Perspectives on livestock production systems in China

2008 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 211 ◽  
Author(s):  
X. L. Li ◽  
Q. H. Yuan ◽  
L. Q. Wan ◽  
F. He
Keyword(s):  
Production Systems ◽  
Farming System ◽  
Livestock Production ◽  
Mixed Farming ◽  
Rangeland Degradation ◽  
Grazing System ◽  
Output Market ◽  
Growing Economy ◽  
Increasing Demand ◽  
Harsh Climate

This review paper describes the livestock production systems in China, their status and trends, driving factors, and major issues with profound impact. Three distinct livestock production systems are discussed; grazing, mixed farming, and industrial systems. The ‘grazing system’ is generally characterised by harsh climate, rangeland, and low livestock output. Market forces, biophysical constraints and environmental concerns are putting a ceiling on the potential for intensification of the grazing system except in some areas where the agro-ecological potential permits. This system needs to be re-oriented towards adding ecosystem service provision, rather than mere production or subsistence. The ‘mixed farming system’, with the highest share of most kinds of livestock commodities, forms the backbone of China’s agriculture and is undertaking a notable intensification and specialisation process. The ‘industrial system’ is geographically concentrated in areas close to densely populated demand centers. Although growing fast, the share of national livestock output remains relatively small. The past two decades have seen a rapid growth in both consumption and production of livestock food products in China. This new food revolution has been driven to a great extent by the rapid growing economy, personal income and urbanisation. Among the most important issues related to livestock production systems in China are severe rangeland degradation, caused mainly by overexploitation of these lands, increasing demand and competition for feed grain, and environmental and public health risks associated with industrialised livestock production. China will have to cope with such challenges through proper policy and technological interventions to sustain the livestock development and simultaneously secure the natural resources and environmental health.

Integrated crop-livestock production systems in China

2008 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 221 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. J. Hou ◽  
Z. B. Nan ◽  
Y. Z. Xie ◽  
X. L. Li ◽  
H. L. Lin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Livestock Production ◽  
Guizhou Province ◽  
Western China ◽  
Karst Region ◽  
Rangeland Degradation ◽  
The People

The integrated crop-livestock production system provides most of the food needed by the people of China. Five types of integrated production systems are recognised; rangeland, grain crops, crop/pasture, agro-silvopastoral and ponds. Development of more sustainable and integrated crop-pasture-rangeland-livestock production systems has been recently achieved. Demonstrations of the integrated systems at household, village and regional levels are occurring for rain-fed agriculture on the Loess Plateau, the Hexi Corridor, north-western China and the Karst region of Guizhou Province, south-western China. These indicate that integration of crop, livestock and forage are effective means of improving agricultural productivity, environmental sustainability and farmers’ incomes. Widespread adoption of integrated farming systems should also reduce rangeland degradation.

Cereal/grain legume intercropping in rotation with durum wheat in crop/livestock production systems for Mediterranean farming system

2019 ◽  
Vol 240 ◽  
pp. 23-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michele Monti ◽  
Antonio Pellicanò ◽  
Aurelio Pristeri ◽  
Giuseppe Badagliacca ◽  
Giovanni Preiti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Durum Wheat ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Farming System ◽  
Livestock Production ◽  
Grain Legume ◽  
Cereal Grain

scholarly journals The susceptibility of Trypanosoma congolense isolated in Zambézia Province, Mozambique, to isometamidium chloride, diminazene aceturate and homidium chloride

2005 ◽  
Vol 72 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Jamal ◽  
I. Sigauque ◽  
C. Macuamule ◽  
L. Neves ◽  
T. Marcotty ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drug Resistance ◽  
Drug Use ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Farming System ◽  
Livestock Production ◽  
Trypanosoma Congolense ◽  
Drug Resistant ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Diminazene Aceturate ◽  
Trypanocidal Drugs

Resistance to trypanocidal drugs has been detected in various African countries and is a serious impediment to the control of livestock trypanosomosis. To determine whether drug resistant trypanosome strains are present in the Zambézia Province of Mozambique a study was initiated. To assess the effect of the farming system and the drug-use regimen on the development of drug resistance, trypanosome isolates were collected from cattle from subsistence and commercial livestock production systems. The susceptibility of seven isolates against isometamidium chloride, diminazene aceturate and homidium chloride was tested in mice using a multiple-dose test. In four of the seven isolates high levels of drug resistance to diminazene aceturate and isometamidium chloride were detected. In most cases the observed levels of drug resistance correlated with the drug-use practices in the particular livestock production system.

scholarly journals Mixed farming diversification may be costly: southern Queensland case study

