From rural to urban: Exploring livestock farming practices in urbanizing landscapes

IF 6.1 1区农林科学 Q1 AGRICULTURE, MULTIDISCIPLINARY

Agricultural Systems Pub Date : 2025-03-03 DOI:10.1016/j.agsy.2025.104297

Dagmar J.M. Braamhaar , Jan van der Lee , Bockline O. Bebe , Simon J. Oosting

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

CONTEXT

Urbanization in Kenya continues to accelerate, reshaping the agricultural landscape and impacting livestock farming practices.

OBJECTIVE

This study investigated the spatial variation of livestock farming systems across urban, peri-urban, and rural areas in Nakuru County to assess the impact of urbanization on resource use, nutrient cycling, and livestock diversification.

METHODS

A multi-stage cluster sampling method was used to interview 241 households selected from four sub-counties: Nakuru East (urban), Naivasha (urban), Njoro (peri-urban), and Kuresoi North (rural). In each sub-county, three wards were selected, with four selected roads per ward. A structured questionnaire was administered to collect data on farm size, herd size and diversity, feeding practices, manure management, and market access.

RESULTS

The total herd size, including all animal species present on the farm, was lower in the urban area of Nakuru East than in all other areas (P < 0.001). However, the numbers of individual species (i.e., dairy cattle, dairy goats, and chickens) per farm did not differ among areas and were not significantly correlated to land size. On average, farmers kept 4.6 dairy cattle, 6.2 dairy goats, and 49.1 chickens if they had those species. In the urban areas of Nakuru East, land scarcity led to limited space for forage production. The other areas prioritized land use for crop production over that for forage production for their livestock. Our findings indicate high stocking rates across all areas: urban areas averaged 41.8 TLU/ha and peri-urban and rural areas averaged over 6 TLU/ha. The high stocking rates and low forage production explain the overall dependency on feed purchases. Agricultural supply stores were present in all areas, providing opportunities for feed and other input purchases. Peri-urban and rural farms relied more on compound feeds, while urban farms purchased specific energy- and protein-rich ingredients for their livestock diets. Due to the high dependency on feed purchases and small land size, farms face nutrient accumulation in the form of manure, creating risks of environmental hazards. Overall, our research reveals that urbanization has created a shift towards more intensive and market-oriented farming across all areas.

SIGNIFICANCE

Understanding the interaction between urbanization and livestock farming practices is crucial for developing sustainable agricultural production and marketing strategies that can accommodate the changing landscape of urbanizing areas.

Abstract Image

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从农村到城市：探索城市化景观中的畜牧业实践

肯尼亚的环境城市化继续加速，重塑了农业景观并影响了畜牧业做法。目的研究纳库鲁县城市、近郊和农村地区畜牧业系统的空间变异，以评估城市化对资源利用、养分循环和牲畜多样化的影响。方法采用多阶段整群抽样方法，从纳库鲁东部（城市）、奈瓦沙（城市）、恩约罗（近郊）和库雷索伊北部（农村）4个县抽取241户家庭进行调查。在每个副县，选定3个区，每个区选定4条道路。采用结构化问卷收集农场规模、畜群规模和多样性、饲养方法、粪便管理和市场准入等数据。结果纳库鲁东部市区的总畜群规模（包括农场内所有动物种类）低于其他所有地区(P <；0.001)。然而，每个农场的个体物种（即奶牛、奶山羊和鸡）数量在不同地区之间没有差异，并且与土地面积没有显著相关。农民平均饲养4.6头奶牛、6.2头奶山羊和49.1只鸡（如果有这些品种的话）。在纳库鲁东部的城市地区，土地短缺导致饲料生产空间有限。其他地区优先使用土地用于作物生产，而不是用于牲畜饲料生产。我们的研究结果表明，所有地区的放养率都很高：城市地区平均为41.8 TLU/ha，城郊和农村地区平均超过6 TLU/ha。高放养率和低饲料产量解释了对饲料采购的总体依赖。所有地区都有农业用品商店，为购买饲料和其他投入物提供了机会。近郊和农村农场更多地依赖复合饲料，而城市农场则购买富含特定能量和蛋白质的原料来喂养牲畜。由于高度依赖购买饲料和土地面积小，农场面临着以粪肥形式积累养分的问题，造成了环境危害的风险。总体而言，我们的研究表明，城市化已经在所有地区创造了向集约化和市场化农业的转变。理解城市化与畜牧业之间的相互作用对于制定可持续农业生产和营销策略至关重要，这些战略可以适应城市化地区不断变化的景观。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Agricultural Systems 农林科学-农业综合

CiteScore

13.30

自引率

7.60%

发文量

174

审稿时长

30 days

期刊介绍： Agricultural Systems is an international journal that deals with interactions - among the components of agricultural systems, among hierarchical levels of agricultural systems, between agricultural and other land use systems, and between agricultural systems and their natural, social and economic environments. The scope includes the development and application of systems analysis methodologies in the following areas: Systems approaches in the sustainable intensification of agriculture; pathways for sustainable intensification; crop-livestock integration; farm-level resource allocation; quantification of benefits and trade-offs at farm to landscape levels; integrative, participatory and dynamic modelling approaches for qualitative and quantitative assessments of agricultural systems and decision making; The interactions between agricultural and non-agricultural landscapes; the multiple services of agricultural systems; food security and the environment; Global change and adaptation science; transformational adaptations as driven by changes in climate, policy, values and attitudes influencing the design of farming systems; Development and application of farming systems design tools and methods for impact, scenario and case study analysis; managing the complexities of dynamic agricultural systems; innovation systems and multi stakeholder arrangements that support or promote change and (or) inform policy decisions.