IntroductionClimate-smart livestock (CSL) practices have the potential to boost food production while improving the resilience and environmental sustainability of agricultural systems in sub-Saharan Africa. However, their adoption rates in the region remain low. Focusing on Uganda as a case study, multivariate Probit and Tobit regression models were applied to determine the factors influencing the adoption of CSL practices by dairy farmers.MethodsData were collected from 626 cattle-keeping households located in southwestern, central and eastern Uganda. The Adoption and Diffusion Outcome Prediction Tool (ADOPT) was used to predict the peak adoption levels and the number of years to reach these for CSL practices. The CSL practices identified and considered were forage cultivation, artificial insemination, routine vaccination and planting trees.Results and DiscussionThe results showed that 37%, 14%, 45% and 19% of cattle-keeping households grew forage, used artificial insemination, carried out routine vaccination and planted trees respectively. Forage cultivation, artificial insemination use and planting trees were positively and significantly influenced by access to credit and keeping farm records. Use of artificial insemination was associated with higher milk revenues. The household head’s education level significantly influenced both the area allocated to forage cultivation and the number of trees planted. Households that allocated a large portion of their land to grazing cattle were less likely to grow forage and use artificial insemination. The number of trees planted was positively and significantly influenced by the age of the household head, household size, keeping farm records, access to credit and total adult equivalent (total number of working hours among adults per household). Forage cultivation and use of artificial insemination were practiced interdependently, pointing to the existence of complementarities and synergies between these two practices. The complementarities and synergies between both practices should be explored for increased adoption.ConclusionCSL practices should be introduced as a package of practices rather than as stand-alone practices, as their complementarities can enhance adoption. Development programs and policies should focus on improving access to credit, while investing in capacity building for record keeping, to increase the likelihood for adoption and intensification of CSL in the region.

Abstract This study examined the relationship between climate perceptions and observed trends among pastoralist and agro-pastoralist communities in the Koh-e-Suleiman Range, Pakistan. Household perception data were collected from 198 respondents and analyzed alongside climatic records across two time scales (1980–2022; 2013–2022). Data from the Pakistan Meteorological Department were used to compute 29 extreme climate indices, and trends were assessed using the Mann–Kendall and Sen’s slope tests. Perceptions of seven climate variables were compared with observed trends through accuracy tests, bias classification, regression, and machine-learning models. Perceptions aligned closely with observed trends for floods, rain intensity, temperature, and warm spells ( $$\ge$$ 80% accuracy), and moderately for cold spells (71.7%) and rainfall (60.6%). Perceptions of drought spells were predominantly inaccurate, with 75.3% of respondents overestimating their occurrence. Regression analyses identified education, age, and livestock ownership as associated with perception accuracy. Classification and Regression Tree (CART) machine learning analysis, in contrast, revealed non-linear effects: income, age, and livestock herd size shaped drought spell perception, while livestock numbers and age influenced rainfall perception. These findings highlight the value of integrating observed climate extremes with local perceptions to better understand perception observation alignment and inform context- sensitive climate risk communication in data-scarce pastoral regions.

Contexte : Dans un contexte de variabilité climatique et de pénuries fourragères récurrentes dans la zone sylvopastorale du nord du Sénégal, les espèces ligneuses jouent un rôle essentiel dans la résilience des systèmes agropastoraux et les moyens d’existence des éleveurs. Objectif : Elle visait à analyser le rôle des arbres et arbustes dans les systèmes sylvopastoraux en mettant l’accent sur leur utilisation pour l’alimentation et la santé des ruminants. Méthodes : La méthodologie a combiné des enquêtes ethnobotaniques auprès des agropasteurs ainsi qu’une revue bibliographique. Résultats : Vingt-deux espèces ligneuses ont été recensées, dominées par les Fabaceae (41 % des citations). Balanites aegyptiaca et Acacia raddiana se sont révélées comme les espèces les plus importantes pour l’alimentation animale, avec les valeurs d’importance d’usage les plus élevées (3,43 et 1,97 respectivement). En santé animale, 63 % des éleveurs ont reconnu l’impact positif des ligneux sur l’état sanitaire du bétail, et 43 % les utilisaient effectivement comme remèdes traditionnels en complément des soins vétérinaires modernes. Les espèces les plus citées et disponibles dans la zone concernant leurs usages thérapeutiques étaient B. aegyptiaca, Adansonia digitata, A. raddiana ainsi que Azadirachta indica et Ziziphus mauritiana, principalement utilisées dans le traitement des affections digestives et parasitaires. Les feuilles et les fruits constituaient les parties les plus utilisées, tant pour l’alimentation que pour la santé du bétail. Conclusions : L’étude a souligné l’importance des savoirs locaux d’une part et des ligneux d’autre part dans la résilience des systèmes agropastoraux notamment en période de déficit fourrager. Les résultats ont également mis en évidence la complémentarité entre les fonctions nutritionnelles et thérapeutiques de ces espèces (alicaments). Enfin ils soulignent la nécessité de renforcer les stratégies de conservation et de valorisation des ressources ligneuses dans les politiques publiques face aux effets du changement climatique.

