Atmanirbhar Bharat – Harnessing Potential of Livestock Sector for Food Safety and Financial Security
Karthikeyan A., Sridevi P., Varun A., Sobana A.S., Siva M., Jothilakhmi M. and Ramesh V.
Livestock Farm Complex, Veterinary College and Research Institute, Salem – 636 112.
Introduction
According to the Committee on World Food Security of the United Nations, food security is the state in which all people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to an adequate supply of safe, nourishing food that satisfies their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. With a growing population and limited food supplies, the dairy industry is under enormous pressure to produce food that is safe, nourishing and of the highest quality. About 30 % of Indians, according to the World Bank (2016), are considered to be below the poverty line and within that more than 70% of them live in rural areas with limited access to quality and safe food, paving to food insecurity. By encouraging livestock farming among rural people and assisting them in maintaining their food demands through livestock farming, these masses could be addressed and brought under the banner of food security. The definition of “food security” given above applies well to food origin from livestock viz. cattle, sheep, goat, and poultry species because they are stated to include a full protein. Some livestock species, such as goats, backyard chicken, pigs, and rabbits, can be easily raised without a lot of inputs and their products contribute adequately to food security.
Systems of livestock farming for food security
Dairy Farming: There resides a lot of potential in the dairy industry and need to take advantage of it in order to provide our population with clean, safe and healthy milk. We have the largest inventory of bovine population and hence the potential for quantum of milk production. Our milk producers mostly rely on the dairy industry for their living; the majority of them are either landless or marginal farmers with unremarkable low-yielding dairy animals. By acquiring superior dairy animals and using improved husbandry techniques to increase milk production, these farmers can be taught to adopt scientific dairy methods that will improve their livelihood and provide others with a balanced diet. Additionally, these farmers could make use of the medical care services offered by the State Animal Husbandry Departments and engage in artificial insemination for improved offspring from their low productive animals. Through institutional help, the educated unemployed youth can also start a dairy farm as a means of employment, producing clean, safe milk at affordable costs that the underprivileged could afford. Cattle, buffalo, goats, and camels are examples of livestock that can be raised for their milk.
Sheep and Goat Farming: Sheep and goats are classified as small ruminants and are referred to as “Mortgage Lifters” because of their numerous advantages and inexpensive initial cost involved in rearing. Goats are sometimes referred to as “the poor man’s cow”. Poorer groups in society raise goats mostly for chevon and secondarily for milk and hide production. The food chain for the weaker members of society is supported by goats. Goats are simple and easier to raise since they can easily maintained by grazing on weeds, bushes, tree tops and leaves. Goats may produce three crops, which can be harvested in two years. Goats frequently give birth twining and good genetic merit flocks can be maintained by using superior husbandry techniques. The rural poor can benefit from goats as a great supply of milk, meat, and fibre to support their both their food and economy safety. Sheep are beneficial to those who live in hilly and temperate places since these animals that do best in steep terrain and temperate climate. While not as productive as goats, sheep can be easily kept in a family for the production of meat and wool. It may be housed at night and allowed to graze during the day. In comparison to goats, sheep have a better body weight gain characteristic and require less labour during production. Sheep give farmers a consistent stream of income in the form of mutton, wool, and animal sales, resulting in a stable food and economy security.
Pig Farming: It can be launched by simply erecting a cheap shed and hiring one male and two female employees at the beginning of the business. Because of the short gestation period and large litter size, it is very profitable to rear pigs both for pork sale and live piglet sales. Pigs can be raised in methods that range from being semi-intensive to being intensive. A farmer who practises proper management can harvest three crops annually and sell them for higher profit. Pigs can be used as food, including hams and sausages can be created from pig, but doing so requires expertise. The farmers can raise them for the market using crop by-products and kitchen garbage. Pigs can help farmers improve their livelihoods and act as a sustainable food supply, assuring food security.
Poultry Farming: Birds raised for both egg and meat production, known as layers and broilers. With the right management practises, broilers can gain 2 kg of live weight in just 40 days and turn a profit within one and half month. The unemployed villagers can create year-round work by switching to broiler farming. Broiler farming improves nutritional security in addition to providing revenue. Even family members including elderly one and women can take on the job of raising broilers with a little understanding. Combining agriculture farming with broiler farming can promote social and economic empowerment and, in turn, increase food security. Backyard poultry farming creates specific venue and act as the “Food Security Model” skeleton for the rural poor. The development of this industry in rural areas was facilitated by the government’s sponsorship of numerous projects. Chickens raised in the backyard just need a night shelter and require very little inputs. These birds need some care during their first few days of initial life and are built to withstand atrocities of weather and malnourishment. They are easily raised in a group of 10–20 with little expense and the kids and housewives can take good care of them. Provides rural households good protein supply and fulfil economic needs also.
Important Obstacles: In the meat and poultry sector, the following obstacles exist:
- Cost and availability of maize: Although maize is a key component of poultry feed, the poultry industry has a huge issue finding it at a fair price.
