East Africa, comprising Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, has a large range of
agro-climatic zones, from sea level to high mountains, with cultivation
up to about 3000 metres, and rainfall regimes from arid, through semi-arid
to sub-humid. East Africa is wholly equatorial, lying roughly between 4°N
and 11°S, and 29° to 42°E. Rainfall is generally bimodal at the coast and
to the east of the Great Rift Valley, but in western areas the rainfall
pattern is often almost unimodal – as one long season. There is a great
altitude range, from the coast up to mountains, which still retain some
permanent ice caps; temperatures are greatly modified by altitude, but the
equatorial situation means that there is little or no variation in mean
monthly temperatures. Much of the vast lower areas, outside the coastal
strip, are semi-arid grazing land, often exploited by traditional pastoralists;
these use dairy products for subsistence but are not the subject of this
chapter. Crop production and mixed farming is found mainly in the uplands
and a narrow coastal strip. The main cities, areas of high population density
and intensive farming are in the highlands, at around 1500 metres. There
are, however, two important coastal cities: Mombasa, in Kenya, and Dar-es-Salaam,
in Tanzania. The relatively high altitude and cool climate of much of the
highlands affects forage choice since 1500 metres, under local conditions,
is about the upper limit for many “tropical” forages, as well as for crops
such as cotton and rice. Smallholder dairying is found in zones with favourable
climate and soils, where human pressure on land has caused farming systems
to change from large, to medium to smallholder farms, integrating crops
and livestock. Undernutrition and seasonal fluctuations in quantity and
quality of feed are major constraints to smallholder dairying. Ways of intensifying
forage production are described in terms of production systems, improved
and recommend forages and seasonality of production. Forage quality is looked
at in terms of the nutritive value, factors influencing quality and ways
of improving it. Forages of economic importance are increasingly attacked
by diseases and pests, and some of economic importance are discussed, with
special emphasis on Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum). In the past
two decades, smallholder dairying has undergone intensification and changes
in management. Systems are moving from grazing to stall feeding, and smallholder
dairy farmers have developed feed management strategies to cope with these
changes. The great importance of crop residues and by-products, their role
as feed and associated limitations are also discussed. Availability of seed
of recommended forages is important; the availability of adapted seed production
technologies and production of seed of recommended cultivars by the formal
and informal seed sectors are discussed. Manure, an important output of
dairying, is looked at in the ways farmers manage and use it in a cut-and-carry
system and how increasing dairy production may be achieved through proper
management of manure. Finally, the importance and future of forage-based
smallholder dairying is discussed in the light of the socio-economic factors,
opportunities and future prospects.
The smallholder forage programme has had a very solid information and
genetic base. Pasture research began early in eastern Africa, and was
especially strong in Kenya, where a full-time pasture specialist was recruited
in 1929 and a Grassland Research Unit set up at Kabete. The main grassland
types of the whole country were identified and studied, and many forages
suitable for sown pasture were identified, either from local collection
or introduction. By the 1930s sown pasture had become important on large-scale
farms, often in rotation with cereals. This work was reported by Edwards
and Bogdan (1951). Research was greatly expanded and a specialized Grassland
Research Station – now the National Agricultural Research Station (NARS)
– was set up at Kitale in 1952. with more specialist staff. A vast screening
programme for fodder production was undertaken and several cultivars released
commercially. The ability to provide seed reliably and at a reasonable
price was a major selection criterion. Vegetatively propagated grasses
were also studied, with a major emphasis on Napier grass. Much of the
information on forages studied is given in Bogdan (1977), which deals
with many of the cultivars mentioned in this chapter. Information on grassland
work for eastern Africa as a whole is brought together in Boonman (1993).
Kenya grassland research, from the beginning of records, was summarized
from the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) database by Wandera
(1996). An essential for the successful development of smallholder dairying
is a pool of suitable livestock; this was readily available in Kenya,
having been originally developed in large-scale commercial agriculture
and acclimatized over many generations. These animals have been taken
into the smallholder sector, gradually at first in Kenya from the 1950s.
In colonial times the Uganda Veterinary Department banned exotic stock,
since they had a policy of “tick resistance”; the ban was rescinded at
independence and very soon urban dairies developed in the major cities,
using Kenyan stock and stall-feeding. Research on disease control was
fundamental to the introduction and use of exotic dairy stock, and eastern
Africa has major disease and parasite problems; the climate of the eastern
African uplands is clement so heat stress is not a problem for exotic
breeds, and even Jerseys have been kept since 1959 on the Kenyan coast.
The Kabete Laboratories of the Kenya Veterinary Service were especially
active in this field, ever since the large-scale use of exotic stock began
in Kenya. This paper does not discuss disease control per se, but diseases
and parasites are as big a constraint to dairy intensification as are
feed problems. A wide range of infectious diseases occur, some of them
indigenous, and have to be vaccinated against where possible. Tick-borne
diseases are rampant, especially in the better watered zones, where most
smallholder dairying takes place. East Coast Fever, caused by Theileria
parva, which is transmitted by the tick Rhipcephalus appendiculatis,
is particularly dangerous. Some of the wetter and warmer areas are infested
with tsetse fly (Glossina spp.) which transmits bovine Trypanosomiasis.
One very important feed resource is not discussed, but must be kept in
mind continually – water. In most of eastern Africa, potable water is
in very short supply and intensive dairying presupposes an adequate water
supply both for the stock and for maintaining dairy equipment in a suitable
state of hygiene. Organizing a water supply, or transporting water to
zero-grazing systems, can incur considerable increase in costs. Much of
the benefits of zero grazing can be wasted if stock have to walk to watering
points, often of dubious quality, and en route risk picking up ticks as
well as mixing with local unimproved stock, which can be a source of diseases
SMALLHOLDER DAIRYING SYSTEMS
In eastern Africa, smallholder dairying systems are mainly found in the
sub-humid to semi humid agro-climatic zones (ACZ) II and III (Braun, 1980;
Pratt and Gwynne, 1977), and to a lesser extent in the humid zone (ACZ
I) and the transitional zone (ACZ IV) (Table 18.1). These areas
are of high agricultural potential. Dairying has evolved as a result of
many changes on farms, from the colonial era through the state-owned farms
of the 1960s, to the present smallholder farms. This evolution has involved
changes to vegetation and land use from the original forest, forest-derived
grasslands, bush, woodland or savannah (Table 18.1), to the present
vegetation for crop–livestock farming. In addition to the changes in land
tenure and ownership, farm size has decreased, mainly by sub-division,
to create intensive and semi-intensive smallholdings for the increased
population. As the population in high potential areas of ACZ II and III
continues to grow, people are moving to the colder or drier areas of ACZ
I and IV, and smallholder dairying is spreading with them. Smallholder
farming integrates crops and dairy, and benefits from synergies between
dairying, staple food and cash crops. Some 65 percent of dairy cattle
are in highlands with bimodal rainfall, in smallholder crop–dairy systems.
These are the areas with good potential for biomass production and markets
for milk, and that have significant potential for dairy development. Dairying
is now a significant source of income to smallholder forage growers and
has played a role in sustaining soil fertility through nutrient cycling.
Some smallholders now grow intensive forage as a cash crop. There is inadequate
feed due to decreasing farm size and increasing competition for land between
enterprises. Feed quality fluctuates seasonally. Inputs for intensified
fodder production are expensive and farmers only take up technologies
that they consider profitable. Technical information and extension services
are inadequate to transfer forage production information to smallholders.
There are two major types of smallholder dairying in eastern Africa: intensive
and semi-intensive. Other systems are modifications of these two, depending
on which other additional livestock products are produced from the dairy
herd besides milk, e.g. meat, manure or draught (Table 18.2). Smallholder
intensive dairying includes intensive urban, peri-urban and rural dairy-manure
production. An intensive dairy farmer typically keeps 2-3 cows with followers
on approximately a hectare of land and also grows crops. Most cattle are
genetically heterogeneous Bos taurus (exotic) breeds or Bos taurus crosses
with Bos indicus (Zebu). Exotic dairy breeds include Friesian-Holstein,
Ayrshire, Guernsey, Black and White Dane, their grades and crosses.
Table 18.1 Natural vegetation and land use in livestock–crop
production systems in eastern Africa
NATURAL VEGETATION AND LAND USE
ACZ I – Afro-Alpine
> 80 mm
Afro-alpine moorland and grassland, or barren land
at high altitude, most above forest line. Of limited land use and
potential except as water catchment. Apart from Kikuyu grass, which
may grow at this high altitude, most sown grasses are exotic temperate
genera, including Avena, Lolium, Dactylis and Festuca.
ACZ II – Sub-Humid
Forest land and derived grasslands and bush, with
or without natural glades. The potential is for forestry. Intensive
agriculture includes pyrethrum, coffee, tea and maize. Natural indicator
grasses include Kikuyu grass at the highest altitude (1750–2500 m),
star grass (Cynodon spp.) at mid-altitude (1500–1750 m),
and Napier grass at lower altitudes (1250–1500 m). Some other
common grass species are Exotheca, Andropogon, Pennisetum,
Eleusine, Setaria, Panicum, Rhynchelytrum, Digitaria, Imperata,
Panicum and Brachiaria.