IntroductionAgroforestry is increasingly promoted in cattle production systems in West Africa; however, empirical evidence linking farmers’ woody plant species preferences with indicative biomass carbon stocks remains limited. Understanding these relationships is important for designing agroforestry interventions that respond to farmers’ production needs while accounting for environmental co-benefits.MethodsThe study was conducted in Benin’s dry tropical zone (DTZ) and subhumid tropical zone (STZ). Data were collected through 18 focus group discussions, interviews with 338 cattle farmers, and inventories of woody plant species in 30 agroforestry plots of 1,000 m2 each. Farmers assessed woody plant species using eight selection criteria, and species were ranked based on mean ordinal scores. Biomass carbon stocks were estimated at the tree level to provide indicative comparisons among preferred species.Results and discussionAcross both zones, feed value was consistently ranked as the most important selection criterion. Leucaena leucocephala was the most preferred species in both DTZ and STZ, followed by Khaya senegalensis, reflecting farmers’ emphasis on fodder provision and adaptability rather than environmental functions. Estimated biomass carbon stocks varied significantly (p < 0.05) among species, with comparable values for Leucaena leucocephala (46.4 ± 5.9 kg C tree−1) and Khaya senegalensis (61.8 ± 10.4 kg C tree−1), and substantially higher stocks for Afzelia africana (112.5 ± 18.9 kg C tree−1). These findings suggest that agroforestry interventions in cattle production systems should prioritize farmer-preferred species to ensure adoption, while strategically incorporating complementary woody plant species with higher carbon storage potential to enhance environmental co-benefits without compromising livestock productivity.

This review explores the potential of circular food resources (CFRs) as animal feed in South Asian countries, with particular attention to dairy production systems. The review examines how CFRs are produced and supplied, identifying barriers to adoption, and evaluating existing governance and management frameworks to enable their integration into dairy feeding systems. A total of 24 research articles published in English between 2000 and 2025 met the selection criteria. Studies were included if they addressed CFRs in relation to feed types, processing methods, revalorization, life cycle assessments, circular economy models, relevant legislation, incentives and barriers to adoption. A thematic analysis was conducted to identify key patterns, trends and gaps in literature using MAXQDA. The review highlights that a large share of organic CFRs comes from private households, supermarkets, the hospitality sector and food industries. However, CFR management is still dominated by uncontrolled dumping and open burning, and only limited quantities are reused as feed, even though they could serve as a potential feed resource for dairy animals. Urban and peri-urban dairy farmers face adoption barriers such as contamination with inorganic materials, lack of regulation, insufficient nutritional, hygienic and safety data, and low awareness of impacts on animal performance. At conceptual level, the lack of integrated frameworks and stakeholder engagement limits the development of circular practices. At governance level, weak regulations and coordination hinder policy support. At management level, insufficient data on nutrition, safety, hygiene and regional availability highlight the need for context-specific evidence. Building on the synthesized findings, the review proposes a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) framework to evaluate the opportunities and risks of integrating CFRs into feeding systems. Transitioning from fragmented efforts to systemic change in CFRs-to-feed will require an interdisciplinary and multi-stakeholder approach, to build resilient and sustainable circular food systems in South Asian countries and beyond.