- Diseases: Emerging and pathogenic conditions frequently result in significant losses for the home economy and global trade.
- Lack of marketing intelligence: To close the gap between supply and demand of chicken and chicken products, realistic national marketing intelligence is urgently needed and need of artificial intelligence in to cater the need for production and supply demand.
- Training and skilful labour are in high demand in the poultry industry to meet the growing demand for sustainable and safe production.
- The size of the target population makes it difficult to increase productivity through the use of science and technology.
- Animal goods are processed and added value just minimally.
The following are preventative actions to boost the meat and poultry industry for faster and more sustainable growth:
- To boost the production and quality of maize, long-term sustainable agricultural practises must be followed.
- Investigating actively, keeping an eye out for problems and taking swift action as necessary.
- It is possible to create a network for a realistic national and international poultry database and marketing intelligence.
- The current institutions should generate adequately trained labour.
Rabbit Farming: The country’s mountainous regions are mostly where the rabbit industry is thriving, and clothing is made from rabbit fur. While fur breeds are used to gather fur, broiler rabbits are raised for the purpose of producing meat. For semi-intensive housing, a fenced run and shelter can be built for the rabbits, while an inexpensive shed can be built for extensive housing. The cage system of rearing might be used if there is a space restriction. Some individuals successfully raise rabbits in their backyards in a similar manner to how they raise chickens. Rabbits can produce up to 12 kids at a time and are extremely prolific breeders. The 30-32 day gestation time adds to the benefit, and one may easily take more than six crops in a year, producing meat all-round the entire year.
Livestock development restrictions:
Despite the government of India and state governments numerous programme launches, they were unable to produce the desired outcomes. In terms of raising production in the meat and milk industries as well as providing for the needs of the poor, there was little innovation. Principal causes of the delayed pace were:
- Non-availability of top quality breeding bulls.
- Semen generated by many laboratories should reach to the market after severe screening and testing procedure for genetic superiority and of quality.
- Infertility and poor conception are resulted by paravets/ quacks inadequate skills.
- Insufficient assistance for paravets in the form of liquid nitrogen, frozen sperm, medical care and technical advice.
- Resources for livestock feed are scarce and raise in the basal cost.
- Lack of a field-focused conservation strategy for local breeds.
- A lack of cooperation amongst the numerous organisations involved in cattle management.
- Inadequate extension services to encourage small farmers to choose dairy farming for income.
Issues faced by the poor community: It is crucial to find solutions for the needs of the underprivileged, the programme has to reach them and have an impact on them. The following are the main obstacles rural families living below the poverty line (BPL) face in pursuing chances for livestock development. Poor breeding services delivered right to their door, both in terms of excellent germplasm and effective delivery, resulting in subpar conception and the calf born are of poorer quality.
- Inadequate nutrition and a lack of grain and fodder.
- Poor health conditions brought on by delayed detection of health issues and a lack of preventive vaccines.
- Coordination issues in the fight against prevalent diseases.
- Animals in need are neglected due to the high cost of veterinarian care.
- In the absence of facilities for isolation, communicable diseases like Brucellosis and TB can spread to humans and other animals.
- Lack of technical assistance for farmers to enhance their methods for caring for animals.
- Poor oversight of specialists working for farmers to provide various services leads to animal abuse and neglect of infertile animals.
- Market saturation in nearby milk sheds leads to reduced price realisation and is exploited by intermediaries and private dairies.
- Farmers who are poorly connected to research institutions utilise outmoded technologies.
- Lack of effective policies to include small farmers.
- A proper national livestock policy is required.
The first step in achieving the updated objective should be to develop a national policy. The Indian Livestock Policy must have a comprehensive approach and look into how to take advantage of opportunities at the national and international levels. In light of this, the National Livestock Development Policy should strive to accomplish the following objectives.
- A general increase in efficiency and quality to compete on the international market.
- Encourage women and households with limited resources to participate actively in the development of livestock for a sustainable way of life.
- Ensure ecological sustainability by preserving indigenous breeds and limiting uncontrolled population increase to align with the supply of feed and fodder supplies.
- Meat-cum-Bone Meal (MBM), Tallow, Bone Chips, Pet Foods and methane as a source of energy for value addition in most modern facilities can all be produced in large quantities by mechanised slaughterhouses from the animal carcasses. These products can be sold for a profit.
- To advance sow productivity, piglet growth rate, and feed conversion productivity, pig rearing must be supported.
- Enhancing the effective use of livestock slaughter by-products is also required to increase the income of livestock owners. The rise of cattle diseases and environmental contamination must be halted.
Application of Draught Power: The draught capacity of animals can be utilised to secure the livelihood of poor farmers. Animals like ponies, mules, horses, camels, oxen, yaks, mithun, and elephants, among others, can be utilised for transportation of products and field ploughing, ensuring financial stability for livestock caretakers and, in turn, food security.
