, 27–30 January 1998. British
however, a shortage of literature on livelihoods Society of Animal Science, Edinburgh,
the use of weeds as a potential animal Utilisation of maize stover will be UK.
feed and the project identified a need greatly enhanced by baling the
for basic information on this. In recent material; this facilitates transport and • Massawe, N.F. (1999) Strategies
research in Kenya, animal perform- reduces costs. Meanwhile, increased based on Participatory Rural Appraisal
ance declined as a result of fluctua- on-farm storage space from for improving the utilisation of forages
to increase milk production on small-
tions in feed offered. Future investiga- compaction of stover will liberate
holder farms in Tanzania. PhD thesis,
tion into the effects of frequent storage space for other feeds, thus University of Reading, UK.
fluctuations in animal feed offered overcoming the fluctuation in animal
should complement research on the feed supplies. Livelihoods of resource- • Massawe, N.F. and Owen, E.,
use of weeds in livestock feeding. The poor farmers will improve from the Mtenga, L.A., Holden, S.J. and Ashley,
outputs of this research developed by application of this cost-effective S.D. (2000) Cut costs of feeding
the Livestock Production Programme appropriate technology to maximise stover. Leaflet. Swahili (18,000 copies)
contribute to the basket of technologi- the use of available animal feed and English (2000 copies). 4 pp.
cal options which are now available for resources for increased milk produc- Development Communications Ltd.,
Nairobi, Kenya.
smallholder milk producers (Projects tion. Farm and household incomes will
R6775, R6993, R7010). be improved with increased cash For further information on the Programme contact:
The Programme Manager
income to women and improved child Livestock Production Programme
This study also identified the need for nutrition. NR International
stronger linkages to be established Park House, Bradbourne Lane
Aylesford, Kent ME20 6SN
<w.richards@nrint.co.uk or lpp@nrint.co.uk
www.nrinternational.co.uk
This Project Summary is an output from the Livestock Production Programme funded by
the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) for the benefit of
developing countries. The views expressed are not necessarily those of DFID.
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