ACZ III – Semi-Humid
50- 65 mm
Land not of forest potential, carrying a variable
vegetation cover (moist woodland, bush and savannah). The trees
are characteristically broadleaved (e.g. Brachystegia or
Combretum) and the larger shrubs mostly evergreen. The agricultural
potential is high, soil and topography permitting, with emphasis
on ley farming. Maize is a major food crop, and common grass species
include Hyparrhenia, Hyperthelia, Themeda, Chloris, Loudetia,
Panicum, Rhynchelytrum, Paspalum, Digitaria, Heteropogon and
ACZ IV – Semi-Arid
Mostly <1000 masl
Land of marginal agricultural potential, carrying
as natural vegetation dry forms of woodland and savannah (often
Acacia–Themeda association), but including Brachystegia
woodland and equivalent deciduous or semi-evergreen bush. This is
potentially productive rangeland. Cotton, sorghum and cassava are
common agricultural crops. Grass species include Themeda, Pennisetum,
Bothriochloa and Panicum.
(1) Moisture available = difference between Rainfall and Eo,
where EO = Mean annual potential evaporation.
Source: Braun, 1980; Sombroek, Braun and Van der Pauw, 1982; Pratt
and Gwynne, 1977.
Semi-intensive dairying includes rural and peri-urban dairy-meat-manure-draught
production systems. Semi-intensive systems use both the indigenous Small
East African (SEA) zebu and crosses of indigenous and exotic breeds, and
is mostly found in high rainfall areas, which are suitable for exotic
breeds. Zebu milk is mainly consumed domestically, although farmgate sales
are common. Smallholders generally keep zebus with other ruminants. Cattle
are paddocked, tethered or herded on roadsides or communal land. Cows
are milked for about five months; calves suckle after milking. Few concentrates
or mineral supplements are used. Land holdings vary between 1 and 15 ha,
depending on the geographic region and ACZ.
Table 18.2. Smallholder dairy production systems in eastern Africa.
Major products or purpose
No. and genotype
Major dairy production regions
1. Smallholder intensive urban dairy
Humid to Semi-Humid
(ACZ I– III)
Dar-es-Salaam and all major urban centres
2. Smallholder intensive rural dairy-manure
Dairy and manure marketed
Humid to Semi-Humid
(ACZ I– III)
Northeastern Arusha, Kilimanjaro, Tanga, Iringa,
3. Smallholder semi-intensive dairy-manure
Dairy and manure marketed
Humid to Semi-Humid
(ACZ I– III)
Northern Arusha, Kilimanjaro, Tanga, Iringa, Mbeya,
4. Smallholder semi-intensive dairy-meat-draught-manure
Humid to Transitional
(ACZ I– IV)
Mwanza, Shinyanga, Singida, Dodoma, Arusha, Mbeya,
1. Smallholder intensive and semi-intensive dairy-manure
Highland of Central Rift Valley, Central Province,
Urban Centres, Coastal strip.
2. Smallholder semi intensive dairy-meat-draught-manure
Parts of Western, Nyanza, Coast, Eastern and Rift
1. Smallholder intensive dairy-manure
Humid to Semi-Humid
(ACZ I– III)
High altitude (Montane) region, Kagera, Sebei, White
Nile, Toro, Mbale, Kabarole, Bushenyi, Kabale, Kampala.
2. Smallholder semi-intensive dairy- meat-draught
Humid to Transitional
(ACZ I– IV)
Mbarara, Mubende, Luswero, Kabarole, Bushenyi, Mukono,
Masaka, Iganga, Kampala, Jinja, Masindi
Urban and peri-urban dairying, which is becoming very popular in many
cities and big towns (Mougeout, 1994; Mlozi, 1995; Lee-Smith et al.,
1987), is a response to market opportunities and the financial constraints
of urban dwellers.
Factors that led to increased dairy production in and around cities include
the need for urban dwellers and civil servants to make ends meet, the
high price of milk in urban centres relative to remote areas, and poor
milk marketing infrastructure. Urban and peri-urban dairying offers enormous
potential to supply milk to rapidly growing urban populations because
of the proximity to markets and better access to inputs, such as dairy
meal. Forage production in urban and peri-urban areas has intensified
to feed dairy cattle. In order to enhance development of smallholder dairying
in urban areas, there is need for governments to set clear policies supporting
and regulating urban dairying. The development and adoption of smallholder
dairying has been favoured by several factors, including:
- the presence of smallholder communities who keep cattle and who have
milk as an important part of their diets,
- the presence of a significant cattle genetic base and dairy cattle
population, with about 85 percent of the dairy cattle found in
- favourable climate, soils and altitude, and topography conducive
to dairying, and
- fairly supportive government policies and institutional environment.
In Kenya, 80 percent of dairy cattle are found in smallholder intensive
and semi-intensive rural dairy and manure production, using exotic and
crossbred dairy cattle, and in the semi-intensive dairy-meat-draught-manure
production systems. Intensive dairying mainly uses exotic and crossbred
cattle; this system keeps the majority of dairy cattle, approximately
2.5 million head, with the highest concentration in Central and Rift
Farms are small and produce cash crops and food, besides milk, and keep
about 4 cattle on approximately a hectare of land, typically with coffee,
maize, horticultural and fodder crops, depending on agroclimatic conditions,
terrain and elevation. A high proportion of farmers stall-feed their cattle
(see Plate 1). The semi-intensive dairy system uses zebu and a
few crossbred cattle, but is more subsistence oriented; it has about 5.3
million head, mainly in Nyanza, Western, Coast, Eastern and Rift Valley
provinces. The number of cattle and land area per household is slightly
larger than in intensive systems. Most farmers free-graze or paddock-feed
Dairying is now important in and around Kenya’s
major towns; smallholder production is constrained by inadequacy and seasonality
of feed and its quality, and by low dry matter intake. Stall feeding of
crop residues, natural grass – mostly Kikuyu grass (Pennisetum clandestinum),
star grass (Cynodon spp.), Rhodes grass (Chloris gayana)
and setaria (Setaria sphacelata), is common and increasing. Purchase
of fodders such as Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum) or hay,
some of which is from the roadside or from farmers who do not have livestock,
is common in intensive areas such as Kiambu (Staal et al., 1998).
Planted fodders on smallholder farms include sweet potato (Ipomoea
batatas) vines, various kinds of vetch (Vicia spp.)
and desmodiums (Desmodium uncinatum, D. intortum) or fodder
trees such as calliandra (Calliandra calothyrsus.) and leucaena
(Leucaena leucocephala). Farmers also buy grain, concentrates and
agro-industrial by-products such as bran, wheat pollard and dairy meal.
Napier grass (see Plate 2) is the major fodder used by smallholders
in Kenya (Orodho, 1990).
In Tanzania, over 80 percent
of milk from improved cattle is from smallholder dairies. There are four
smallholder dairy production systems (Table 18.2). The smallholder
intensive urban dairy production system is found around Dar-es-Salaam
and other major urban centres. This system has a cattle population of
about 20 000 head. In towns, cattle are few and are fed from forages
purchased or gathered from open spaces or public land. Over 70 percent
of dairy cattle are in the smallholder intensive rural and semi-intensive
dairy-manure cattle production systems. These are in peri-urban areas
and in the rural highland areas of Arusha and Kilimanjaro, and Kagera
in the Southern Highlands. In the highlands of Kilimanjaro and Mt. Meru,
these systems have about 65 percent of all dairy cattle in Tanzania.
Farms are small and grow cash and food crops besides producing milk. Farmers
typically own about 4 cattle on approximately 1.7 ha, and grow coffee
(Coffea arabica), bananas (Musa sp.) and fodder (MOAC/SUA/ILRI,
1998). Livestock are fed on a cut-and-carry system. Farmers may have another
2.2 ha of lowlands where they grow maize (Zea mays) and beans
(Phaseolus vulgaris) (Mdoe and Wiggins, 1997). They often bring
crop by-products from the lowlands to feed cattle in the highlands, which
has sustainability implications because of transfer of nutrients between
landscapes. Zero grazing, using crop by-products and forage, is practised
by about 70 percent of farmers. The rest follow semi-intensive systems,
especially on larger farms in the lowlands and in the low-population-density
areas of the southern highlands. Many farmers use manure (sometimes after
it has been used to generate biogas) on their coffee, bananas and fodders.
In ACZs I–IV, smallholders practise mostly subsistence-oriented semi-intensive
dairying, with predominantly zebu herds and a few crosses; they have up
to 30 head, especially in drier zones (IV), which mostly graze. This zone
has approximately 86 percent of dairy cattle in Tanzania.
Cattle are kept for meat and draught, and farmers grow cotton, tobacco,
sorghum (Sorghum bicolor), finger millet (Eleusine coracana),
rice (Oryza sativa), cassava and sweet potato. Crop by-products
are fed to cattle and manure is used as fertilizer.
Dairying is concentrated in the southern half of the country, where Kampala,
Jinja and Mbarara milk catchment areas each account for one third of national
dairy marketing. Improved breeds make up 4 percent of the national
4.2 million head herd, and produce 16 percent of the milk marketed.