Technology for Livestock Products: Poor farmers who lack the resources to even acquire the animals can buy milk, meat, and eggs from the market and turn them into specific value-added goods that can be produced without the use of complex machinery or a great deal of knowledge From the milk, it is simple to make Ghee, Makkhan, Dahi, Paneer, Lassi, Khoa, Rabdi, Channa, Barfi, and other sweets that may be sold in the market for greater prices and eaten by the family as well. For a living, meat pickles, egg pickles, kebabs, and other regionally specialised meat delicacies can be made.
Alternative Poultry species rearing: Other poultry species, such as turkey, emu, guinea fowl, Japanese quail, duck, and ostrich, can be raised by farmers and sold at profitable prices to stabilise their income in addition to the traditional farming of broilers and layers. Additionally, these offer meat and eggs that rural households can eat.
Livestock for Recreation: Livestock keepers utilise animals like elephants, camels, horses, and mules for tourist enjoyment in tourist destinations as well as for sightseeing. Because of this, these animal species support the livelihood and daily income of these livestock keepers. People who live close to tourist attractions might choose this company and achieve financial stability.
Cooperatives societies: The history of the cooperative movement in India is extensive. The co-operatives have expanded both in size and in number since the establishment of the Katra Milk Union in Allahabad. Now that AMUL is a recognised brand worldwide, it not only promotes economic stability but also improves the general quality of life for the farmers who work with it. The co-operatives have established farmer and livestock development programmes, regularised payments to farmers, and strengthened the very fabric of rural India. The co-operatives’ milk testing facilities have contributed significantly to the nation’s efforts to ensure food safety by ensuring that customers have access to safe and wholesome milk.
Finial security: According to the survey, the sector’s long-term trend in the economy’s overall gross value added (GVA) is close to 18 percent. In the Indian economy, the livestock sector is a significant subsector of agriculture. It increased at a CAGR of 8.15% from 2014–15 to 2019–20. (at constant prices). The contribution of livestock to the entire agriculture and allied sector GVA (at constant prices) has increased from 24.32 percent in 2014–15 to 29.35 percent in 2020, according to projections from National Accounts Statistics (NAS) 2020. In 2019–20, the livestock sector provided 4.35 percent of the total GVA. The availability of milk, eggs, and meat per person has increased as a result of the development of the livestock sector.
The largest agricultural sector, dairy accounts for 5% of the country’s GDP and directly supports more than 8 crore farmers. India is the top milk producer in the world, accounting for 23% of all milk produced worldwide. From 146.31 million tonnes in 2014–15, milk output in the nation increased at a compound annual growth rate of roughly 6.2% to reach 209.96 million tonnes in 2020–21. In 2020–21, milk is available to each person in India at a rate of 427 grams per day
Production of Meat and Egg: India is third in the world for egg production and eighth for meat output, according to FAOSTAT production data (2020). From 78.48 billion in 2014–15 to 122.11 billion in 2020–21, the nation produced more eggs. In the years 2020–21, there will be 91 eggs available per person annually (Provisional data). From 6.69 million tonnes in 2014–15 to 8.80 million tonnes in 2020–21, the country’s meat production has increased.
Recent developments in the Animal Husbandry and Dairy was the Animal Disease Control National Program. The National Animal Disease Control Programme (NADCP), the world’s largest immunisation programme for animals, is being undertaken with the goal of controlling and ultimately eradicating Brucellosis and Foot & Mouth Disease (FMD) by 2030. The NADCP immunisation programme began on January 31, 2020, however it was interrupted because of the national lockdown. The first wave of FMD vaccinations was finished in 11 States as of May 2020, when they were renewed. The second phase of vaccination started in July 2021 and will last from 2021 to 2022. As of December 2021, 5 crore animals have received the FMD vaccine and 27.8 lakh animals have received the brucellosis vaccine. Additionally, states and UTs received alerts and recommendations on how to manage a disease outbreak. Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund (AHIDF), worth Rs 15,000 crore, was introduced in 2020 as a component of the ANB stimulus package. AHIDF makes it easier for FPOs, solopreneurs, MSME, Section 8 businesses, and private enterprises to invest in building infrastructure for the dairy and meat industries as well as animal feed facilities. In accordance with this plan, the central government offers the borrower a 3% interest subsidy and a credit guarantee of up to 25% of the entire borrowing. A total of 76 projects total 1802.28 crore in project costs had been approved as on 17.12.2021. In accordance with the plan, 12.74 crore in interest subvention was released in 2020–21 and 6.40 crore (as of 17.1.2022) in 2021–22.
Conclusion
The entire fabric of India’s agriculture is made up in large part by livestock. In addition to giving agricultural rural households stability during times of crop failure, it also meets their needs for food. Foods derived from livestock are complete in every way since they are abundant in protein, energy and lipids needed for the human body towards holistic growth. Value-added product sales give the farmer access to additional cash that he/she can use to support his/her economy. However, there has to be a big focus on the safety and quality management of these animal origin foods produced. This is easily accomplished by educating livestock producers about GMPs and GHPs, which can ultimately result in clean, safe and healthy environments for both the producing farmers and consumers, ensuring both food safety and security together a complete approach marching towards national growth.