2017 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 378 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. F. Zull ◽  
J. Owens ◽  
M. Bourgault ◽  
B. Johnson ◽  
G. Peck ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Production Systems ◽  
Farming System ◽  
Order System ◽  
Case Scenario ◽  
Worst Case ◽  
Local Climate ◽  
Mixed Farming ◽  
The Right ◽  
Semi Arid

Many farmers in Australia and in other countries have a choice of crop or livestock production, and many choose a mixture of both, based on risk preference, personal interests, markets, land resources and local climate. Mixed farming can be a risk-spreading strategy, especially in highly variable climates, but the right scales of each enterprise within the mix may be critical to farm profitability. To investigate expected farm profits, the probability of breaking even, as well as the worst and best case scenarios, we used farm data and APSIM (Agricultural Production Systems Simulator) to simulate the production of a typical, semi-arid, mixed-farm in southern Queensland. Three farming system scenarios were investigated: I, livestock and more intensive cropping; II, current production system of livestock and minimal cropping; and III, livestock only. We found that the expected profits were in the order system I > system III > system II. The key reason for the lower profits of system II was the high overhead cost of capital to continue some cropping, with low annual cropping income. Under the worst case scenario, in years with low rainfall, system I had the greatest downside risk with far greater financial losses. Systems I and III had similar probabilities of breaking even, and higher than system II, which incurs cropping overheads and limited cropping returns. Therefore, system II was less desirable than either system I or III. This case study helps farmers and advisors of semi-arid mixed farming enterprises to be better informed when making decisions at the paddock and whole-farm level, in both the short and long term, with respect to profit and risk. The method used in this paper can be applied to other mixed farms, in Australia and elsewhere.

Water footprint of livestock products and production systems: a review

2020 ◽  
Vol 60 (11) ◽  
pp. 1369
Author(s):  
R. Ibidhi ◽  
H. Ben Salem
Keyword(s):  
Water Use ◽  
Egg Production ◽  
Water Footprint ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Farming System ◽  
Livestock Production ◽  
Conversion Ratio ◽  
Feed Conversion Ratio ◽  
Feed Conversion ◽  
Livestock Products

This paper reviews the small but growing literature on the water footprint (WF) of livestock production and provides an analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of this indicator. We identified 42 papers published in peer-reviewed international journals between 2000 and 2017, which covered the WF of dairy, meat and egg production using life-cycle assessment and WF network methodologies. The WF of livestock products decreases with the level of intensification of the farming system. In addition, the WF of meat is higher than that of either milk or eggs. The WF of beef is much larger than the WFs from sheep, goat, pork and chicken. The WF variation among different animal products is explained by the difference of the feed conversion ratio. Ruminants (cattle, sheep and goat) have a poor feed conversion ratio compared with monogastric animals (poultry and swine). Estimating the WF of livestock production and economic analysis of water use at different stages of production will help farmers and other stakeholders to identify the most demanding activities in term of water use, and implement strategies to improve water-use efficiency. Thus, feed production was identified as the largest contributor of the WF of livestock production. Options to reduce the WF of livestock production include the use of low-WF feeds, more efficient irrigation of crops used for livestock feed, and reduced consumption of animal-sourced protein in human diets through substitution with plant proteins. The strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats analysis highlighted the importance of combining WF with other environmental-footprint and sustainability indicators to provide more reliable information for decision makers.

Sheep production in Spanish dry mountain areas: 1. Effects of Spring management on ewe live weight, milk yield and lamb performance in Churra Tensina breed

2005 ◽  
Vol 2005 ◽  
pp. 145-145 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Sanz ◽  
J. Alvarez ◽  
E. Balmisse ◽  
R. Delfa ◽  
R. Revilla ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Production Systems ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Meat Products ◽  
Live Weight ◽  
Mountain Areas ◽  
Grazing System ◽  
Grazing Systems ◽  
Sheep Production ◽  
Increasing Demand ◽  
The Eu

Traditional sheep producers in the South European countries fed lambs with concentrate, in order to obtain light carcasses of young animals. As a consequence of this lamb production system, large grazing areas have been abandoned. However, some producers are taking into consideration the extensive grazing systems to reduce costs and at the same time to obtain subsidies established by the Common Agricultural Policy of the EU. Moreover, the increasing demand of healthy and safe meat products is stimulating the interest in pasture-based production systems. However, in our dry mountain conditions, this grazing system can be associated to poorer ewe and lamb performances. The present study sought to compare the productive parameters of ewes and lambs obtained in four different management strategies.

scholarly journals Assessment of Livestock Feed Resources and Coping Strategies with Dry Season Feed Scarcity in Mixed Crop–Livestock Farming Systems around the Gilgel Gibe Catchment, Southwest Ethiopia