Cattle provide over 60% of the draught power in African mixed crop–livestock (MCL) systems, but also emit more than 60% of livestock-sector greenhouse gases (GHG) from the region. This study estimated and compared GHG emissions from MCL farms to assess how replacing draught oxen with tractors affects direct total on-farm emissions. Forty-eight farmers in Arsi Zone, Ethiopia, were purposively selected and interviewed on their production practices pre- and post-adoption (between 2002 and 2022) of tractor services. Employing a semi-structured questionnaire, we collected data on cattle herd dynamics and husbandry, use of animals and tractors for cropping activities, as well as crop production practices and parameters. On-farm GHG emissions were estimated using the IPCC Tier 2 method. On average, herd size decreased by 59.5%, whereas the land cropped increased by 52.3% between pre- and post- adoption of tractor services. The reduced herd size resulted in a decrease from 528.7 to 223.7 t CO2 equivalents (CO2e) in livestock GHG emissions, whereas emissions from cropping activities increased from 12.2 to 37.3 t CO2e post-adoption of tractor services. Adopting tractors for on-farm activities decreased direct on-farm total GHG emissions by 51.7% and reduced emission intensity from 0.72 to 0.43 kg CO2e per Mcal produced.These findings should be interpreted with caution because estimates of pre-adoption production practices rely on farmer recall over long time periods. However, the reduced need for draught oxen led to smaller cattle herds and lower production of animal-source foods, which may have unintended consequences for the nutritional security of rural populations.

Feed scarcity during the long dry season is a major constraint to livestock production in the Sahel. During this period, fodder trees provide a valuable source of nutrients. This study assessed sheep feeding preferences for five woody species from Senegal's silvopastoral zone (Adansonia digitata, Acacia tortilis subsp. raddiana, Balanites aegyptiaca, Guiera senegalensis, Khaya senegalensis) and evaluated their enteric methane mitigation potential. A cafeteria-style trial quantified voluntary intake, feeding time and preference coefficients of four sheep for fresh and air-dried leaves over 5 consecutive days during daily 30-min sessions. In vitro gas production assays, conducted with and without polyethylene glycol (PEG), measured total gas, methane concentration, and estimated digestibility. Leaves of A. raddiana and B. aegyptiaca showed high crude protein contents (168.7 and 167.0 g/kg DM) and metabolisable energy values (8.7 and 12.1 MJ/kg DM). In contrast, G. senegalensis and K. senegalensis contained high fibre (aNDF: 586.6 and 484.8 g/kg DM) and condensed tannins (35.8 and 66.9 g/kg DM). PEG addition increased gas production in A. raddiana, G. senegalensis and K. senegalensis, confirming tannin inhibition of fermentation. Sheep showed a clear preference (p < 0.001) for ingesting fresh A. raddiana (298 g/animal) and B. aegyptiaca (270 g/animal) leaves; feeding time and preference coefficients followed the same pattern. Preference coefficients were positively associated with crude protein and negatively linked to fibre and tannin contents, while tannin-rich species also produced less methane in vitro. Overall, A. raddiana and B. aegyptiaca emerged as valuable indigenous fodder resources for improving dry-season nutrition and potentially contributing to climate-smart livestock systems in the West African Sahel.

The effects of climate variability and change on the agricultural sector and its livestock sub-sector, both key livelihood sources for rural populations in Benin and other sub-Saharan countries, have major impacts on regional economies and food security. To adequately mitigate and cope with the adverse consequences of climate variability and change on livestock productivity, cattle herders have developed various strategies. This study documents the climate perceptions of farmers keeping non-local cattle breeds and how these perceptions affect their livestock management and choice of adaptation strategies. To achieve this objective, 305 herders were randomly selected and interviewed in 10 municipalities across three phytogeographic zones of Benin. The comparison of respondents’ perceptions to recently published rainfall and temperature trends showed that most herders were aware of the temperature and rainfall patterns. However, their perceptions aligned more closely with short-term anomalies than long-term meteorological trends. The respondents’ most commonly adopted adaptation strategies were the use of crop residues for feeding and reliance on long-distance mobility. Logistic regression model analyses revealed that phytogeographic zone, membership in a livestock breeders’ association, proportion of zebu in the herd, and number of sheep owned were important variables affecting the choice of adaptation strategies. These findings demonstrate that livestock adaptation decisions are driven by experienced climatic stress rather than statistical trends and are strongly mediated by socio-institutional factors. The study highlights the need for participatory, livestock-specific climate services that integrate herders’ experiential knowledge with localized climate information to enhance adaptive decision-making and pastoral resilience under increasing climate variability.