Smallholder dairies are intensive or semi-intensive. In intensive dairying,
the average farm size is about 1.5 ha, significantly smaller than
semi-intensive farms. It is generally a high altitude zero-grazing system,
with coffee as the main cash crop and bananas, maize, beans, sweet potato,
sorghum and vegetables for food. Intercropping is common, and dairy enterprises
range from zero-grazing with 1–3 cows to free grazing or fenced paddocks
with larger numbers of cattle. Cattle breeds include exotic animals (e.g.
Friesian, Ayrshire, Guernsey, Black and White Dane), their grades and
crosses. Intensive dairying is prevalent in southwest Uganda
(MAAIF, 1993). Dairy stock depend on local pasture, Napier grass, and
crop by-products such as sweet potato vines, banana peelings and pseudostems,
and damaged crops. Manure is usually put on the banana plots.
Farmers may supplement dairy animals with purchased concentrate (usually
2–3 kg/cow/day at milking). Seasonal variations in quantity and quality
of feed strongly influence milk production. Intensive dairying is in tsetse-free
areas with more than 1500 mm rain annually. Some farmers grow high
value fodders, including Napier grass, Kikuyu grass, star grass and clovers
(Trifolium spp.). Semi-intensive dairying systems are mainly in
medium altitude (1000–1500 m) areas with medium rainfall (1000–1500 mm).
The main cash crop is coffee, and food crops include maize, beans, cassava
and vegetables. Farms are small, 1–2 ha, where human population density
is high, and 4–15 ha in relatively low-population-density areas.
Dairy herds in small to medium farms range from 5 to 30 animals. Some
stall-feeding of dairy cattle is practised, using local vegetation, Napier
grass and crop by-products such as sweet potato vines, bananas peelings
and pseudostems and damaged crops. It is common to find animals herded,
tethered or grazed on hillsides, valley bottoms, roadsides and fallows.
Communal grazing is limited. Natural pastures comprise 80–88 percent
of the land used for grazing, and planted pastures occupy the remainder.
Milk per capita
Milk production and milk availability per capita in eastern Africa is
very low (Table 18.3) and does not meet demand. With increasing
population, the demand for milk will leave an even bigger gap, which will
have to be met either by imports or increased local production. With slow
economic growth and inadequate foreign exchange, the most sustainable
option is to increase production from smallholder dairy farms.
Forages on smallholder farms
During the late 1970s and early 1980s there was much emphasis on research
into the needs of smallholders, who had become the majority farmers in
high and medium potential areas, as well as in the marginal areas of eastern
Africa. The sub-region is a centre of genetic variability for many tropical
forage grasses, so the richness of the forage germplasm, collected and
introduced, formed an excellent basis for further breeding and selection
for smallholder systems. The most important species improved to provide
better cultivars for smallholder dairy farmers include Rhodes grass(Chloris
gayana), setaria (Setaria sphacelata) and Napier grass (Pennisetum
purpureum). Rhodes grass is one of the most important ley grasses
in eastern Africa, with several cultivars, such as Pokot, Rongai, Mbarara
and Masaba – all identified by the original collection sites.
There are basically three systems of forage production in smallholder
dairying: (i) from natural plants, (ii) from improved forages,
and (iii) from cultivated fodders.
Natural pastures are generally composed of herbaceous species, mostly
grasses, although non-gramineous herbs commonly occur and there is usually
a storey of trees and shrubs of varying density. Woody species provide
forage as browse, while taller trees contribute fruits. Table 18.1
indicates some of the natural vegetation commonly used by smallholders
in ACZs I–IV. Since over 1000 grasses have been recorded in eastern
Africa, the table shows only the major ones. The potential of dairy production
from natural forage is limited by both the quality and quantity of the
feed produced, and this is influenced by many factors, including climate,
soil, vegetation, animal type and the grazing system. In dairying systems
where natural pastures are used, the dairy animals are either freely grazed
or semi-zero-grazed on the roadside or communal land on natural forages.
Forage produced from natural pastures are usually inadequate or of low
quality, or both, especially in overgrazed fields.
Table 18.3 Dairying in east Africa:
cattle, milk production and per capita milk availability
Cattle (‘000 head)
Percentage dairy cattle
Annual milk production (‘000 litres)
Annual per capita milk availability (litres LME)1
Notes: 1 LME = liquid milk equivalent.
Source: Muriuki and Thorpe, 2001.
Smallholder dairy farmers can increase production by planting improved
forage. Sown forage can increase production economically in semi-intensive
systems because such forages are of better feeding value and higher yield
than natural vegetation. In addition, sown pastures increase soil fertility
and improve soil structure for subsequent cropping, and in some cases
reduce the incidences of weeds, pests and diseases. In smallholder dairy
systems, forages can increase the level of nitrogen in pasture production
systems, enhance yields of protein-rich forage. This can be achieved either
by use of fertilizer nitrogen on nitrogen-responsive grasses, or through
the use of nitrogen-fixing legumes. To choose the most suitable forages
for a sown pasture, it is necessary to define accurately both the environment
in which they are to be grown and the purpose for which they are to be
Seasonality in forage productivity
Seasonality of forage availability is a major constraint to animal production
in smallholder dairying and is determined by climatic conditions. The
air temperatures and rainfall are relatively constant during the 7–8 months
of rainy season, and a substantial amount of forage is produced during
the first quarter, particularly in zones II and III, with their unimodal
rainfall pattern. If dairy farmers plant forages at the onset of rain,
soil temperatures are high and more nitrogen is released. Variation in
soil temperatures exceeds that of air temperature and the peak growth
in forages is reached 4 to 6 weeks after the end of the dry season. The
quality of the first forage produced and its response to fertilizer nitrogen
is high since most forages utilize the released nitrogen to recover from
the dry season.
Farmers can increase forage production by using the most suitable and
high yielding forages identified for the various agro-climatic zones (Table 18.4),
and following recommended agronomic practices. Increase in production
can be realized by establishing more new pastures and by applying nitrogenous
fertilizer. Farmers need to manipulate early and late sowing of forages
to increase production, particularly for the dry season. First year pastures
are more vigorous and continue to grow later into the dry season, especially
when sown late. While preference is always given to early sowing, followed
by a conservation cut, late sown forages are more vigorous in the dry
season and more water is saved and stored. Late sown pastures behave in
the first dry season like annual fodders, such as oats or grass sorghum.
Smallholder dairy farmers can reduce seasonality in forage availability
by fodder conservation. Climatic conditions are such that there are usually
several months of dry season when feed is scarce.
During the long rains there is often a surplus of forage, which could
be conserved; apart from providing forage for the dry season, conservation
cuts are also conducive to good forage husbandry. Smallholders could not
only save grass that would otherwise be spoilt, but also encourage regrowth
that would not be hampered by the old foliage. Forage conservation technologies,
such as hay and silage making, have been developed for smallholders, although
adoption has been poor. Although hay is more easily cured in dry climates,
weather conditions, particularly in ACZ III, are such that there are only
a few days of dry weather when hay or silage can be safely made during
the long rains.
Forage production can be increased by use of fodder catch or break crops
such as oats and sorghums. At the end of the productive life of a pasture,
oats or grass sorghum can play a significant role in increasing forage
production. Old pastures can be ploughed in the middle or tail end of
the rainy season and oats, sorghum or another suitable annual fodder sown
to replace pasture that is no longer productive, help its decomposition
and provide dry season fodder, without extra land being set aside.
The most powerful way of intensifying forage production in smallholder
farms is through use of fertilizer nitrogen. It is the most effective,
and also the most flexible, tool a smallholder farmer can use to match
forage supply with demand. Nitrogen is effective in prolonging growth
into the early dry season and also in accelerating it at the start of
the rains. Under zero grazing, nitrogen fertilizer is always necessary,
although many farmers do not use it frequently because of its high price.
Planted fodders also play a significant role in smallholder dairy production.
They are mostly identified with zero grazing and stall feeding in smallholder
dairying. Of all the planted fodders used by smallholders, Napier grass
is the most popular. It forms up to 40 percent of the dry matter
in the diet of dairy cattle, the rest coming from other cultivated grasses,
fodders, crop by-products, crop residues and purchased concentrates. Table 18.4
gives a list of the most common fodders used by smallholder dairy farmers
in eastern Africa.
Intensification of feed supply and changes in production practices
A survey of smallholder dairy farms in Kenya
showed a changing trend in feeding and production practices in both intensive
and semi-intensive systems. There is a clear evidence of increased intensification
of dairying by smallholder farmers (Staal et al., 1998). More than
75 percent of smallholders who practise intensive dairy production
exclusively stall-feed their dairy cattle, a practice consistent with
the small size of farms. In semi-intensive systems, farms are on average
larger and some smaller-scale farmers have access to communal land where
they can graze their dairy herds. An increasing number of dairy farmers
now stall-feed their cattle compared with the situation ten years earlier.
The proportion of smaller-scale dairy farmers putting cattle to grazing
had almost halved in ten years. This is clear evidence of increased intensification
of smallholder farming, with intensified dairying as an important part
of the change. Although stall feeding is generally predominant, even on
the farms where cattle graze, pastures were not usually the main source
of feed; rather it was fodders (including by-products and crop residues)
gathered from farms or from public land, or purchased. More smallholder
dairies grow high yielding fodder, Napier grass being the major forage
crop grown by over 70 percent of farmers.
