Research aimed at the development of market-oriented smallholder dairying is a partial answer to the growing concern about providing urban centres with food. Its importance results from the high ranking given to dairy products among food commodities.
The assessment of ILCA experience gained from previous work indicated the value of using consistent methods across sites. This conceptual framework for research on dairy systems has been developed in response to the concern for research relevance and impact. Although initially developed for use in sub-Saharan Africa, the principles of this conceptual framework are valid for other ecoregions as well. The methodologies developed for each phase and presented in subsequent working documents of the ILCA market oriented smallholder dairy research theme might equally prove useful in those other regions.
