THE DEVELOPMENT OF FORAGE PRODUCTIO

THE DEVELOPMENT OF FORAGE PRODUCTION SYSTEMS

In response to a need recognized by the Ministry of Livestock Development and Marketing (MoLD; now the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), KARI and ILCA established a collaborative dairy research project in 1988. The aim was to identify and address biological, social and economic constraints to the development, adoption and productivity of smallholder dairy systems in the coastal lowlands. The project was based at KARI’s RRC-Mtwapa and was planned and carried out in close collaboration with MoLD’s extension services, particularly with the NDDP. It covered on-farm and on-station research and involved farming system description, constraint identification and technology development and testing. The major research areas included the development of forage