In intensive systems with zero grazing, nearly half of the farmers purchase
fodder as the main source of feed, a third (35 percent) grow fodder
on their own land, and one in eight (13 percent) gather it from public
land. Over the past ten years, dairy feeding strategies in smallholder
farms have changed in that there has been an increased number of smallholder
dairies using concentrate feeds, minerals, crop residues and agro-industrial
by-products. There has been a reduction in the number of smallholder dairy
farmers using roadside grazing and natural salt licks. These resources
from outside underpin the strategies of smallholder dairy farmers addressing
seasonal feed shortages. The main strategies reported were purchase of
fodder (60 percent) and purchase of concentrates (15 percent).
These changes reflect an increasing dependency on purchased feed, both
concentrate and fodder, and the reduced availability and dependency of
communal feed resources gathered at no cost.
There has been an increasing demand for forage, which now commands high
prices. Smallholders who do not own dairy cattle often serve as a source
of fodder, mainly Napier grass, which is commonly grown for sale. Planted
forages have grown in importance, particularly as smallholder dairy feeding
shifts from grazing to stall feeding. In contrast to the omnipresent Napier
grass, other forages, including fodder trees and shrubs and herbaceous
legumes have not been widely adopted on most smallholders farms. A few
smallholders plant Sesbania spp. or Calliandra spp., and
herbaceous legumes, such as Desmodium spp.
Table 18.4 Suitable forages and farm by-products for
smallholder systems of eastern Africa.
1. Cold and wet high-altitude areas
Clover (Trifolium repens)
Kenya white clover (T. semipilosum)
Vetch (Vicia villosa)
Lucerne (Medicago sativa)
Kikuyu grass (Pennisetum clandestinum)
Perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne)
Cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata)
Tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea)
Vegetable wastes (kales and carrots)
Oats, Brassicas (kale), Fodder beets Turnips Guatemala
grass (Tripsacum laxum)
2. Cool and wet medium-altitude areas
1 850-2 400 m
1 000-1 500 mm
Glycine (Neonotonia wightii)
Njahi (Lablab purpureus)
Lupin (Lupinus albus)
Lucerne (Medicago sativa)
Coloured guinea (Panicum coloratum),
Congo signal (Bracharia
Sweet potato vines
Giant panicum (Panicum maximum)
Columbus grass (Sorghum almum)
Maize, Oats, Sweet potato
Russian (Quaker) comfrey (Symphytum peregrinum)
3. Warm and wet medium-altitude areas
(bimodal or unimodal)
Glycine (Neonotonia wightii)
Njahi (Lablab purpureus)
Sesbania (Sesbania sesban, S. grandiflora)
Panicum (Panicum maximum)
Congo signal (Bracharia
Sweet potato vines
Sugar cane tops
Giant setaria (Setaria splendida)
Guatemala grass (Tripsacum
laxum or andersonii)
Sudan grass (Sorghum
Sweet potato vines
Edible canna (Canna edulis)
4. Hot and humid coastal strip low altitude areas
(Kenya and Tanzania
(bimodal or unimodal)
Clitoria (Clitoria ternatea)
Centrosema (Centrosema pubescens)
Siratro (Macroptilium atropurpureum)
Gliricidia (Gliricidia sepium, G. maculata)
Sweet potato vines
Manure in smallholder dairy systems
In eastern Africa, many smallholders fertilize their food and forage crops
with manure, either as compost, slurry or fresh dung. Some store the bedding
and faeces before applying it to Napier grass on the farm. Sometimes,
many of the nutrients in the faeces and urine are lost. Much improvement
in nutrient management could be made through better handling and storage
of faeces and urine. A few farmers give away or sell their manure; some
use it as fuel; and others to plaster their houses. Manure sustains soil
through increased pH, increased water-holding capacity, increased hydraulic
conductivity and infiltration and decreased bulk density. Manure has the
long-term effect of raising soil organic matter levels. Some farmers confine
their animals at night and free them during the day. The amount of recoverable
manure also depends on the efficiency of its collection and management
The diet of the animals producing the manure and the conditions under
which it is stored and handled are major factors affecting quality. In
intensive cut-and-carry systems, without recycling manure and use of fertilizer
the soil is depleted of minerals, and an initially high yield may quickly
Under grazing, most of the consumed minerals are returned to the soil.
Distribution of minerals through faeces and urine by grazing cattle is
poor, however, and high losses of nitrogen may occur due to leaching,
denitrification or volatilization. Cows producing 20–25 kg of milk
daily only convert about 20 percent of the nitrogen consumed into
protein in milk and meat. Napier grass yielding 10–20 tonnes DM ha-1 yr-1
may remove as much as 300 kg N, 50 kg P and 600 kg K. In
contrast, a well managed maize crop in high-potential areas of eastern
Africa (double cropped), only the grain being harvested, and assuming
a yield of 4000 kg ha-1 for each crop, may not remove
more than 120 kg N ha-1 yr-1 from the
soil. Recycling animal manure to Napier grass for forage will at least
largely replenish the quantities of P and K removed by cut-and-carry systems
for zero-grazing and stall feeding; dung and urine could be effectively
collected, stored and returned to the Napier grass or fodder at the right
time and in an efficient manner. At the same time, in Kenya,
fertilizer is much more commonly used on maize than on fodder crops. A
successful "self-contained" zero-grazing system, therefore,
requires a high level of management.
In cut-and-carry systems, animals are confined, and urine and faeces
are deposited on a small area. Without proper collection, large losses
of minerals may occur. In the zero-grazing unit, the manure can easily
be collected as slurry if the floor of the zero-grazing unit is made of
concrete. To avoid severe depletion of soil minerals, this slurry should
be returned to Napier grass as efficiently as possible (Snyders, Orodho
and Wouters, 1992). However many smallholders do not have cemented floors,
nor slurry collection pits. Some may not even have a roof on their zero-grazing
unit. In such cases there is great loss of nutrients. Generally, small-scale
farmers with zero-grazing units collect the manure daily; most bring it
straight back to the Napier grass field and work it into the soil. In
this way the losses of nutrients are kept to a minimum. Moreover, no big
storage facilities are needed, only a small pit in which the urine and
the dung of the day can be collected before transporting it to the field.
The use and handling of manure is an important aspect of the zero-grazing
package. If no recycling is done, the soil will be overexploited, soil
fertility will decline and the yield of Napier grass and other fodders
will be reduced.
Nutritive value of forages
The low quality of forages, particularly in the dry season, is a major
constraint to dairy production. The ultimate value of forage plants must
be considered mainly in terms of milk. The nutritive value of most forages
is influenced by age and varies according to the phenological stages of
the crop. As forages develop in age, their acid detergent fibre (ADF),
neutral detergent fibre (NDF), lignin, stem, dead material and dry matter
(DM) increase, while their crude protein (CP), leaf-to-stem ratio, ash
and digestibility decrease. The chemical compositions of hay from common
grasses range from 3.7 to 9.2 percent CP and 32 to 45.5 percent
crude fibre (CF). In general the chemical composition of forage depends
on the plant species or cultivar, the plant part, water status and age.
Crowder and Chheda (1982) reported that the genetic differences in pasture
species at variety level contribute towards difference in in vivo
digestibility. CP is higher in leaves than stems, while stems have higher
CF. Napier grass, Rhodes grass and setaria are among the most nutritious
and productive grasses grown in eastern Africa. Napier grass produces
20–25 tonnes DM ha-1 yr-1 and the production
of chloris and setaria ranges from 14 to 18 tonnes DM ha-1 yr-1.
Yields and quality of forages are not constant over seasons and years.
Grasses are highly seasonal, delivering most of their potential in the
first months of the growing season. Forage yields of 15 tonnes DM
ha-1 in the year of sowing or planting are not unusual without
N fertilization. Unless topped up with N, however, yields drop to a third
or less by the third year, especially in a cut-and-carry system.
In the wet season, the concentration of minerals and CP is higher than
during the dry season. In young grasses the initial high CP levels drop
considerably with maturity. The total amino acid content of grass correlates
highly with the total N contents and declines during growth. Grasses have
protein degradability varying between 12 and 33 percent and for most
grasses the proportion of non-lignin N to total protein is 15 percent
higher than the digestible coefficient of the total N. In general, K and
Fe appear to be adequate in most grasses, but P, Na, Cu, Co, Mg and Ca
are normally deficient in grasses, particularly during the wet season.
In terms of mean percentage DM, the P levels in legume forage range from
0.13 to 0.38 percent, the Ca level range from 0.88 to 1.45 percent,
the Mg levels range from 0.25 to 0.67 percent and the Na levels from
0.02 to 0.23 percent (Skerman et al., 1988). Most forages
grown by smallholder farmers have CP of 10–12 percent and digestibility
(D-vitro) of 55–60 percent. After the first year of production, this
is rarely possible without application of N fertilizer. The CP of Napier
grass and many other forage crops is normally less than 14 percent,
which is insufficient for efficient dairy production, hence the need for
supplementation to increase dairy productivity. The in vivo digestibility
of Napier grass, Guatemala, and
giant setaria range between 47 and 56 percent, but can be as high
as 71.1 percent when cut young. Smallholder dairy farmers can increase
the quality of forages by using the recommended forage management practices.