The Laser Methane Detector (LMD) has been proposed as a means of measuring methane (CH4) emissions from ruminants in their natural rearing environment and ranking different diets and individual animals based on their CH4 emission potential. The present study aimed to test the use of the LMD for ranking diets, animals, and periods of the day in a typical sub-Saharan African setting. The study involved 18 Boran steers, fed three different forages (Brachiaria, Napier, and Rhodes grass), with CH4 emissions measured on the first day with the gold standard respiration chamber and on the subsequent day with the LMD in an open pen during 22 hours per day. Following a series of data correction steps, the mean LMD CH4 concentrations were found to be lower than the mean chamber CH4 concentrations, with a low overall correlation between the two (rs=0.29). Neither chamber CH4 nor LMD CH4 were influenced by forage type. Both approaches recorded highest mean CH4 concentrations directly after feeding and lowest at night. Although the results demonstrate the ability of the LMD to capture diurnal CH4 emission patterns and forage-related differences in CH4 emissions, the ranking of individual animals’ CH4 emission deviated from the chamber rankings. This was partly due to different feeding schedules between the chamber and the open pen, but also to abiotic environmental factors that affected the LMD readings and could not be fully removed through systematic data cleaning procedures.

Dairy farms are expanding around urban areas in West Africa, driven by rising urban demand for milk and dairy products, but rapid urbanization raises concerns about their long-term sustainability. This study assessed the socio-territorial and economic sustainability of six grazing-based dairy farm types in the peri-urban areas of South Benin, applying the IDEA (Indicateurs de Durabilité des Exploitations Agricoles) framework. Data were collected from 130 farms for socio-territorial assessment and from 30 farms for economic assessment through structured interviews. The questionnaire was designed and sustainability scores, ranging from 0 to 100 points per scale, were calculated according to the IDEA version 3 grid. Results revealed that socio-territorial sustainability scores differed significantly among farm types (p < 0.05). Medium-size taurine herds and large taurine-zebu crossbred herds consistently achieved higher scores in product quality, social involvement, autonomy and the development of local resources, contribution to employment, collective work, animal well-being, and training. In contrast, small and medium zebu herds showed significantly lower performances in these indicators. Economic sustainability scores did not differ significantly across farm types (p > 0.05), with all systems averaging 64 points, indicating comparable levels of economic viability, financial independence, transferability, and efficiency. Overall sustainability score was highest in farms with medium-size taurine herds (66.3 points) and lowest in small- and medium-size zebu herds (59.6 points). Despite generally solid socio-territorial and economic performances, the long-term sustainability of peri-urban dairy farms may be threatened by land pressure and government sedentarisation policies, which could raise production costs and complicate grazing management.

In many tropical countries, woody forage plays an important role in ruminant nutrition. Five woody species commonly used in south-eastern Mali were subjected to a preference test, in order to examine their potential of being included in the rations of stall-fed sheep. A complete randomised block (Latin square) experiment with four rams was carried out during two test periods of five days each to test the appreciation of fresh and dried leaves, respectively, of the five species. On each test day, the five species were offered concomitantly to the rams for 30 min in the morning, and the parameters of their consumption along with the nutritional value were determined. The average consumption of fresh leaves was 160.9 g, 115.8 g, 66.2 g, 11.6 g, and 5.7 g per kilogram of live weight, respectively, for Pterocarpus lucens, Entada africana, Ficus sycomorus, Pterocarpus erinaceus, and Khaya senegalensis. For dry leaves, the consumption per kilogram of live weight averaged 69.3 g, 39.3 g, 25.0 g, 8.4 g, and 3.7 g for P. lucens, F. sycomorus, P. erinaceus, K. senegalensis, and E. africana, respectively. These results indicate that P. lucens, followed by E. africana when fresh, and by F. sycomorus when dry were the most liked species and therefore show potential to be used as a feed supplement in the rations of stall-fed sheep.

