Successful forage development for smallholders in Daklak, Central Highlands, Vietnam: The contribution of forages to livestock development and livelihoods of upland farmers
Successful forage development for smallholders in Daklak, Central Highlands, Vietnam: The contribution of forages to livestock development and livelihoods of upland farmers
T. T. Khanh1 and N. V. Ha2
1: Tay Nguyen University, Buon Ma Thuot, Daklak, Vietnam.
2: Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ea Kar, Daklak, Vietnam.
Forages – A Pathway to rosperity for Smallholder Farmers Proceedings of a orage Symposium, Ubon Ratchathani University, Thailand 5-7, March, 2007.
Abstract
Smallholder farmers in Daklak in the central highlands of Vietnam tried to capitalize on high coffee prices in the early 1980’s and mid 1990’s by planting much of their agricultural land with coffee. In 2001, when the coffee price dropped to 20% of those in 1995, the primary source of income for households was gone, leaving the poorer households extremely vulnerable.Converting the least productive parts of their coffee plantations into planted forages and using these forages as the basis for market-oriented livestock production (fattening of cattle, intensive cow-calf production and fish ponds), enabled these household to recover and reduce risk by diversify their production system. This diversification required only a small portion (on average 20%) of their agricultural land, enabling farmers to maintain the more productive coffee areas and diversify into other crops. Other key factors for the success of livestock enterprises were the high returns on labor of more intensive, forage-based cattle production and the high net income from livestock. Once proven, the local government arranged loans to poor households to enable them to take advantage of this opportunity.
Within 5 years of the first 25 farmers evaluating the use of forages for cattle in 2000, the number of households growing production-size plots of forages has increased to over 2,000 households in 2005. Planted forages were the key entry point for converting extensive livestock management into market-oriented production systems as they give farmers control over feed resources.
Introduction
Daklak is one of five provinces located in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. The population of the province is about 1.7 million people and about one third of the population are either from indigenous minority groups or migrated to the Central Highlands in recent times. The mainstay of their livelihood is smallholder agriculture, but over most of the province, agricultural productivity is limited because of infertile soils and a long dry season. Only small pockets of land are suitable for irrigated rice cultivation and there are some high plateaus with fertile red basaltic soils suitable for coffee and other perennial industrial crops. Living standards are, on average, much lower than in the rest of the Vietnam.Cattle production has a good potential for farmers in the area, especially for those in the less fertile areas. More than 80% of cattle are kept by smallholders. To capitalize on high coffee prices in the early 1980’s and, especially, the mid 1990’s, many smallholder farmers established coffee plantations. The area planted with coffee increased rapidly from 54,000 ha in 1990 to more than 250,000 ha in 2000. Initially, this expansion was on fertile basaltic soil but soon farmers on more marginal sandy soils also started growing coffee. In many cases, this resulted in the replacement of all other crops, leading to monoculture coffee plantations in marginal environments.
The returns from coffee on all soil types were high until the dramatic price slump of the late 1990’s. Nearly all of the coffee production in Vietnam is the Robusta variety and this was particularly hard hit in the price slump with 2001 prices dropping to 20% of those in 1995. Farmers with the resources to sustain high coffee yields (especially fertilizers, pumps for irrigating with groundwater and more-fertile soils), were better able to weather the roller coaster of international coffee prices. Those growing coffee on the more-marginal sandy soils (by definition the poorer farmers in the area) felt the full force of the volatility in international coffee markets. They were unable to provide the inputs required to sustain yields on the poorer soils. Many lost their entire investment and, without the safety net of other farm activities, found themselves exposed to great livelihood risk.
In 1995, staff from Tay Nguyen University (TNU), the provincial agricultural offices and CIAT started to work with smallholder farmers in M’Drak district to evaluate the potential of a range of forage species, and introduce forage technologies for improved cattle production. The research group concluded that there was high potential for forage development in Daklak and, in subsequent phases the project started to disseminate forage technologies and work with farmer to develop improved feeding systems for cattle.
In 2000, 25 farmers whose farms were on the less fertile soils in Ea Kar district began evaluating planted forage varieties in small plots. The varieties they tested had emerged from earlier selection trials in M’drak district and were known to be well adapted to the biophysical conditions of the area. The good growth of these varieties prompted many farmers to plant forages to improve and expand their livestock production. Other farmers began to follow their lead and within 5 years, more than 2,800 farmers in five districts had planted forages to support livestock production. The process of working with farmers in developing these forage and livestock systems has been described by Horne et al. (2005).