Smallholder farmers can also improve the quality of their forage crops
by growing grass and legumes mixtures. Some farmers grow and harvest the
grasses and legume separately, but mix them when stall feeding their dairy
cattle. In some cases, growing and managing grasses and legume separately,
increases yield. The CP of most legumes ranges between 14 and 18 percent
and CF ranges between 27 and 35 percent. Leucaena leucocephala
has CP of 21.6 and CF 18.3 (Skerman et al., 1988). Although legumes
have higher CP than grasses, some tropical legumes have lower digestibility
and palatability because they have higher tannin contents.
Forage Seed Production
Lack of seed and planting materials of recommended forages is a major
constraint to increased forage production on smallholder farms in eastern
Africa. Frequently, only very small amounts of seed of recommended forages
are available to smallholders. Once a forage cultivar has proved to be
promising, its seed must be produced in large quantities to be used by
smallholders. If seed production is inefficient, then seed costs are high
and this reduces the incentive for pasture improvement. There is a need
to ensure that adequate seed of recommended forages is available to smallholders
in the various ACZs. Seed production potential for recommended forages
needs to be assessed and technologies developed to exploit their genetic
potential. Even though species and varieties behave similarly in response
to agronomic practices, they vary markedly in seed yield potential. To
maximize forage seed yields it is necessary to carefully select sites
on which the seed crop is grown and to optimize the establishment and
management of the seed crop, and also to follow proper harvesting procedures.
Nitrogen fertilizer and row width are important tools to manipulate heading
and subsequent seed setting, and thus increase seed yields of tropical
forages. Forage grasses produce more seed under conditions of closer tiller
density and appropriate N dressing. Seed setting, which is the major variable
determining pure germinating seed (PGS) content, is greatly affected by
weather conditions in the pre-heading period. Rainfall is of critical
importance. Studies showed that seasons with good seed yields had more
rains, which were better distributed, without prolonged drought. A good
rainfall distribution is a major prerequisite to achieving high PGS percentage.
Government has the responsibility for producing Breeder or Basic seed
from its forage breeding programmes at appropriate research centres. The
Basic seed is supplied to seed companies for multiplication, processing,
distribution and sale. Some seed companies have their own breeders involved
in breeding and selection of forages. Seed companies normally produce
seed of forages that are widely grown and can be sold extensively in the
nation and some exported; they are not keen on producing forages that
are zone- or area-specific, or handling vegetatively propagated planting
materials such as Napier grass, Guatemala
grass, sweet potato, edible canna, giant setaria and giant panicum. Smallholders
normally get vegetative material and forage seed that are zone specific
from government institutions or from other farmers.
An independent national body provides plant health inspectorate services,
and is responsible for seed inspection and certification, ensuring that
the quality of seed produced meets international quality standards. This
body also works closely with breeders to maintain the distinctness, uniformity
and stability (DUS) of the seed produced. Imported pasture seed, particularly
of legumes, is very expensive for smallholders. Such seed can be produced
locally and cheaply by smallholders after appropriate training in production
technologies that have been developed locally. Some smallholder farmers
have taken seed production as a business and are producing forage seed
for sale. Legume seed production by smallholder farmers is more profitable
than producing maize as a commercial crop. Farmers who have no dairy cattle
are growing crops such as Napier grass and selling the forage and vegetative
propagating planting materials to livestock farmers. Some smallholders
set aside surplus forage in the year of sowing to harvest farm-saved seed.
This provides a low-cost source of seed to establish more pastures. It
is partly through this system that improved forages such as Rhodes grass
and setaria have spread rapidly. More seeds can move into markets, which
are otherwise inaccessible. This informal seed production sector is likely
to develop. Smallholder seed producers could come together and form cooperatives
and associations to enable them to market forage seeds throughout eastern
Africa. Forage production on smallholder farms should increase as a result
of both the informal and formal seed production sectors.
Crop Residues, agro-industrial by-products and their limitations
Forages on most smallholder farms in eastern Africa are deficient in protein,
energy and certain minerals, such as P and S, particularly in the dry
season. Some dairy farmers supplement these from other sources of feed.
Most protein supplements are expensive and the majority of smallholder
farmers are unable to afford them. Besides, concentrates are not readily
available to smallholders and, when available, their quality is questionable.
In arable areas of mixed farming, the use of crop residue and by-products
to supplement forages as livestock feeds is commonest in dairying. Smallholders
supplement their livestock with purchased grain, concentrates and by-products
such as bran, wheat pollard and dairy meal. Because of the high cost of
dairy meal, many farmers opt for cereal by-products. Variable amounts
of concentrates are usually fed to dairy cows at milking, with many smallholders
feeding a flat rate of about 1 to 2 kg daily throughout lactation.
Most commonly used are crop by-products. Crop residues in smallholder
dairy-crop systems include cereal straw and stover (e.g. rice, sorghum,
millet and wheat); horticultural crop and vegetable waste (e.g.
cowpea and chick pea vines); sugar cane tops and leaves; maize, wheat,
and barley wastes; pyrethrum marc; pigeon pea leaves; green maize strippings;
banana leaves and pseudostems; potato and banana peelings; residues from
soya beans, peas, groundnuts and lab-lab bean (Lablab purpureus,
syn. Dolichos lablab); coconut, simsim and cotton seed cake; and
field bean, soya bean and groundnut hulls.
In some parts of Kenya, crop
residues, mainly maize and bean stover, provide an average of 35–45 percent
of the total livestock feed requirement in smallholder farms. The contribution
of crop by-products to feeding dairy cattle depends on farm size. The
smaller the farm, the larger the proportion of feeds drawn from crop residues
and crop by-products compared with forages. In the highlands of Mount
Kilimanjaro and Mount Meru in Tanzania,
crop residues, including banana, maize and other cereals, are commonly
fed to cattle, especially in the dry season, to supplement forage. In
Uganda, crop residues are available
as feed for the dry season. Banana peel and potato vine are the most commonly
used in intensive systems. Cassava foliage could be a valuable feed in
smallholder farms, but is rarely used for fear of cyanide toxicity. The
major agro-industrial by-products are cereal bran (maize and rice), oil
cake (soya bean, cotton seed and sunflower) and brewers’ grains. All cereal
straws contain a large pool of structural carbohydrates that can potentially
be used as an energy source by the ruminant microbes. The minimal contents
of crude protein (2–4 percent of DM), the imbalance in essential
minerals contained in the straws, their low digestibility as well as low
intake by ruminants are disadvantages encountered in using straw as feed
By-products such as maize stover, wheat and rice straw are fibrous and
in most cases lignified, making them less digestible and acceptable to
livestock. However, these deleterious properties may be reduced through
chemical and physical treatment. Treating roughage with sodium hydroxide
has proved effective in improving feed conversion and animal performance,
and fermentation with urea is a well-known technique. The level of use
of a by-product is limited by the cost of collection and transportation
from source, storage and processing, in addition to other intrinsic factors,
and seasonality in availability. Fresh cassava leaves contain high levels
of hydrocyanic acid (HCN), which is toxic. Sun drying the leaves reduces
the HCN contents to levels that are less toxic (Wanapat et al.,
1989). However, not all cultivars of cassava are poisonous and ruminants
may be able to consume the fresh leaves without ill-effect. Crop residue
are usually deficient in at least one nutrient and cannot support animal
production without adequate supplementation. Owing to their bulky nature,
most crop residues and by-products must be used at or close to where they
are produced, to reduce transport cost. The commonly available farm by-products
are sugar cane tops, sugar cane rejects, maize stalks and maize cobs;
these were found to be high in crude fibre, calcium and potassium
but low in protein and phosphorous (NARS, 1977). They are good roughage
but require supplementing with crude protein and energy in the form of
readily digestible carbohydrates and minerals when fed to dairy cattle.
Diseases and pests of forages
There is an increase incidence of diseases and pests affecting forages
in eastern Africa. In the past, forage diseases and pests caused minimal
economic losses, so little research was directed towards solving forage
disease and pest problems. However, in the past two decades, there have
been important outbreaks of diseases and pests, some of which have caused
serious economic losses to smallholders. Some of the important forage
legumes affected by diseases and pests included Stylosanthes, attacked
by anthracnose, a fungal disease caused by Colletotrichum gloeosporioides;
leucaena is attacked by Leucaena psyllids (Heteropsylla cubana);
siratro is attacked by Rhizoctonia fungus; and lupins succumb
to a root rot caused by Sclerotia rolfsii. Among the forage grasses
affected by diseases and pests are Chloris, which is attacked by
Fusarium graminearum fungus; Cynodon is attacked by Helminthosporium
cynodontis fungus; Panicum is attacked by Cerebella andropogonis;
Paspalum is attacked by Claviceps purpurea, with the danger
of animal poisoning; and Kikuyu grass is attacked by the root knot nematode,
Napier grass is also seriously attacked by diseases and pests, causing
serious economic loss and concern to farmers. Some of the important diseases
and pests are considered below.
Snowmould fungal disease Most
Napier grass clones are susceptible to the fungus, Beniowskia sphaeroidea,
which causes a white mould on the leaves and stems. Research in the early
1970s developed a variety – clone 13 – which was a selection from seedling
progenies of French Cameroon seeds. Clone 13 is resistant to the fungal
disease (Van Wijk, 1974). This disease has also been reported to attack
Kikuyu grass and Nandi setaria.
