Improving Protein Nutrition of Dairy Cattle in the tropics

Abstract

In East Africa, dairy production is growing at an average rate of 2.7% per year. The increasing demand for milk may offer considerable income opportunities for small- to medium-scale dairy farmers, and thereby alleviate vulnerability and poverty, especially among rural populations. However, producers face significant challenges, mainly related to the limited availability and low nutritional quality of feed resources for their livestock and thus the high dependency on the purchase of partly expensive feedstuffs to improve animal health and performance. <br> This policy brief therefore highlights important challenges and possible options for an improved cattle nutrition in order to sustainably intensify dairy farming in the Tropics.