History of forage development projects in Daklak
The Forages for Smallholders Project (FSP) was an international project working in Indonesia, Lao PDR, Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. The purpose of project was to identify and develop forage technologies for smallholder systems. The project was funded by AusAID, 1995–1999, and was managed by CIAT and CSIRO. In Vietnam, the national coordinator was the National Institute of Animal Husbandry (NIAH) and TNU was the site coordinator of the project at Daklak province. The activities carried out in Daklak included regional evaluation of forages to identify adaptated varieties, farmers evaluation of adapted forage species to select those suitable for smallholder conditions, and integration of forage technologies for different purposes on farms.
A subsequent phase of the project (2000-2002) was funded by ADB. The activities of project in this phase included continued integration of forage technologies into small householders’ farming systems, research on better utilisation of local feed resources, and dissemination of promising forage technologies to other districts and farmers.
ADB continued to support activities through the Livelihood and Livestock Systems Project (LLSP) from 2003 to 2005. The emphasis of the LLSP was on developing a better understand the factors that determine successful scaling out, and to develop integrated feeding systems for livestock which optimize the use of improved and indigenous fodders, and crop residues at the focus sites.
Methodology
The method used in these projects was a Participatory Approach to Research and Development (PR&D). Depending on the objectives of the research; participation of different stakeholders is sought at different levels. The basic PR&D cycle employed in the project is shown in Figure 1.The data presented in this paper are based on information collected by extension workers. In 2005, a survey was conducted to collect detailed data on adoption of planted forages, and several impact studies were conducted to determine the economic and livelihood benefits of growing forages.
Achievements of forage development in Daklak
Forage species evaluation
From an initial introduction of 70 forage species, 20 well-adapted forage varieties were identified in regional evaluations (Table 1). These were then given to farmers for evaluation on their own farms. Farmers selected six forage varieties with superior adaptation and growth. These were: Panicum maximum ’Simuang’; Pennisetum purpureum ‘Napier’; Paspalum atratum ‘Terenos’; Stylosanthes guianensis CIAT 184; Gliricidia sepium ‘Retalhuleu’ and Leucaena leucocephala ‘K636’.
Forage technology development and expansion
Farmers planting forages diversified into three types of market-oriented production systems: Fattening of thin cattle for sale; improved cow-calf production, and grass-eating fish in ponds. In addition, some farmers were able to sell forage planting material, forage seeds and manure. Some farmers developed just one of these production systems but others diversified into two or more forage and livestock enterprises. When the potential of forage for the cattle production and income was shown by early adopters, many others started planting forages to improve and expand their cattle production. The number of communes and farmers growing forages as well as the average area of planted forages increased rapidly from 2003 -2005 (Figures 2-4).
Farmers are planting and using forages for different types of animals and production systems including cattle, goats and grass-eating fish (Table 2). For fattening of cattle, many farmers are using both grasses and legumes as a mix in the diet. Legumes are ‘Stylo 184’ or farmers harvest leaves of Leucaena and Gliricidia grown as fence around gardens or as shade tree in coffee fields. They experienced in on-farm trial that they can substitute pruchased concentrate with legumes while maintaining animal growth rates. The main grass variety used for grass-eating fish is ‘Simuang’. The grass species grown in fertile soil areas are mainly Panicum maximum ’Simuang’ and Pennisetum purpureum, while Paspalum atratum ‘Terenos’ is planted in less fertile, acid and waterlogged soils. Brachiaria hybrid ‘Mulato’ is also grown by some farmers.
Table 2 shows the average area of forage grown by farmers in Ea Kar district for each production system in 2005. For cattle fattening the average area was 800 m2/head, for cow-calf systems about 400 m2/head (including calf and cow), and about 500 m2 per 1,000 m2 of fish pond.
The impact of planted forages on cattle production and income of upland farmers in Ea Kar district
Ea Kar district is the district with the largest adoption of planted forages. By 2005, more than 2,800 farmers had planted and used forages for their animals (Table 3). To understand impact of forage development on cattle production and income of farmers, a survey and several impact studies were conducted in 2005. The survey collected secondary data from district and provincial sources and conducted a survey of 50 randomly selected forage adopters. In addition, two more detailed surveys were conducted on the impact of forages on fattening of cattle and on the cow-calf production system. An overview of the results is presented below.
