This poster, produced for the Tropentag 2016 conference, show how Livestock and Fish feed and forages work has improved the productivity of forage-based livestock production and increased carbon accumulation and at the same time reduced its ecological footprint as part of LivestockPlus. Continue reading
Recently, the Nicaraguan Institute for Agricultural Technology (INTA) organized the “First International Congress on Challenges and Opportunities to Increase National Livestock Productivity” in Managua, Nicaragua. Highlighting the collaboration of CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish (L&F) within the model of collaboration based on alliances, dialogue, and consensus promoted by the country’s public sector, members of CIAT’s forages team presented the Program’s contributions to the development of the region’s livestock sector. Continue reading
Cows are regularly portrayed as evil: four-legged, four-stomached, greenhouse gas machines chomping through forests and destroying the planet. It’s no wonder the idea of a climate-smart livestock system sounds like an oxymoron. Nevertheless, you can get a glimpse of these systems in Colombia’s mountainous, Cauca Department. Patía is also a microcosm of Colombia’s livestock conundrum. … Continue reading
In this paper, the authors provide a generic framework for evaluating and prioritizing potential interventions comprising the mapping of recommendation domains, assessing adoption potential and estimating impacts. Continue reading
Silvopastoral systems provide a broad range of environmental and productive benefits. The presence of trees in farm plots stabilizes hillsides, minimizes erosion, improves the soil’s water retention and nutrient balance, and provides feed and shade for cattle. These practices generate higher milk and meat yields while contributing to the resilience of production systems in the face of climate variability, which is manifesting in increasingly extreme ways in Central America. Continue reading
Following the rapid increasing demand for animal source foods propelling livestock production, particularly in many less developed countries where the pressure on natural resources is mounting, the need for a pragmatic tool to assess environmental impacts is greater than ever. Earlier this year the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) funded an 18-month project called … Continue reading
In a series of papers, scientists in the Livestock and Fish research program offer new evidence that a potent chemical mechanism operating in the roots of a tropical grass used for livestock feed has enormous potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Referred to as “biological nitrification inhibition” or BNI, the mechanism markedly reduces the conversion … Continue reading
This article in the journal Animal reviews the positive and negative roles of livestock in the developing world. Authored by several ILRI staff, the paper also discusses ‘key factors that are likely to determine the future contribution of the sector to food security, environmental protection and economic growth.’ It proposes actions for improving different aspects … Continue reading
Fish are a significant source of income and food security in Uganda, highly vulnerable to climate and non-climate related drivers of change. This working paper from the WorldFish Center examines the vulnerability of the fish sector in Uganda as it relates to the predicted impacts from climate change and variability, using the concept of the … Continue reading
CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish 