E.F. Thomson
International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA)
P.O. Box 5466, Aleppo, Syria
Small ruminants are found throughout the world, with particular concentrations in dry areas such as the subtropics and seasonally dry tropical regions. They make a significant contribution to the farm economy in mixed systems. In areas too dry for cropping, where steppes and ranges are found, they are the sole source of income for the population. Poverty is often greatest in the marginal cropping and driest areas (Rodríguez 1997), giving small ruminants increased significance as living capital, in addition to being multi-purpose animals.
Small ruminants are primarily known for the production of milk, milk products, meat, wool, skins and manure. Milk products and meat have high nutritional value for human consumption, particularly for infants and children and for women during pregnancy and lactation (Pellett and Ghosh 1999). They add value to low-quality feeds such as crop residues and agro-industrial by-products to produce high-quality foods. The negative role of small ruminants in environmental degradation tends to be highlighted, whereas their positive contribution is often ignored (Steinfeld et al 1997).
The International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) has given research on small ruminants prominence in its 1998–2000 Medium-Term Plan (ICARDA 1997) for the reasons outlined above. The centre’s aim is to ‘improve the welfare of people through research and training in the dry areas of the developing world, by increasing the production, productivity and nutritional quality of food, while preserving and enhancing the natural resource base. The geographic scope of ICARDA’s research covers the countries of West Asia and North Africa (WANA), including the Central Asian Republics of the former Soviet Union, as well as developing countries with subtropical and temperate dry areas’ (ICARDA 1997).
This paper expands on the sections on small ruminant research described in the 1998–2000 Medium-Term Plan (MTP), rather than giving a comprehensive overview of the significance of small ruminants in the dry areas and the place of livestock in the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (TAC/CGIAR 1993; ILRI 1997). It starts, however, with an outline of the importance of small ruminants in WANA and indicates the emerging feed deficits facing the region.
WANA, which includes the centres of origin of domesticated sheep and goats, has one of the highest concentrations of breeds in the world and a large population of small ruminants. It contains 26% and 37% of the global sheep and goat genetic resources, respectively (FAO 1995), and about 54% and 26% of sheep and goats in developing countries. The overall ratio of sheep to goats is 2:1.
These figures mask significant differences between the countries. Iran, Pakistan, Sudan and Turkey have large populations of both sheep and goats, whereas the small but often rich countries in the region have relatively few small ruminants. Although there has been a global decline in sheep numbers since the 1990s, a steady growth in numbers in WANA is apparent, although it may have slowed somewhat since the mid-1980s (Figure 1). In contrast, goat numbers have maintained a steady growth rate in the developing countries, but in WANA this has slowed, largely because of a 10 million fall in numbers in Turkey since the early 1980s. The proportional drop in sheep numbers between 1971 and 1972 is due to a huge fall in numbers in Afghanistan.
Source: FAO 1995.
Ruminant diets in the countries of WANA consist of various proportions of range grazing, crop residues and concentrates, including agro-industrial by-products (Nordblom et al 1995). At the one extreme are Afghanistan, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, where grazing accounts for at least 75% of the diet, most of the remainder being crop residues (Figure 2). At the other extreme are Syria, Turkey and Egypt, where grazing provides less than 10% of the diet and crop residues at least 70%, with concentrates making up the difference. In contrast, ruminant diets in the oil-rich countries contain a high proportion of concentrates. The percentages for Tadjikistan and Uzbekistan are surprising, and in Jordan, the contribution from concentrates has probably declined because subsidies on barley grain have been removed. Expressing these percentages in energy or protein units would approximately double the contribution of concentrates at the expense of range grazing and crop residues.
The data in Figure 2 mask an alarming situation in WANA. It continues to be the world’s largest importer of grains (Nordblom et al 1995), although China may displace it in the future, and the dependency on these imports is growing in many countries in WANA (Figure 3). In 1990, five out of the 18 countries in the analysis had feed surpluses, whereas only Ethiopia, Sudan and Turkey are projected to have surpluses by 2020 if crop yields grow at 1% per annum. The projected deficits for Iran and Pakistan are noteworthy. In total, the feed deficit for the countries of WANA, excluding Central Asia, is expected to be between 135 and 44 million tonnes in 2020, if crop yields improve annually by 1% or 2%, respectively. This contrasts with a surplus of 88 million tonnes in 1988–1992. This forecast is the major justification for the continued attention to research on the optimal utilisation of locally produced feed resources, particularly crop residues, which are increasing as grain yields improve.
Source: Modified from Nordblom et al 1995.
Source: Modified from Nordblom.
Figure 3. Feed surpluses and deficits in 18 countries of WANA in 1990 and projection to 2020, assuming a 1 per cent annual growth in crop yields.
The research strategy of ICARDA recognises its comparative advantage, the strengths of the national programmes, and the need to have strong links between projects, with applied research conducted mainly with the national programmes and strategic research linked to advanced research institutes. In small ruminant research, these links include, in particular, the use of ranges, annual forage crops and crop residues, and studies on the adoption and impact of new technology.
The project on small ruminants is one of 18 described in the MTP (Table 1). The MTP (page 15) states that ‘increased emphasis will be placed on efficient use of feed resources by small ruminants in both the rangelands and cropped areas. Research will be conducted on local breed characterisation, particularly for the efficiency of conversion of feed into high quality livestock products. In many rangeland settings, particularly in the dry seasons, the only way to provide a steady supply of nutrition and micronutrients for humans, particularly infants, is through milk and other animal products. The value added by livestock will be increased by incorporating crop by-products in multinutrient blocks that are enriched with vitamins targeted at known diseases. Traditional techniques of milk processing will be studied as a step toward identifying more efficient processing methods that add value to the products and thereby enhance pastoralists’ income.’
In 1998–2000, resources will be concentrated on three research activities: 1) Adoption of technologies, 2) Feeding strategies and resources and 3) Genetic characterisation of breeds as listed below. If further resources are available, other activities will be considered. The activities outlined here are listed in the MTP (ICARDA 1997).
Table 1. Projects in the 1998–2000 ICARDA Medium-Term Plan.
| Project number | Project name |
| 1.1 | Barley enhancement |
| 1.2 | Durum wheat enhancement |
| 1.3 | Spring bread wheat enhancement |
| 1.4 | Winter and facultative bread wheat enhancement |
| 1.5 | Food legume enhancement |
| 1.6 | Forage legume enhancement |
| 2.1 | Integrated pest management |
| 2.2 | Agronomic management of cropping systems |
| 2.3 | Sown pasture and forage production |
| 2.4 | Native pasture and range improvement |
| 2.5 | Small ruminant production |
| 3.1 | Water resource conservation and management |
| 3.2 | Land management and soil conservation |
| 3.3 | Biodiversity, collection and conservation |
| 3.4 | Agro-ecological characterisation |
| 4.1 | Socio-economics of natural resource management |
| 4.2 | Socio-economics of agricultural production systems |
| 4.3 | Policy and public management research |
Although research on technology for increasing small ruminant productivity started several decades ago in WANA, sustained adoption by farmers has generally been poor. One example is the investment by research and development projects in methods to upgrade the feeding value of cereal straws using ammonia and urea. A notable success, however, has been the expanding use of crop residues and agro-industrial by-products in multinutrient blocks in Iraq. ICARDA will give greater attention to involving farmers, researchers and extensionists in the identification of problems and in the testing and verification of new methods, building on experience gained in the IFAD/AFESD- funded project, which started in 1994 in the Mashreq and Maghreb countries. The output of this activity will be the enhanced diffusion and adoption of appropriate technology.
Poor nutrition, including shortage of energy and protein and lack of a balanced diet at critical times in the breeding cycle, such as mating, late pregnancy and early lactation, is the primary factor limiting the productivity of small ruminants in dry areas. While forage and pasture breeders, agronomists and range scientists will continue to conduct research that aims at increasing the supply of good quality feeds, ruminant nutritionists will be concerned with their optimal use. Attention will be given to using the increasing quantities of crop residues and industrial by-products available in WANA and to balancing these feeds to meet livestock requirements for energy, protein and micronutrients. The large and expanding volume of feed grain imports into the region has been highlighted by Nordblom et al (1995). Research will be conducted, in collaboration with the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), on the utilisation of fodder shrubs, with particular attention being given to minimising the detrimental effects of anti-nutritional factors.
This activity has three outputs: 1) reliable methods for quantifying intake and digestibility of pastures, stubble and browse, 2) methods, which can be transferred to the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) breeders, national programmes and other centres of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), for identifying crop genotypes combining straw quality and yield with high grain yield, and 3) guidelines on diet formulation and nutrient requirements that optimise the use of crop residues, agro-industrial by-products, pastures and fodder shrubs.
The WANA region is rich in animal genetic resources, in particular small ruminants. Although the phenotypic characteristics of these breeds have been recorded, few national programmes in WANA have had efficient selection programmes. The descriptors of economically significant traits are largely known. Documentation of the region’s animal genetic resources has started (Scherf 1995), and more detailed surveys are needed to describe their distribution and genetic characteristics. It is particularly important to identify the genetic basis of the adaptation of local breeds to extremes of heat and cold, shortages of nutrients and water and diets containing anti-nutritional factors, and of their resistance to helminths and infectious diseases. Genetic markers will be used, where appropriate, in this work.
ICARDA will broaden its already established role and comparative advantage as a regional location for the collection, conservation and management of plant genetic resources, to include the management and regional coordination of animal genetic resources. In July 1997, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and ICARDA held a workshop for an Initiating Group for the Implementation of Animal Genetic Resources Management for the Near East (FAO/ICARDA 1998). The activities will be conducted in close collaboration with ILRI, the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), FAO, the Arab Centre for Studies in the Dry Areas (ACSAD) and national programmes.
This activity has two outputs: 1) documentation on the distribution of small ruminant breeds in WANA, and 2) methods for identifying species and breeds of small ruminants that make efficient use of locally available feeds and that are adapted to the local nutritional and disease environment and harsh climatic conditions.
Until recently, ICARDA gave priority to energy and protein nutrition since these are still considered the first nutrients that limit animal productivity in the dry areas. Micronutrients, however, also have an essential role in ensuring optimal animal performance, even when the energy and protein supply is balanced. Selenium and vitamin E, for example, are important in feedlot fattening of lambs. A recent study in Jordan, Syria and Turkey showed that sheep in some flocks were deficient in vitamins A, B12 and E and in copper, selenium and zinc (White 1994). In studies of flocks in selected Mashreq countries, ewe fertility improved slightly following prophylactic injections of a cocktail of vitamins A, D3 and E (Al-Haboby et al 1997).
Research on micronutrients will be directed to determining threshold levels in blood plasma, wool, milk, etc., seasonal changes in their concentration and the extent to which they are dependent on diet composition. The research will eventually focus on appropriate feeding practices to alleviate deficiencies, where there is clear evidence of effects on animal performance. The output of this activity will be guidelines on appropriate practices to prevent and remedy micronutrient deficiencies.
With increasing competition between humans, crops and animals for scarce land and water resources, it is essential that these resources be used for livestock with optimal efficiency. It is hypothesised that, in the dry areas, indigenous breeds of goats or cattle, selected for better performance, would make more efficient use of local feed and water resources to produce milk than imported breeds. Indigenous breeds are better adapted to the prevailing harsh climatic, nutritional and disease environment, and their populations usually contain sufficient genetic variation to allow rapid improvements in performance through selection.
Research will focus on using existing or new decision support models that enable researchers to advise policymakers on the use of appropriate livestock species for different farming systems and on diseases that require particular attention. The models will take into account factors such as the adaptation characteristics of the different species and breeds of the region, the quality and quantity of feed resources, the proximity of local markets and the costs of production. The activity will be linked to activity 7, Epidemiology of diseases, testing models that set priorities on diseases of economic significance, and linked to other MTP projects at ICARDA. The output of activity 5 will be guidelines for policy advisors on the use of adapted ruminant species that make optimal use of natural resources.
Ruminants add value to low quality feeds by converting them into high quality milk and meat products (Pellett and Ghosh 1999), wool, skins and pelts, and manure. Some of these products are processed on the farm before being sold. In West Asia, for example, ewe milk is processed into yoghurt, cheese and clarified butter, or ghee. Wool is processed by sheep owners throughout WANA and made into carpets, whereas live animals, skins and pelts are sold before processing. Little attention, however, has been given to the quality of the products for sale and to the efficiency of processing methods. Consequently, prices to producers are often low. Individual producers often sell these products to merchants and agents at a price lower than if the producers sold them through a cooperative. There is considerable scope for improving the quality of products before sale, which could bring much-needed additional income to poor rural areas.
The research will initially investigate steps in the marketing chain of different small ruminant products and establish the relative margins made by producers and agents. Later, processing of the different products on the farm or in the household will be studied, to identify changes needed to add value to the products, and thereby increase producers’ incomes. The output of this activity will be more efficient processing methods, added value to animal products to enhance the income of the rural poor, and better incentives for livestock owners to market good quality products.
Individual parasitic and infectious diseases continue to receive substantial attention in national programmes, but few studies have attempted to assess their economic importance as a whole. Such an assessment would help to focus scarce resources on the most significant diseases. This activity, which will be conducted in close collaboration with ILRI, will review the current state of knowledge about the different diseases in the region and use simple empirical models to rank the diseases in terms of their economic importance. This activity will be linked to those under activity 5, Decision support models, and its main output will be methods for quantifying and ranking the economic significance of diseases.
Special attention will be given to strengthening collaboration with other centres in the CGIAR, particularly ILRI. The jointly organised Consultation on Setting Livestock Research Priorities in WANA held in Aleppo in November 1997 was a significant milestone in cooperative activities between the two centres. This collaboration in research and training will be strengthened by:
Research on small ruminants at ICARDA incorporates a number of key features and retains a balance between strategic, applied and adaptive research. It is conducted in partnership with national programmes and involves farmers in the research process. It also aims to achieve the adoption of technology that enhances small ruminant productivity in harmony with the sustainable use of natural resources. It designs and tests management systems that make efficient use of the increased production of crop residues in arable areas and thereby helps to alleviate pressures on already degraded steppes and ranges. The research is directed towards exploiting the large amount of genetic variability within indigenous breeds and selecting species that will make the most efficient use of scarce land and water resources. Efficiency is achieved by exploiting the comparative advantage that ICARDA has, together with the advantages of other centres, in particular ILRI, and the national programmes and advanced research institutes.
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