1. Rapid expansion of cattle production in Ea Kar
A comparison of the expansion of cattle population in Ea Kar and several neighbouring districts from 2000 – 2005 is shown in Table 3. It shows that the cattle population in Ea Kar is increased more rapidly than the cattle population in other districts. While there are several factors that contribute to this rapid expansion of cattle production, farmers’ feedback showed that it was the ability to grow their own feed that prompted farmers to expand cattle production.
On average, adopters of planted forages raised more cattle (6.9 animals) than non-adopters (4 animals). Approximately one third of farmers only started cow-calf production since the introduction of forages, and almost all the farmers who are fattening cattle started this enterprise after planting forages. Figure 4 shows the relation between the number of animals and area of planted forages. The r2= 0.69 is relatively high and shows that farmers who raise more cattle are also planting larger forage areas.
2. Forage production enables farmer to keep improved cattle breeds
The results of the impact study on cow-calf production showed that forage adopters were raising more crossbred cattle than farmers that relied on traditional feed resources (Table 5).
The use of planted forages enabled forage adopters to manage cattle more intensively and raise more cross-bred cattle (Red Sindhi or Brahman x local yellow cattle breed). Cross-bred cattle command a higher price in the market, but require better feeding than can be obtained from grazing alone (traditional management). Overall, 77% of cattle raised by forage adopters were cross-bred cattle, compared with only 33% of cattle raised by non-adopters. One third of farmers with planted forages produced all cross-bred animals; these were new cattle farmers who were able to start immediately by buying crossbred cattle because they had forages (Table 5). No forage adopters kept only native cattle anymore, seeing the higher returns from cross-bred animals, if given enough feed.
3. Forage production enabled farmer to increase their household income
Increase income from fattening of cattle Fattening cattle is one new activity in Ea Kar district, which first started in 2003. At first, only a few farmers started to fattening thin cattle for sale. By 2005, this production system was widespread with more than 1,100 farmers doing fattening in Ea Kar district. Feeding cattle for 2 months (range of 1-5 months) on planted forages plus some concentrate feed for the last couple of weeks before sale provides a high benefit from compensatory weight gain and a price premium for fat animal. On average, farmers fed their cattle 20 kg/animal of fresh forage plus 2 kg/animal of concentrate feed per day. This resulted in an average daily gain of over 600 g/day during the fattening period. Compensatory weight gain (rapid growth rates of poorly-fed cattle once they are given access to more and better-quality feed) is a well understood phenomenon and the likely explanation for the relatively high growth rates in this study. It is a phenomenon that allows smallholder farmers with access to good forage resources to cash-in by buying thin cattle and selling them a few months later in much better condition.
All farmers who fatten cattle have planted forages. On average, farmers fattened 9 cattle over the previous 12 month period. The average net income from cattle fattening was $57 per animal fattened over a 2-month period. When comparing forage and coffee production on a 1,200 m2 land basis (the average forage area grown by farmers who were fattening 9 cattle per year), the average annual net income from cattle fattening was $511 compared to $90 for coffee. However, cattle fattening required a higher investment for buying thin cattle. The proven potential of the cattle fattening system prompted the local government to make available confessional credit (6% p.a.) to farmers in the poor and middle wealth category to enable them to expand their forage areas, buy fertilizer and buy thin cattle.
Increasing income from intensive cow-calf systems The cow-calf system is a traditional activity of farmers in the area. Before adoption of planted forages, feed for animal came from grazing natural grasslands and to a small extent from available agricultural by-products. Almost all farmers raised only native cattle. In 2005, not all farmers who operate a cow-calf system had planted forages. Those without planted forages (non-adopters) graze their cattle on communal land; and cut naturally-occurring forages for animals kept back near their house for some periods (e.g. sick animals and those giving birth). Most farmers with planted forages (adopters) keep their cattle in more intensive system; some continued to graze cattle but kept their cattle closer to their house and supplemented cattle with cut forages. Some of the adopters kept all cattle in a pen and fed 100% planted forages. The average returns from cow-calf production were higher for adopters (US$756) than for non-adopters (US$441).