Napier grass head smut This
is a serious Napier grass disease, first reported in cooler parts of central
Kenya in 1992. Affected plants
develop fungal symptoms that look like flower structures but open up releasing
black spores. The stems then become smaller and the total DM of the affected
crop is drastically reduced. After 2–3 cuttings the entire stool dries.
The causative organism is a fungus, Ustilago kamerunensis. This
disease, which spreads rapidly, has caused serious concern to smallholders,
who report losses of 90–100 percent of their Napier grass and have
been forced to drastically reduce their livestock number. Through collaborative
research in screening and evaluation, a Napier grass variety, Kakamega
1, developed by the author, has been identified as high yielding and resistant
to Napier grass head smut (Farrel, 1998). This variety is being multiplied
and bulked in government institutions and has been distributed to over
10 000 smallholders in just one year. The farmers usually come together
and contribute money to hire transport to collect Kakamega 1 Napier grass
from institutions where the material has been bulked. This cultivar is
spreading very fast because smallholders who already have it supply it
to their neighbours.
Napier grass stunting disease Another serious Napier grass disease
has developed in Western Kenya; it was first reported in Bungoma district,
bordering Uganda, in 1997. A
similar disease had been reported in Uganda
and its cause was suspected to be a virus, probably transmitted by insects
(Tiley, 1969). This disease is spreading fast and is present in several
districts of Western Kenya, causing serious economic loss to the smallholder
dairy industry. Most Napier grass varieties grown in the area are susceptible
to the disease, which usually becomes visible in re-growth after cutting
or grazing. Affected shoots become pale yellow green in colour and seriously
dwarfed, with a densely bunched (fastigiated) appearance on account of
repeated proliferation of auxiliary buds. Individual leaves and sheaths
of affected plants greatly diminish. Root development is severely impaired
and is reduced to a weak fibrous growth. Infection at the early stage
results in symptom expression in the whole stool, with complete loss in
yield and eventual death. Many smallholders have lost all their Napier
crop and are forced to de-stock or sell their herd. The author is collaborating
with scientists from KARI and from international research institutes in
studies to identify the cause of Napier stunting disease and its mode
of transmission. Collaborative tests by KARI and CABI Scientific at CAB
International laboratories have confirmed that the stunting disease is
caused by a mycoplasma. Further tests are being carried out at CABI International
laboratories to confirm whether or not the disease is insect transmitted.
Scientists are also screening over 50 Napier grass germplasm lines in
order to locate any resistant varieties that could be used in Western
The importance and future of forage-based smallholder dairying
Milk marketing channels
The dairy industry in eastern Africa has both formal and informal milk
market pathways, which are largely dependent on market surplus from smallholder
dairy producers. More than 70 percent of milk is marketed through
informal channels, which include:
- direct sales by smallholders to consumers, either individually or
- sales to farmers’ cooperatives, dairy societies or self-help groups
that have milk collecting centres, which boil or cool milk before delivering
it, either fresh or soured, to consumers or processors; and
- sales to small traders and market agents (milk bars, kiosks or mobile
traders), who buy milk from farmers or farmers’ cooperatives and sell
to consumers or retailers.
Only a few dairy cooperatives pasteurize milk; most milk marketed through
informal channels is consumed raw, a system that has public health implications.
Until recently, the formal channel was dominated by large parastatal dairy
cooperatives, which were instituted to collect milk from surplus areas,
process it and sell on to deficit areas. The Cooperative Development of Industry Act in Kenya, under which dairy
marketing cooperatives fall, did not, in the past, allow sufficient farmer
control of dairy cooperatives, thereby contributing to high incidence
of mismanagement and misappropriation of farmers’ funds by management.
This served as a great disincentive to increased forage and dairy production
by smallholder dairy farmers.
Major policy changes are under way in eastern Africa, in line with liberalization.
In the dairy sub-sector, the major change has been the liberalization
of milk marketing. The immediate impact has been a rapid growth of formal
and informal private sectors, resulting in increased participation in
milk marketing by formal and informal market agents. This has led to re-distribution
of benefits of dairying, including increased employment opportunities,
increased milk availability and a rise in real farmgate milk price, thereby
increasing producer earnings. Market liberalization has also brought change
in relative prices in various regions, which now reflect market access
and production costs. There is also a positive shift in concerns of smallholder
dairy farmers, from past difficulties with milk marketing to now investigating
options for increased production.
Increased farmgate prices by traders and farmers’ groups has provided
further incentive for conservation of feed for the dry season, when milk
price is highest, hence an increase in forage production on smallholder
dairy farms. This trend will continue in future and smallholders will
intensify forage production and increase dairy productivity by adopting
Smallholder dairying is profitable. Important determinants of profitability,
investment and operating costs vary between production systems. As summarized
in Table 18.5, engaging in intensive dairying substantially
increases both annual per cow investment and the operating cost compared
with the semi-intensive and extensive systems utilizing communal grazing.
Per-cow annualized monetary returns are very high for zero-grazing systems,
compared with unfenced extensive dairying. In Tanzania,
production costs were compared for three systems: small-scale intensive
rural dairying (Arusha/Kilimanjaro and Southern highlands); small-scale
intensive urban dairy (represented by Dar-es-Salaam); and smallholder
semi-intensive dairy with Zebu cattle (Chalinze). Gross margins per cow
differ considerably, depending on the cost of inputs (particularly forage),
price of milk and increase in herd value.
Despite the high expenditure on purchase of forage, urban intensive dairying
yields a higher gross margin per cow than similar production systems in
rural areas, where the price of milk is lower. This may in part explain
the exponential growth of the urban cattle population in recent years.
The gross margin per animal from semi-intensive dairy production with
zebu is, predictably, low given that this is a low-input, low-output system,
as shown in Table 18.6.
Table 18.5 Summary of annualized per-cow gross
returns to dairy production in Uganda.
Dairy production system
Total investment costs (a)
Total Operating Costs (b)
Total Gross Revenue (c)
1 747 513
Gross Margin, (c) -(b) -(a)
1 308 210
Cost per litre of sold milk
Cost per litre of total milk
Note: Exchange rate in July 1996 was U Sh 1058 = US$ 1.0
Source: ILRI, 1996.
Table 18.6 A summary of annual per-cow gross returns
to dairy production for the most
important smallholder production systems in Tanzania
Dairy Production System
Semi-intensive with zebus
Intensive rural with exotic cross
Intensive urban with exotic crosses
Total variable Costs
1 051 330
Gross margin per litre
Note: Exchange rate (1998, approximate) T Sh 600 = US$
Source: MOAC/SUA/ILRI, 1998.
Fodder-Based Dairy Production
A study was carried out on the Kenya coast, comparing three smallholder
farming systems: (i) an intensive dairy production system where smallholder
farmers adopted three related technologies: keeping grade or cross-bred
dairy cows; planting forages, mainly Napier Grass; and using the infection
and treatment method of immunization against East Coast Fever; (ii) a
system where smallholder farmers did not adopt the technology and kept
only local cattle; and (iii) where smallholder farmers did not adopt
the technology and kept no cattle. The results are summarized in Table
18.7. Results of the survey of 202 households drawn from the three
production systems showed that intensive dairying substantially increased
household income, generated paid (secondary) employment, and improved
the nutritional status of pre-school-age children in the households (Nicholson
et al., 1999). The average income per month of farmers practising
forage-based intensive dairying was much higher than the income of farmers
that did not plant forages (Napier grass).
Differences in cash income from dairying accounted for over 40 percent
of the differences in total mean cash income between intensive dairy production
and non-dairy farmers. The profits obtained by farmers growing high yielding
forages for intensive dairy production is very high. Smallholders who
use recommended practices and technologies to grow forage get better returns
from milk sales. To further consolidate the system, there is a need both
to strengthen forage improvement programmes to develop Napier grass cultivars
resistant to the common diseases and to enforce plant quarantine regulations
better in order to reduce movement of diseased forage planting materials,
especially across borders. There will also be a need to improve and popularize
other fodder crops so that smallholder farmers have alternative high yielding
forages for intensive dairying.
Table 18.7 Reported monthly cash income by type of
income and adoption status in Kenya.
Households with no cattle and no planted fodder
Households with local cattle but no planted
Households with grade or cross-bred cattle
and planted fodder (Napier grass)
Percentage of households with cash
Poultry or eggs
Wages, salaries or off-farm activities
Mean monthly cash income from dairying
Mean monthly cash income from poultry
or eggs per month
Mean monthly cash income from crops
Mean monthly cash income from wages,
salaries or off-farm activities
Mean monthly cash income from
Mean monthly cash income from other
Mean total monthly cash income from all activities
Notes: SD = Standard deviation of the mean. The
superscripts a, b and c indicates that the means
for the two adoption categories [between adopters, i.e. households with
at least one grade/cross bred (G/C) animal and planted fodder, and non-adopters,
i.e. household owning no G/C animal and with no planted fodder] with the
same letter are statistically different at the 95 percent confidence
level. Exchange rate (1999) K Sh 62 = US$ 1.
Source: Nicholson et al., 1999.
