Dairy Sector – A Tool for Poverty and Hunger eradication in the World
The dairy sector plays a pivotal role in global food security, livelihoods, and poverty alleviation efforts. With its ability to provide nutritious food, generate income, and create employment opportunities, dairy farming serves as a valuable tool for combating poverty and hunger.
One billion people rely on the dairy sector to support their livelihoods and to sustain communities in all corners of the world. 600 million people living on 133 million dairy farms support a long tradition of milk production for both processors and selling milk directly to consumers. 400 million additional people are supported by the full-time jobs that are created in support of dairy farming such as feed and fertilizer companies, milk collection, processing and retail.
In developed and developing countries alike, dairy rejuvenates rural economies. It provides sustainable livelihoods for smallholder farmers, generating income that feeds their families, sends their children to school, provides for their families’ health and is reinvested in their farms and communities.
One essential component of sustainable development is the eradication of poverty and hunger, which is one of the biggest global challenges currently facing the planet. The demand for is fueled by population growth and economic expansion, particularly in developing nations, and
Over the next 30 years, there should be a significant increase in the production of livestock products .The livestock industry can aid in addressing these issues by fostering inclusive social development, long-term economic growth, and efficient resource use. Dairying is a powerful tool for rural poverty eradication. More than 500 million individuals live in extreme poverty and rely heavily on livestock, many of whom engage in small-scale or subsistence dairying with dairy goats, cows, or buffalo. A multi-stakeholder partnership mechanism called the Global Agenda for Sustainable Livestock was established in 2011 with the goal of accelerating and directing the sustainable growth of the world’s livestock industry.
By channeling the global dialogue into local practice change, focusing on innovation, capacity building, incentive systems, and enabling environments, it provides a platform for comprehensively addressing the sector’s numerous challenges for sustainable development. The successes of the Global Agenda have shown that multi-stakeholder partnerships are an effective method of supporting for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) implementation on livestock-related concerns.
The goal of the Global Agenda is to increase the livestock industry’s contribution to sustainable development. Its objective is to facilitate discussion, produce data, and support the adoption of good practices and policies in favour of the UN Agenda 2030 targets and objectives related to livestock. Its mission is to strengthen livestock stakeholders’ commitment, investments, and adoption of good practices and policies in support of the UN Agenda 2030. Only by working together as a single entity can all stakeholder groups effectively improve the sector’s sustainability. Collective global action is crucial given the importance of the environmental, social, and economic challenges facing the sector as well as its growing economic integration.
The World development agenda gives a high priority on reducing poverty and ensuring food security. The potential benefits of livestock to enhancing the livelihoods of smallholder farmers have once again come under the spotlight within the global food production and distribution system as a result of strategies to combat poverty. 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were adopted by the 193 Member States of the United Nations in 2015 to direct development efforts by governments, international organizations, civil society, and other institutions over the ensuing 15 years (2016-2030). The SDGs seek to restore and sustainably manage natural resources while eradicating hunger and poverty (SDGs 1 and 2).
Around 900 million poor people worldwide survive on less than US$1.9 per day (World Bank 2015). They are directly dependent on livestock for about half of their income. Farm animals are a valuable resource for the poor because they provide high-quality nutrients as well as capital and, in many cases, a source of income. Livestock serves as a form of household insurance because it can be sold during times of need. They provide draught power and fertilisation for the farm and reward their owners with a variety of goods, including milk, meat, and eggs as well as hides, skins, leather, and wool.
Livestock therefore contribute to three major pathways out of poverty by-:
- increasing resilience
- improving smallholder and pastoral productivity
- increasing market participation
The dairy industry is thought to hold particular promise to support SDG1 among livestock. Nearly 150 million farm households, or more than 750 million people, are thought to produce milk, with the majority of them located in developing countries (FAO 2010). These nations’ annual milk consumption growth rates are at Due to the perishability of dairy products, the majority of production is consumed domestically and does not enter international trade, at least twice as fast as that of major staple foods. Dairy production in developing nations has a lot of potential to expand in the future, and if it is developed properly, it could be a potent tool for alleviating poverty.