The present study provides knowledge about the genetic diversity and population structure of cows in peri-urban cattle herds that are urgently needed for the planning of systematic selection programs. We considered 21 microsatellite markers to identify genetic clusters for 112 dairy cows from Burkina Faso and a reference dataset of European cattle breeds (n = 179). Unsupervised clustering and a model-based approach were used for identification of latent classes and inference of genetic diversity within classes. Overall, the genetic diversity of cows in commercial dairy herds in Burkina Faso was high. Clustering results suggest four genetic clusters. Almost all cows from Burkina Faso shared the same ancestry and were grouped together in cluster 3. The highest expected heterozygosity (HE = 0.74) and inbreeding coefficient (FIS = 0.08) were obtained for this cluster. The other genetic clusters included Original Braunvieh and Tarentaise (cluster 1), Red Holstein (cluster 2) and Fleckvieh (cluster 4). The genetic distances of cluster 3 to the other clusters were large. In conclusion, the poor population structuring, and the low genetic contribution of European cattle breeds underline the need for effective (cross-)breeding strategies for optimal exploitation of heterosis effects and maintaining genetic diversity in dairy cows in Burkina Faso.

Cattle farmers in Africa increasingly face pasture degradation and declining forage resources, relying primarily on naturally occurring woody species to feed livestock during the dry season. Despite their critical role, the deliberate integration of trees through agroforestry remains limited, with little scientific understanding of what drives farmers’ willingness to plant trees. This study fills this knowledge gap by analyzing the determinants and perceptions influencing tree-planting decisions among 450 cattle farmers across Benin. Using descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression, the study identified multiple perceived benefits of tree planting, including improved forage and shade availability, enhanced milk production and animal weight, erosion control, soil fertility improvement, and reduced pressure on forest fragments. Thirteen woody species from eight families were adopted by the farmers, with Leucaena leucocephala (75.6%), Khaya senegalensis (55.6%), Afzelia africana (43.3%), Pterocarpus erinaceus (33.3%), and Mangifera indica (25.6%) being the most frequently planted. Overall, 75.1% of the respondents expressed their willingness to plant trees or shrubs. Education level, farmland size, and farm-forest distance were the key variables influencing the adoption of tree planting. This study provides the first comprehensive analysis of determinants of agroforestry adoption in livestock-based systems in Benin, offering evidence-based guidance for designing targeted interventions that enhance both climate resilience and sustainability of livestock production in West African agropastoral contexts.

To explore urbanization effects on milk fatty acid (FA) profile, 39 farmers from urban and peri-urban locations in Bengaluru, southern India, were visited during three seasons. Individual cow data was collected on breed, milk yield and quality, as well as diet composition in winter 2021 (n = 74), monsoon 2021 (n = 61), and summer season 2022 (n = 104). Location within the city and season affected milk yield, with highest values recorded for urban locations and winter. Milk fat content and FA profiles also varied between locations and seasons, with milk from urban cows containing more linoleic (36 %), n-3 (40 %), n-6 (35 %), and unsaturated (11 %) FA than milk from peri-urban cows. Winter season milk had the highest concentrations of linoleic (19 %) and n-6 (17 %) FA, whereas summer season milk contained more oleic (7 %) and unsaturated (5 %) FA. The results suggest that the alternative feedstuffs used by land-constrained farmers are capable of yielding a high-quality product for consumers.

A wide range of sheep production systems exist in and around urban areas of West Africa to meet the growing demand for sheep meat. In southern Benin, sheep farming is increasingly transitioning from traditional practices to more intensive systems. However, the diversity of these intensification pathways and their implications for food security and sustainability remain poorly understood. This study explored these trajectories through a detailed characterization of 100 sheep farms across urban and peri‑urban areas, examining their implication regarding food security and sustainability. Using factorial analysis of mixed data (FAMD) and hierarchical classification of principal components (HCPC), we identified three distinct sheep farm types, differentiated by enclosure type, type of fattening unit, herd structure (proportion of rams), and fattening duration. Urban farms predominantly adopted intensive, market-oriented ram fattening systems with high input use, while peri‑urban farms kept breeding herds with stronger crop–livestock integration. These systems represent distinct pathways of agricultural intensification, namely labor-intensive and capital-intensive approaches, that ensure a consistent supply of sheep meat to urban markets, enhance household incomes, and contribute to the four pillars of food security: availability, access, stability, and utilization. Nonetheless, these systems pose environmental challenges, particularly in terms of limited manure recycling. Policy priorities should therefore focus on promoting local fodder production, strengthening crop–livestock integration, and incorporating manure management into urban waste strategies. A comprehensive sustainability assessment is needed to quantify environmental impacts and guide interventions that align productivity gains with sustainable resource use.