Employment generation is another impact of adoption of intensive smallholder
dairying, in part because sown forage production and management and the
care and feeding of dairy animals require more labour. More than three
quarters of households responding to the detailed survey indicated that
they hired more labour as a result of taking up intensive smallholder
dairy production. Hired labour is usually from the areas surrounding the
farms and the financial benefit of dairying is thus shared among the dairy
farmers and others in the community. Although smallholders who did not
adopt intensive technology hired some labour, their labour received much
less total pay because of less work and shorter working hours compared
with those employed by smallholder dairy farms.
Smallholder dairying increases a household's nutritional status; increased
milk production usually increases home milk consumption. Milk is a significant
source of energy and proteins, including many essential amino acids lacking
in many carbohydrates, and it contains essential micronutrients, such
as vitamins A and D. Households with dairy cattle can purchase more and
a wider variety of foods. The incidence of chronic malnutrition was significantly
lower among children of households with dairy cattle than among children
of farmers without dairy activity.
Market opportunities and gender roles
Smallholder dairy farmers have and will continue to have plenty of investment
opportunities and markets for milk. The medium-rainfall coastal lowland
is a difficult and risky environment for smallholder dairying, yet it
is an area of Kenya with access
to two major and rapidly growing urban markets, Mombasa and Dar-es-Salaam.
These markets offer smallholder dairies actual and potential large margins
for their milk. These markets, and their environs, also offer many other
opportunities for investment of smallholder capital. Smallholder dairying
and marketing in eastern Africa has a large potential for direct financial
returns and indirect benefits from crop production. Many smallholder farmers
will exploit these opportunities by increasing forage production and milk
yields in future. The survey showed that smallholder dairying is not limited to wealthy farmers;
smallholder dairy farmers are evenly spread across all income categories
implying that dairying is accessible to many households not just wealthy
ones Nicholson et al., 1999).
In terms of gender differentiation, women, men and children play varying
and important roles in dairy operations. In general, women do most of
the dairy work, except spraying and herding. Their responsibility for
livestock tasks and financial payments has increased with the adoption
of dairying (Mullins et al., 1996). The percentage contribution
by gender to dairy work on small farms was found to be: wives, 30 percent;
children, 26 percent; husbands 25 percent; and hired labour, 19 percent
(Price Waterhouse, 1990). Most farm decisions are made either jointly
by husbands and wives, or by wives in female-headed households; women
generally control the income from milk sales; the role of men in smallholder
dairying seems to be oriented to cash crops and decisions regarding animal
sales and purchases (Staal et
National dairy research has to date contributed to the identification
of useful forage production technology and dairy feeding strategies, besides
identifying – and attempting to solve – socio-economic constraints to
the development, adoption and productivity of smallholder dairying systems.
However, the translation of a number of these technologies into adaptable
interventions by smallholders still remains a major challenge for the
future. Access to credit for the purchase of services and inputs is considered
essential in solving constraints at farm level. Many dairy cooperatives
are linking their marketing activities with the provision of input services.
Credit institutions, such as formal banks, charge relatively high interest
rates, beyond what most smallholders can afford, and most banks insist
on formal collateral for loans.
Profits obtained from dairying by smallholders practising intensive forage
production are high compared with those from alternative farm enterprises.
Farmers who have adopted recommended technologies get much better returns
through improved milk sales. Good opportunities for continued growth of
smallholders dairying exist since there is a large gap between demand
and supply in milk production in all eastern African, and neighbouring,
countries. Demand will probably continue to increase with increasing human
population in the region. The recent major supportive policies on milk
liberalization have had a significant positive impact on smallholder dairying,
with smallholders realizing the benefits of dairying, such as regular
cash generation, employment creation and improvement of household nutrition.
The overall contribution of dairying to the sustainability of smallholder
crop–dairy systems through nutrient cycling makes dairying an easy choice
for potential development and a vehicle to address rural poverty. Smallholder
dairying will continue to be profitable, popular and to develop in future.
With the increasing role of informal, non-processed, milk marketing in
urban areas, concern about milk-borne public health hazards has been raised
by consumers and policy-makers, particularly because of low standards
of milk hygiene and the possible spread of brucellosis and zoonotic tuberculosis.
Although most raw milk is consumed after boiling, there is still concern
that unscrupulous middlemen trading raw milk may be tempted to adulterate
it by adding harmful chemicals intended to preserve or prolong its shelf
life. Previous government policies on promotion of pasteurized milk were
geared to minimizing those risks, but this resulted in a monopoly of milk
marketing by large milk cooperatives and parastatals.
The changed scenario after market liberalization and allowing informal
raw milk sales means that mechanisms must be put in place to protect the
public from health risks. If standards were relaxed to officially allow
raw milk marketing while regulations regarding milk handling, permissible
duration of exposure for retail sale, and non-adulteration are maintained,
with incentives for milk traders to comply, then much more milk may come
under control and would improve the average sanitary standard of milk
in the market. The seasonality in milk production and the current dry
season premiums paid to smallholders have given them incentives to continue
producing adequate milk and to stabilize supply, even during the dry season.
Most farmers wish to benefit from this incentive and are increasingly
adopting forage conservation technologies such as hay and silage, planting
Napier grass or other folders, using a soil moisture water conserving
technology (tumbukiza) that enables the forage to be productive
even during the dry season, using manure and N fertilizers, and using
catch or break crops to produce feeds for conservation for use in the
Declining holding size will continue to be a constraint to increased
dairy production in many parts of eastern Africa, given the high rates
of population increase and the continuous sub-division of land into smaller
units that can barely support dairy enterprises. Government policies need
to be reinforced so that there is a minimum and economically-viable size
of land beyond which sub-division is not allowed. Smallholder dairying
will continue to undergo rapid changes and increased intensification resulting
from increased human population and decreased holding sizes.
As intensification continues to take place, there will be need for continuous
assessment of the forage production and socio-economic changes and level
of technology adoption and impact in smallholder dairying. There will
also be a need to identify any researchable constraint resulting from
such changes. Most smallholder dairy farmers will continue to depend on
Napier grass as the major basal feed for their cattle. Since this popular
crop has a narrow genetic base, the current disease and pest outbreaks
affecting the grass are causing concern and becoming a threat to the dairy
industry as a whole. There is a need to re-establish and strengthen forage
breeding or improvement programmes so that Napier grass cultivars resistant
to the emerging diseases and pests can be developed. In order to spread
risk in forage production, there is a need to identify, improve and popularize
other promising high yielding, disease-resistant, fodders.
Critics sometimes say that genomic research is supply driven and takes
too long to deliver usable results. However, experience with Napier grass
smut and mycoplasma diseases show how strong farmers demand, coupled with
responsiveness on the part of a national research group, can ensure that
laboratory research at international level responds to the rapidly changing
needs of the smallholder dairy farmers. The current linkages between different
local, regional and international research institutes, universities and
other stakeholders in terms of collaborating research should be strengthened.
Such linkages will enhance production and adoption of better forage and
dairy production technologies in the smallholder sector. There are still
many constraints to increased forage production, such as those resulting
from increased intensification of production, and from new forage disease
and pest threats, and these still require basic and strategic research.
Some smallholders who have repeatedly been using di-ammonium phosphate
(DAP) have increasingly raised concern about their farm soil becoming
acidic, and limiting forage production. Various methods of soil amendment
have been suggested, such as liming to improve soil pH, use of organic
materials such as farmyard manure, maize stover, regular application of
cattle manure or use of non-acidified fertilizers containing bases that
can improve soil acidity. A more sustainable and resource conserving management
of plant macronutrient supply requires the integration of suitable farming
and land management systems with judicious use of fertilizers.
Manure is available on smallholder dairy farms in the form of compost,
slurry or fresh dung. Management and research in future needs to emphasize
nutrients and organic matter cycling in combination with sufficient use
of fertilizers to avoid “nutrient mining” and imbalances on smallholder
farms. The reduction of P losses from agricultural soils is a central
issue for sustainable agriculture. Most P is lost in surface run-off and
erosion, which should in any case be kept to a minimum under good agricultural
husbandry. P losses from soil erosion and surface run-off can range from
0.1 to 10 kg ha-1 yr-1, and in a
few cases of steep hill slopes, massive soil erosion may remove even greater
amounts. Since some of the losses can usually not be prevented under arable
agriculture, the location of forage and food crop fields and zero-grazing
stall-feeding sites relative to the landscape can have a significant impact
on containing nutrients within the smallholder farm unit.
Future management and research should focus on whole-farm planning, nutrient
conservation and the integration of forage legumes and fodder trees in
the forage–crop mix in farming systems. The major constraint to increased
dairy production is the severe scarcity and seasonality of feed resources,
in nearly all production systems. Most smallholder dairy farmers are not
effectively using appropriate technologies for increasing forage and dairy
production, partly because of poor delivery of extension services and
partly because some of the technologies have not been adequately tested
on-farm for wider adoption by farmers. This is a reflection of the weak
research–extension–farmer linkage and of inadequate funding for research
and extension. There is a need to disseminate appropriate technologies
for wide adoption by farmers through normal extension methods, including
demonstrations, farmer field schools and farmer participatory research.
