MILK Symposium review: Sustainability of dairy production and consumption in low-income countries with emphasis on productivity and environmental impact

摘要

Sustainable milk production and consumption inlow-income countries must address food security andclimate change mitigation simultaneously. Socioeconomicsustainability is paramount in low-income countries,where milk production and consumption representa vehicle to improve human nutrition and health,as well as the potential for economic opportunity andimproved livelihood of subsistence farmers. These benefitscan only be achieved with judicious use of animalstocks and agricultural practices that do not exhaustavailable natural resources, which are often shared byregional farming communities. Milk and dairy foodsprovide variety to the diet and make significant contributionsto meeting the needs for high-quality protein,calcium, magnesium, selenium, riboflavin, vitamin B_(12),and pantothenic acid (vitamin B_5) in at-risk populations,particularly children, pregnant women, and theelderly. Milk production in low-income countries occurslargely in smallholder mixed crop-livestock systemswhere animals play multiple roles and may suffer fromundernutrition, leading to negligible or no milk productionduring several months of the year. Non-foodroles of livestock include draft, fuel (manure), store ofcapital, and insurance against crop failure. These rolesand the social standing associated with animal ownershipmay incentivize the maintenance of large herdsthat place stress on feed (land) and water resources.Under these circumstances, sustainable intensification(i.e., increasing milk production from currently availableresources) represents the single most importantand practical strategy to improve the sustainability ofmilk production and consumption in low-income countries.Improving the genetic potential of animals andthe availability of quality feed, and providing balancednutrition are the most promising strategies to improvemilk production and sustainability in low-income countries.For example, the deficit for milk in Ethiopia isestimated at 4.5 billion liters/year, which can be closed,in part, with balanced animal nutrition. Milk productionin low-income countries will be more sustainableif it relies on natural resources available locally andregionally to supply essential nutrients to at-risk humanpopulations.