Solutions
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122 Solutions found
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Cut-and-Carry Fodder Systems
Under more extensive livestock production systems, small ruminants graze on vegetation growing on rangelands and pastures, often moving from place to place according to the season in search of food and water. An alternative approach is to feed animals through “Cut-and-Carry”, where feed is gathered and offered to confined animals; a system also referred to as zero grazing. Cut-and-Carry facilitates …
Pasture Improvement
Pastures are tracts of land that support grass and other vegetation eaten by grazing animals. Pastures are usually established and fenced, and receive inputs such as fertilizers, seeds and irrigation that improve the amounts and quality of feeds derived from them. In this way, they are distinct from rangelands that are for the most part managed less intensively and less …
Small Ruminant Containment in Protective Sheds
Under extensive livestock production systems, goats and sheep spend days browsing and nights in open fields or makeshift confinement. Poorly confined animals are exposed to predators and theft and must roam excessively to feed. At the same time, close cohabitation with humans predisposes livestock producers to infectious diseases that spread from animals to humans. Housing is particularly important to young …
Reduced Overgrazing and Rangeland Rehabilitation
Rising population and increasing demand for animal products place excess pressure on land leading to overgrazing and rangeland degradation. This situation results in soil erosion, nutrient depletion, water scarcity and loss of biodiversity; and too often leads to conflicts between wandering pastoralists and sedentary farmers. Climate change exacerbates this situation, yet technologies exist to combat rangeland degradation. What may be …
Herd Improvement through Community-Based Breeding
Poor genetics, and diseases are the most limiting factors for improved small ruminant production in Africa. Naturally selected, traditional goats and sheep exhibit useful adaptation to environmental stress and partial resistance to common diseases but are often lower in meat and milk production compared with improved breeds. One of the challenges of breed improvement in traditional smallholder systems is the …
Value Addition and Storage Techniques
Currently, less than 30% of chicken meat is processed into clean precut preserved products across African countries. Most poultry are sold on live markets and slaughtered on-site which gives farmers lower returns and causes supply shortages and public health hazards. Secondary processing of whole raw chicken into value-added products and cold storage allow sales to a larger consumer base all …
Mechanized Defeathering and Egg Sorting
After slaughtering chickens for meat, they require scalding and defeathering, before cutting the carcass. When done manually, this step is time-consuming, reducing output, and posing serious occupational hazard to workers. Grading eggs to specified weight, size and color is also labor-intensive and inaccurate when performed by hand. Mechanized defeathering and egg sorting systems are commercially available for smaller scale farm …
Value Addition to Poultry Manure
Chicken manure is useful as an organic fertilizer to food and feed crops. It has the highest concentration of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium of all the manures. Chicken manure is seldom used directly because it can contain pathogens such as salmonella; it can ‘burn’ plants by damaging roots, and its odor is off-putting. Fortunately, it composts quickly into forms safe …