Opportunities and challenges to increasing productivity in cattle farmed by smallholders in Asia and Africa

Global population is expected to grow rapidly to 2050, with most growth occurring in Africa and Asia. To achieve food security, livestock enterprise and industry efficiency must increase by 2.0-2.5% per annum, equivalent to doubling outputs from constant resources over 30 years. Due to pressures on agriculture in developed countries, most increased production must occur in regions of greatest need (Africa and Asia) and in the face of greater competition for land, water, grain and labour, leading to higher costs of production. Climate change adds to the challenge, requiring livestock that are productive under hotter and drier climates and, in the tropics, requiring cattle that tolerate increased parasite burdens and vector-borne diseases. Productivity of cattle herds must therefore be significantly improved and greenhouse gas emissions reduced, but using less grain and water, while animals tolerate more extreme climates and disease stressors. To double outputs from constant resources, new, cost-effective and transformational technologies must be implemented by smallholder beef and dairy farmers through improved value chains that reward farmers for the quality of their product. Formation of new multi-organisational, multi-disciplinary collaborative partnerships will assist in such transformation. This paper examines a number of emerging technologies for their potential to deliver the productivity improvements required from beef and dairy cattle in smallholder farmer herds in Africa and Asia. It also examines the potential for transformational approaches to support new markets, value chains and collaborations across public and private sector partnerships.