Income from sale of planting material The availability of planting material is critical for dissemination of forage technologies, however, it is also a significant source of income for early adopters. In 2005, 20% of farmers surveyed in Ea Kar had sold vegetation planting material. On average, farmers approximately 1.5 tons of planting material, which resulted in an income of VND1,900,000 ($US118) in 2005. The price of planting material was VND1,300 ($US0.83) per kg, which is enough to plant an area of 3000 m2 (400-500kg of cuttings are needed to establish 1000 m2 of new forage plots).
4. Forage production increased the return to labor
There was a significant impact on labor usage between adopters and non-adopters. Farmers who adopted forages were able to substantially reduce or eliminate altogether the large amount of labour needed to look after grazing animals each day, with only a small additional amount of labor required for cutting grass. The net result of this was that, on average, adopters were spending less than half the amount of time looking after their cattle than the non-adopters (3.0 versus 6.8 hours/day).
The combination of the higher net income from the sale of cattle and the lower labor requirements resulted in much higher labor productivity for the adopters in cow-calf production systems ($0.73 per hour compared to $0.2 per hour for non-adopters). Furthermore, farmers with planted forages who fattened cattle received a return to labor of $0.77 per hour and an even higher return to labour in fish production systems of $1.70 per hour. For comparisons, the minimum wage rate in Vietnam was $0.16 per hour in 2005.
Lessons learnt
There are many lessons we learnt during the development and dissemination of forage technologies:
1. Site selection: The chances of success and the rate of adoption is much easier in areas where livestock is an important activity for farmers’ livelihood and the farmers recognize feed constraints as a major problem. In these areas, farmers are willing to invest time and effort to experiment, evaluate and integrate forage technologies into their farming systems.
2. Investing time in ensuring good relationships between the main stakeholders (farmers, extentionist, local leaders, researchers and traders) is very important for scaling out of forage technologies.
3. Forming interest groups, such as farmer extension clubs in Ea Kar district is one of most effective ways of developing and disseminating forage technologies.
4. Strengthening the capacity of extension workers, in terms of methodology and knowledge in forage technologies and animal production is very important for research and development of forage technologies.
5. Once there is significant impact of planted forages on animal productivity and income of farmers, the progress of scaling out is rapid and successful.
Conclusions
The livelihoods of smallholder coffee producers in Daklak province, especially for those on marginal soils who had converted all of their land to coffee, were highly susceptible to the fluctuations of international coffee prices. In the search for alternatives, forage-livestock systems provided several powerful advantages:
1. Planted forages provided the entry point which enabled farmers to intensify their livestock systems and become more market-oriented.
2. The returns to labor from livestock production were much higher for farmers who had adopted forages.
3. Livestock provided an additional component to the agricultural system within farms, contributing to diversification of farm activities. The area required for producing sufficient forage to feed and fatten cattle was relatively small (average size 1,740 m2), taking less than 20% of the average agricultural land of smallholder farmers in Ea Kar.
4. The pattern of adoption is showing that the substantial labor savings and greater returns from adopting forages for market-oriented livestock systems is allowing smallholder farmers to diversify their farms, making a steady transition away from a vulnerable over-reliance on coffee. Many farmers are using the new-found livelihood security to establish other agricultural and non-agricultural livelihood activities. Forages and livestock systems have allowed this transition to take place.
References
Horne, P.M., Stür, W.W., Phengsavanh, P., Gabunada Jr., F. and Roothaert, R. (2005). New forages for smallholder livestock systems in Southeast Asia: recent development, impacts and opportunities. Chapter in S. Reynolds and J. Frame (eds.) Grasslands: Developments, Opportunities, Perspectives” (556 pages). ISBN 1-57808-359-1 (FAO, Rome)
Peter M. Horne and Werner W. Stur (2003) Developing agricultural solutions with smallholder farmers: How to get started with participatory approaches. Published by ACIAR and CIAT. ACIAR Monograph No. 99. Pp 21- 97.
Daklak Statistical Year Book (2005). Statistical Publishing House, HCM.
National Statistical Year Book (2003). Statistical Publishing House, Hanoi.
Stür W.W., Horne P.M., Gabunada F.G., Phengsavanh P. and Kerridge, P.C. (2002) Forage options for smallholder crop-animal systems in Southeast Asia: working with farmers to find solutions. Agricultural Systems 71, 75-98.
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