In Laos, Two Businesses are Building a Dairy Sector One Buffalo at a Time
Not so long ago, a commercial dairy industry in Laos was virtually non-existent. In a country with more than
700,000 buffalo and where
35 per cent of children are chronically malnourished, a thriving dairy sector could provide both family income and
essential nutritional benefits. The question was: where to start?
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on Friday, 04 December 2020.
Motivating health interventions in the smallholder livestock sector in developing countries
Enhancing livestock farming in developing countries is widely recognised as an important pathway in the amelioration of rural poverty. However, livestock diseases threaten the lives and livelihoods of the often marginalised people in rural communities that depend on their animals as ‘cash banks’, for manure as fertiliser and for food and often transport.
Importantly, animal diseases pose significant risks to both farmers land the global human population, particularly when animal pathogens cross species barriers into humans; the most common source of new human epidemics.
To control animal diseases, policy makers often focus on achieving behavioural change by individual farmers, mostly by promoting knowledge-based interventions that encourage adoption of vaccination, biosecurity and parasite control. Sadly, often these programs simply fail.
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on Tuesday, 17 November 2020.
New research: How to drive production, smash livestock emissions
AUSTRALIAN developed feed supplements could have big implications for the wider livestock industry, research coming out of South East Asia shows.
The new research reveals the medicated molasses blocks - designed for tropical conditions including northern Australia - are driving both increased productivity and as a consequence, have the potential to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
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on Friday, 13 November 2020.
Can fenbendazole medicated molasses blocks control Toxocara vitulorum in smallholder cattle and buffalo calves in developing countries? Studies from upland Laos
Anthelmintic treatments are not widely adopted by smallholder farmers in Laos (Lao People’s Democratic Republic) to treat bovid Toxocara vitulorum, resulting in high calf morbidity and mortality. Aims. Field trials were conducted to provide baseline efficacy data on an alternative, easy-to-use treatment by provision of fenbendazole medicated molasses blocks (FMB) in situ. Methods. Participating villages were randomly allocated to either: (1) conventional orally-administered pyrantel; (2) access to FMB; (3) access to non-medicated molasses blocks (MB); and (4) no blocks (control). Faecal eggs per gram (EPG) and weight were monitored in cattle (n = 171) and buffalo calves (n = 44) under field conditions for 48-56 days. Key results. In 2016, the MB treatment was associated with the fastest reduction in predicted average EPG at 2% per day while FMB and pyrantel had an equivalent reduction of 1% per day, relative to the control (P = 0.062). Predicted average weight also differed significantly between treatments with pyrantel and MB having the greatest average daily gain (ADG) at 230 g and FMB at 200 g which was higher than control calves at 170 g (P = 0.002). In buffalo calves, treatment was not significantly associated with EPG or weight.
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on Wednesday, 22 July 2020.
Short introduction video to milk and helping dispel a few myths!
Short introduction video to milk and helping dispel a few myths!
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on Tuesday, 21 July 2020.
Laos - The training video
on Tuesday, 21 July 2020.
Working with smallholder farming families, their livestock and FMD viruses in the Mekong & beyond
In our efforts to understanding how to improve livelihoods in rural SE Asia & regional food security, we are assisting the transition of some subsistence smallholder farmers from poverty to a more viable and sustainable livelihood through investing in improved livestock productivity. This work is focused on what motivates farmers to change their husbandry practices, including better feeding, preventative health & welfare, and improved household financial resilience.The collaborative work has been almost continuous since 2007 in the Mekong, supported by ACIAR-funded projects now completed in Cambodia & nearing completion in Laos, plus a DFAT Business Partnership Platform project that is current in Laos under a recently revised MOU between the partners (Figure 1).
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on Tuesday, 26 May 2020.
Laos dairy buffalo challenge
IN an extraordinary example of applied capacity building, Australian businesswoman Susie Martin is leading the way in helping one of South East Asia's poorest countries set about improving its food production systems.
Located near Luang Prabang in northern Laos, the Laos Buffalo Dairy has been established with the aim of developing the nation's abundant, but underutilised buffalo resource.
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on Thursday, 16 January 2020.
MEKONG LIVESTOCK RESEARCH ADVANCING SMALLHOLDER LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION AND HEALTH
In our efforts to understanding how to improve livelihoods in rural SE Asia & regional food security, we are assisting the transition of some subsistence smallholder farmers from poverty to a more viable and sustainable livelihood through investing in improved livestock productivity. This work is focused on what motivates farmers to change their husbandry practices, including better feeding, preventative health & welfare, and improved household financial resilience.
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on Wednesday, 13 November 2019.
Latest Laos News
on Thursday, 05 September 2019.
Australian Company backs new foot-and-mouth disease treatment in Laos
Several stakeholders from Australia, including the agribusiness firm 4 Season Company, are working with Laos' Department of Livestock and Fisheries to improve the livelihood of farmers by treating livestock diseases.
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on Wednesday, 04 September 2019.
Positive impact from partnership: a new foot-and-mouth disease treatment in Laos
The BPP partnership in Laos is 18 months into its two-year initiative to improve farmer livelihoods. The partners bring complementary skills and experience to give farmers greater access to medicated feed blocks to improve livestock health, and farmer livelihoods.
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on Thursday, 08 August 2019.
South East Asian FMD threat exposed
FOOT and mouth disease remains the single great threat to the global beef and livestock trade, and is a particular problem in developing countries where the disease goes largely untreated.
Worryingly, the disease remains widespread, particularly in South East Asia, where there are very few vaccinated cattle and even less effective treatments.
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on Friday, 26 April 2019.