India experienced acute milk shortages in the 1950s and 1960s and was heavily dependent on imported milk. Despite the fact that milk has always been a significant component of Indian diets and that many Indian farmers, typically with only a few cows, produced milk, they were unable to meet the high and rising demand for milk of the country’s rapidly expanding cities. The Indian government established the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) in 1965 to oversee the country’s dairy development as a result of this circumstance. In the past, milk producers in Gujarat’s Anand district banded together as a private cooperative to supply milk to the Bombay Milk Scheme, and their successful venture served as the template for similar initiatives across India.
In 1970, the government of India launched Operation Flood (OF), a national-scale, federally sponsored intervention. Of replaced the ad hoc production, marketing, and selling of milk with an organized, continuous dairy-supply chain from production to consumption. It linked rural dairy producers to urban consumers through dairy cooperatives (providing extension, feed, health care, breeding services, and milk collection), chilling and processing plants, and distribution networks (refrigerated vans and railway wagons).
These include:
- a) Increased milk consumption;
- b) Increased crop production using cow manure; and
- c) Increased sales revenues, all of which can improve nutrition and food security.
- d) Investing additional funds in agricultural and nonagricultural activities that have “multiplier” effects
Fig: Impacts of Dairy cow ownership on household welfar
According to estimates from FAO and IFCN (2018), there are approximately 112 million dairy farms that raise cattle and/or buffalo worldwide. South Asia is home to 65 percent of these farms, or 73 million farms. There are estimated 16 and 13 million dairy farms in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa, respectively. There are between 1 and 3 million dairy farms in each of the remaining world regions, which include high-income nations, the Middle East and North Africa, and East Asia and the Pacific. The average dairy herd, which varies greatly by region, consists of three adult female cattle or buffalo. The typical dairy herd size in South Asia is less than two dairy animals. It is between 2 and 4 animals in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, North Africa, and Sub-Saharan Africa. A typical dairy farm raises about 9 dairy animals in East Asia and the Pacific, 15 in Latin America and the Caribbean, and over 42 in high-income nations. The FAO’s World Programme for the Census of Agriculture and the IFCN’s estimates of the number of dairy farms are based on official data from 57 countries.
Statistics on the number of dairy farms as well as cattle/buffalo farms were available for these nations. For the 57 sample countries, which represent 28 and 72% of the world’s countries and rural populations, respectively, FAO and IFCN calculated the regional shares of cattle and buffalo farms keeping dairy animals. These shares were then applied to the number of cattle/buffalo farms from Census data for countries lacking information on the number of dairy farms. The most recent Agriculture Census served as the year of reference, which varied by nation.
Conclusion:-
By making the necessities of life (food, water, shelter, and clothing) as affordable and accessible through dairying has the potential to help people, families, and communities escape poverty. Dairy cattle must meet the following conditions in order to sustainably improve household welfare:
- Households fulfill the minimum requirements for labour supply and land ownership.
- they receive a minimum amount of support in terms of training, input provision and disease control, provision of market access further enhances the development potential of dairying as it stimulates the growth of up and downstream businesses and provides producer households with proceeds that can be invested in other farm and non-farm enterprises. These indirect effects substantially enhance the direct benefits accruing to dairy households.
- Women empowered by dairy farming have increased income and influence over household expenditures, which boosts their social and economic status.
The dairy sector serves as a powerful instrument for poverty and hunger eradication worldwide, offering a holistic approach to address complex socio-economic challenges. By promoting nutrition security, income generation, employment creation, and market access, dairy farming empowers communities, strengthens livelihoods, and contributes to sustainable development goals. However, realizing the full potential of the dairy sector requires concerted efforts from governments, development agencies, civil society, and the private sector to promote inclusive policies, investment in infrastructure, technology transfer, and capacity-building initiatives. By harnessing the transformative power of dairy farming, we can build a more equitable, resilient, and food-secure future for all.
Compiled & Shared by- This paper is a compilation of groupwork provided by the Team, LITD (Livestock Institute of Training & Development)
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Reference-On Request