The current trend of intensification in dairying practices will continue
and more farmers will adopt appropriate technologies for increasing forage
production and efficient utilization of crop residues, crop by-products,
minerals and concentrates. Although smallholder dairying accounts for
most of the total milk marketed in eastern Africa, individual cow productivity
is low (Staal et al., 1998). In intensive dairy systems with relatively
high land pressure and high stocking rate, the dairy development and intensification
process will be to increase the yield per cow using more resources and
current dairy and forage production technologies. Effective utilization
of improved forages with productive dairy animals maximizes profits.
In semi-intensive dairying, with relatively low land pressure and low
stocking rate, the dairy development process will be to improve forage
production and to increase and improve the number of dairy cattle through
upgrading, natural mating and artificial insemination. Effectiveness of
government extension services, including provision of clinical and preventive
health, has been declining for some time as a result of budgetary constraints
and a transition to privatized services. More of these services are to
be privatised and farmer groups should play an important role in providing
some veterinary services. Smallholders will increasingly take dairying
as a serious and profitable business and continue to develop closer relationships
and links with service providers such as official extension services,
research organizations, stockists, credit and agricultural financing organizations,
input quality control services, and other stakeholders.
Dairy farmers could increasingly come together to form cooperatives,
community-based organizations and specialized farmer groups (such as smallholder
informal forage seed producers), which should enable them to solve some
of the common forage, dairy production and marketing problems currently
hindering development, and to press governments to improve infrastructure.
Dairy and forage cooperatives and farmer groups, if efficiently managed,
will improve the market position of smallholders through collective action.
Smallholder dairying is undergoing rapid changes and increased intensification
due to increasing human population and decreasing farm size. Although
there are some constraints in smallholder farming, there are many opportunities
in dairy production. Technologies exist that smallholder farmers can use
to increase and intensify forage production to raise milk yields; there
are enabling government policies, particularly in market liberalization,
that have given smallholder dairy farmers incentives to increase milk
production; and there are increased market opportunities, particularly
with the recent launching of the East Africa Community, with its combined
population of over 81 million people across the region.
Of all milk produced by improved dairying in eastern Africa, over 80 percent
comes from forage-based smallholder dairy farmers. Annual milk production
and milk availability per capita is still very low, and with increasing
human population, demand will continue to increase. Smallholder dairy
farmers should continue to intensify forage production by applying available
technologies in order to increase milk output for the market and to satisfy
the increasing demand. Forage-based dairying will continue to be of great
importance in improving the opportunities and welfare of smallholder households,
increasing employment locally, increasing the level of stability of income
for smallholder farmers, improving the nutritional status of families
and supporting women in the household in terms of improved income. Forage-based
smallholder dairying will continue to have a positive effect on soil fertility
maintenance in intensive mixed cropping systems, a role that may grow
Bogdan, A.V. 1977. Tropical Pasture and Fodder
Plants. London: Longman.
Boonman, J.G. 1993. East Africa’s Grasses
and Fodders: Their Ecology and Husbandry. Dordecht, the Netherlands:
Braun, H.M.H. 1980. Agro Climatic Zone Map of
Kenya, scale 1 : 1 000 000. Kenya
Soil Survey, Nairobi.
Crowder, L.V. & Chheda H.R. 1982.
Tropical grassland Husbandry. London: Longman.
Edwards, D.C. & Bogdan A.V. 1951. Important
Grassland Plants of Kenya.
Pitman and Sons: Nairobi.
Farrel, G. 1998. Towards the management of Ustilago
kamerunensis H. Sydow and Sydow; pathogen of Napier grass (Pennisetum
purpureum Schum) in Kenya.
Ph.D thesis, University of Greenwich. 202p.
ILRI [International Livestock Research Institute].
1996. The Ugandan Dairy Sub-sector: A rapid Appraisal. carried out by
Ministry of Agriculture Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF), Entebbe;
Makerere University, Kampala; and Overseas Development Administration
(ODA, UK). 68p.
Lee-Smith, D., Manundu, M., Lamba, D. & Gathuru,
P.K. 1987. Urban food production and cooking fuel situation
in urban Kenya: National Report.
Results of a 1985 National Survey. Mazingira Institute. 299p.
MAAIF [Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry
and Fisheries]. 1993. Supply and Demand, Master Plan for Dairy Sector.
Vol. IV: Subject Matter Reports. No. 1 – Milk Production and Supply;
No. 2 – Support Services to Dairy Farmers; No. 3 – The Market for Milk
and Dairy Products. MAAIF, Entebbe.
Mdoe, N. & Wiggins S. 1997. Returns to smallholder
dairy in the Kilimanjaro Region, Tanzania.
Agricultural Economics, 17: 75–87.
Mlozi, M.R.S. 1995. Information and the problems
of urban agriculture in Tanzania.
Intentions and realizations. Ph.D. thesis, University of British Columbia,
MOAC [Ministry of Agriculture and Co-operatives]/SUA
[Sokoine University of Agriculture]/ILRI. 1998. The Tanzania
dairy sub-sector : A Rapid Appraisal. Vol.3 – Main report.
Funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, Switzerland.
Mougeout, L.J.A. 1994. African city farming
from a world perspective. In: A.G. Egziabher, D. Lee-Smith, D.G.
Maxiwell, P.A. Memon, L.J.A. Mougeout and C.J. Sawio (eds). Cities
feeding people: An examination of urban agriculture in East Africa.
International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Ottawa, Canada.
Mullins, G., Wahome, L., Tsangari, P., & Maarse,
L. 1996. Impact of intensive dairy production on smallholder farm
women in coastal Kenya. Human
Ecology, 24: 231–253.
Muriuki, H.G. & Thorpe, W. 2001.
Smallholder dairy production and marketing in Eastern and Southern Africa.
Regional synthesis. In: D. Rangnekar and W. Thorpe (eds). Smallholder
dairy production and marketing opportunities and constraints. Proceedings
of the South - South workshop held at NDDB, Anand, India,
13–16 March 2001.
NARS [National Agriculture Research Station].
1977. NARS, Kitale, Annual Report, 85p.
Nicholson, C.F., Thornton, P.K., Mohammed,
L., Muinga, R.W., Mwamachi, D.M., Elbasha, E.H., Staal, S.J. & Thorpe,
W. 1999. Smallholder Dairy Technology in Coastal Kenya.
An adoption and Impact study. ILRI Impact Assessment Series, No.
1990. Dissemination of research technology on forages and agriculture
by-products in Kenya. In: B.H. Dzowela, A.N. Saidi, Asrat
Webden-Agenehu and J.H. Kategile (eds). Utilization of research results
on forage and agricultural by-product materials as animal feed resources
in Africa. Proceedings of the First Joint Workshop of the Pasture
Network for Eastern and Southern Africa (PANESA) and the African Research
Network for Agriculture By-products (ARNAB). Lilongwe, Malawi,
5–9 December 1998.
Pratt, D.J. & Gwynne, M.D. 1977.
Range Management and Ecology in East Africa.
London: Hodder & Stoughton.
Price Waterhouse. 1990. The role of women in
the National Dairy Development Programme, Kenya.
Price Waterhouse, Nairobi, Kenya.
Skerman, P.J., Cameron, D.G. & Riveros, F.
1988. Tropical forage legumes. FAO Plant Production and
Protection Series, No. 2. 692p.
Snyders, P.J.M, Orodho, A.B. & Wouters, A.P.
1992. Effects of manure application methods on yield and quality
of Napiergrass. National Animal Husbandry Research Centre, Naivasha
publication, Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI), Kenya.
Sombroek, W.C., Braun, H.M.H. & van der Pauw,
B.J.A. 1982. Explanatory soil map and agro-climatic zone
map of Kenya. Kenya
Soil Survey Report, No. E1. National Agriculture Laboratories,
Soil Survey Unit, Nairobi, Kenya.
Staal, S.J., Chege, L., Kinyanjui, M., Kimani, A.,
Lukuyu, B., Njubi, D., Owango, M., Tanner, J., Thorpe, W. & Wambugu,
M. 1998. Characterization of dairy systems supplying the
Nairobi milk market. A pilot survey in Kiambu District for the identification
of target groups of producers. Smallholder Dairy (R&D) Project.
KARI, ILRI and Livestock Production Department (Ministry of Agriculture).
Tiley, G.E.D. 1969. Elephant grass. Kawanda
Technical Communication, No. 23.
Van Wijk, A.J.P. 1974. Breeding of Napier Grass.
Agricultural Research Station, Kitale, Maize and Pasture Annual Report,
Wanapat, M. 1986. Better Utilization of Crop-residue
for Buffalo Production. In: C. Chantalakhana (ed). Proceedings
of The Buffalo Seminar. International Buffalo Information
Centre, Kasetsart University Library, Bangkok, Thailand.
Wanapat, M., Uriyapongson, S., Chanthai, S., Wanapat,
S., Wachirapakoin, C. & Thummasang, K. 1989. The utilization
of dried cassava leaves and urea-treated rice straw for draught swamp
buffaloes during the dry season at village level. In: Proceedings
of the 27th Annual Conference, Kasetsart, Bangkok, Thailand.
Wandera, J.L. 1996. Pasture and Cover Crops.
KARI Review of Kenyan Agricultural Research, Vol. 23.