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (19) ◽  
pp. 10713
Author(s):  
Belay Duguma ◽  
Geert P. J. Janssens
Keyword(s):  
Coping Strategies ◽  
Crop Residues ◽  
Farming System ◽  
Livestock Production ◽  
Dry Season ◽  
Southwest Ethiopia ◽  
Feed Resources ◽  
Mixed Farming ◽  
Livestock Feed ◽  
Mixed Crop

In the current study area, livestock are an integral part of the mixed farming system, and play very important roles as sources of draught power, nutrition, cash income, employment and poverty alleviation. However, feed shortage, especially during the dry season, is the most important constraint to optimal productivity. This study aimed to investigate livestock feed resources and feeding practices, coping strategies with seasonal scarcity, and to identify major constraints to livestock production in a mixed farming system around the Gilgel Gibe catchment, southwest Ethiopia. Data were collected from 342 households using a structured questionnaire. The results showed natural pasture, crop residues, stubble grazing, and roadside grasses were the main feed resources, in that order. None of the respondents practiced improved forage cultivation due to insufficient land and lack of knowledge on forage production and utilization. Free grazing was the most predominant feeding system. Almost all respondents experienced dry season feed scarcity. Conserving crop residues and hay, purchasing roughages, reducing herd size and renting grazing land were the major coping strategies to feed scarcity. The farmers’ perceived major constraints to livestock production were feed shortage, animal diseases, and low productivity of local breeds. Institutional, technical and technological interventions are suggested to alleviate the constraints to livestock production in mixed crop-livestock systems in the study area and outside with similar settings.

Conservation of animal genetic resources: approaches and technologies for in situ and ex situ conservation

2008 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
pp. 71-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.A. Woolliams ◽  
O. Matika ◽  
J. Pattison
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Genetic Resources ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Regional Distribution ◽  
Livestock Production ◽  
Ex Situ ◽  
Animal Genetic Resources ◽  
The Face ◽  
Livestock Products

SummaryLivestock production faces major challenges through the coincidence of major drivers of change, some with conflicting directions. These are:1. An unprecedented global change in demands for traditional livestock products such as meat, milk and eggs.2. Large changes in the demographic and regional distribution of these demands.3. The need to reduce poverty in rural communities by providing sustainable livelihoods.4. The possible emergence of new agricultural outputs such as bio-fuels making a significant impact upon traditional production systems.5. A growing awareness of the need to reduce the environmental impact of livestock production.6. The uncertainty in the scale and impact of climate change. This paper explores these challenges from a scientific perspective in the face of the large-scale and selective erosion of our animal genetic resources, and concludes thai there is a stronger and more urgent need than ever before to secure the livestock genetic resources available to humankind through a comprehensive global conservation programme.

Adaptation of Medicago rigidula to a cereal–pasture rotation in north-west Syria

1986 ◽  
Vol 107 (1) ◽  
pp. 179-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. M. Abd El-Moneim ◽  
P. S. Cocks
Keyword(s):  
North Africa ◽  
Farming System ◽  
Livestock Production ◽  
Grazing Management ◽  
North West ◽  
Selection Programme ◽  
Ley Farming ◽  
Medicago Rigidula ◽  
Subsequent Regeneration

SUMMARYThe ley-farming system (integrated cereal and livestock production in which cerealsrotate with self-regenerating pastures) is considered to be of great potential benefit to north Africa and west Asia. In the colder parts of this region (of which north Syria is typical) its application is limited by poor adaptation of commercial medic cultivars (mainly Medicago truncatula and M. littoralis). An extended selection programme hag identified M. rigidula as adapted to the soils and climate of the region but nothing is known of its adaptation to the ley-farming system itself.An experiment which included 23 selections of M. rigidula and one each of M. rotata and M. noeana was conducted over 3 years during which herbage production, seed yield, and the fate of seeds were observed during the 1st year when pastures were established, the 2nd year when wheat was sown, and the 3rd year when the pasture regenerated. Of the 400–800 kg seed/ha produced in the 1st year an average of 87% remained in the soil in spring of the 3rd year. The weight of seed regenerating in the 3rd year varied from 30 to nearly 170 kg/ha, and herbage production, especially in winter, depended heavily on the number of regenerating seedlings. The most productive regenerating pastures produced nearly 2 t/ha of dried herbage by 1 January, and more than 6 t/ha for the whole growing season.The results showed that there was sufficient residual and newly produced seed at the end of the 3rd year to be sure that subsequent regeneration would result in similar herbage yields in the 5th year, and that the pasture was assured of long-term persistence. The significance of this for livestock production is discussed, and it is concluded that the results should encourage further investigation of grazing management and socioeconomic factors seen as constraints to introducing the ley-farming system to north Syria.

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