CONTEXT: Milk production in developing countries is characterized by low per animal yield and disproportionately high GHG emissions. Specific policy recommendations are necessary to improve the technical as well as environmental efficiency of dairy production, especially for small farms. However, limited financial resources owned by producers lead to high transaction costs of introducing change. Both, concentrate feed and roughage, that is dry nonconcentrates, are used in milk production. These inputs are also responsible for methane emissions through enteric fermentation. Especially cellulose-rich dry nonconcentrates are fueling methane emissions through enteric fermentation. OBJECTIVE: Based on a systems approach including nutritional foundations, we estimated technical and environmental efficiency of dairy producers in the rural-urban interface of Bengaluru, India. We studied the shortfall in milk production and excess methane emissions for each dairy farm and their drivers. METHODS: Using panel data of 245 dairy producers, we fitted the production frontier for estimating technical efficiency and treated the emission generating technology like a cost frontier for estimating environmental efficiency - using stochastic frontier analysis. This study uses the parametric application of by-production technology. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: High heterogeneity in enteric methane emissions at low levels of milk yield are related to excessive feeding of dry nonconcentrates by producers. Plotting excess methane emissions beyond the fitted frontier against the share of concentrates in the total feed ration indicated that a global low is reached at around 40 % concentrates in the cows' diet. Therefore, farmers should intensify production by increasing the share of concentrate feed in dairy cattle rations to this level. Also, we suggest promoting the construction of cattle sheds and increasing the proportion of cows with high milk production potential in the herd to improve environmental efficiency. SIGNIFICANCE: With economic growth as well as an increase in population, the demand for dairy products in developing countries will increase and lead to an expansion of dairy production. GHG emissions such as methane from livestock rearing will have to be managed and adequate policy measures will have to be implemented to reduce their share in global GHG emissions. By integrating animal nutrition perspectives and environmental efficiency from economics into a systems approach, we propose specific recommendations for public policy in terms of the target group of producers and the correct proportion of concentrate feed and dry nonconcentrates in total feed rations for dairy cattle in India. This will ensure that producers reach their full potential in milk production and environmental sustainability.

Population growth, urbanization, improved infrastructure, and climate change are reshaping land use systems worldwide, creating spatial trade-offs between economic development, ecosystem services, and cultural heritage. In Ladakh, Himalayan India, mass tourism and recent political changes have triggered a particularly rapid transition from traditional subsistence farming to market-oriented production, raising concerns about the sustainability of changing land management practices, cultural identity, and growing dependence on external inputs. To disentangle these concerns, we investigated land use changes, development patterns, and socio-economic drivers over the past 40 years. To this end we merged Landsat-based remote sensing data with household surveys in two contrasting, urbanizing regions—the Union Territory’s capital Leh and its more remote, third largest town of Diskit. Spatially explicit land cover maps for three periods of the 1970s, the 2000s, and the 2020s revealed an eightfold increase in residential area in Leh, with 41.7% of agricultural land converted to urban use, compared to a twofold increase and only 1.7% farmland loss in Diskit. Expansion of urban land use in Leh occurred in all directions across multiple land use types, while in Diskit, it remained localized to previously unused land. Survey data on socio-economic parameters showed a production shift toward goods demanded by tourism and the military, the latter being linked to border tensions with China and Pakistan. The divergent dynamics highlight the need for integrated spatial planning and scenario analysis to balance globalization-driven development with the conservation of cultural landscapes and ecosystem services. We recommend ecotourism-based strategies as an optimized pathway toward sustainable and multifunctional land systems in mountain regions.