Evaluation of the productivity of crossbred dairy cattle on smallholder and government farms in the Republic of Malawi













Table of Contents


Kwaku Agyemang¹ and Lidie P. Nkhonjera²

¹Highlands Programme, ILCA,
P.O. Box 5689, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

²Department of Animal Health and Industry,
Ministry of Agriculture, Lilongwe, Malawi.

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ILCA Research Report No. 12 A joint report by the Government of Malawi and the International Livestock Centre for Africa February 1986

ORIGINAL: ENGLISH
February 1986

KEY WORDS

/Malawi/livestock management//animal performance//reproductivity//milk production//small scale farming//state farms//dairy cattle//crossbreds//calves/

MOTS-CLES

/Malawi//conduite du bétail//performance zootechnique//performance de reproduction//production laitière//petite exploitation//ferme d'Etat//bovin laitier//produit de croisement//veau/

ISBN 92-9053-072-3

This electronic document has been scanned using optical character recognition (OCR) software and careful manual recorrection. Even if the quality of digitalisation is high, the FAO declines all responsibility for any discrepancies that may exist between the present document and its original printed version.


Table of Contents


Abstract

Resume

Preface

Acknowledgements

1. Background

General introduction
Objectives of analyses

2. Analyses of smallholder dairy records

Introduction
Cattle breeding
Data preparation

Problems encountered and bases for exclusions
Cow performance traits

Data analyses

Notations

Management of smallholder dairy farms
Results and discussion of analyses

Reproductive performance
Productive performance
Dairy productivity
Analyses of productive performance traits in Blantyre North and Thyolo North

3. Analyses of female calf body weight data from Chizombezi and summary of cow performance at Tuchila multiplication centre

Introduction
Management practices at Chizombezi and Tuchila
Calf performance at Chizombezi

Birth weight, daily weight gain and actual and adjusted weaning weights

Comparison between cow performance at Tuchila and on smallholder farms

Reproductive performance
Productive performance

4. Analyses of production records from Chitedze and Bwemba

Introduction
Chitedze agricultural research station

Management practices

Bwemba livestock multiplication centre

Management practices

Reproductive performance of cows at Chitedze

Age at first calving
Calving interval and days open

Productive performance of cows at Chitedze

Total lactation yield, lactation length, milk yield per lactation day and dry period
Annual milk yield

Reproductive performance of cows at Bwemba

Age at first calving
Calving interval and days open

Productive performance of cows at Bwemba

Total lactation yield, lactation length, milk yield per lactation day and dry period

5. Analyses of dairy production data from Mikolongwe livestock unit

Introduction
Mikolongwe livestock unit

Management practices

Reproductive performance

Calving interval and days open

Productive performance

Total lactation yield, lactation length, milk yield per day of lactation and dry period

Dairy productivity

Annual milk yield per cow

6. Unified analysis of dairy production characters on smallholder farms and government units

Introduction
Predicted performance of F1 crosses between Friesian and local cattle
Cow body size
Comparisons among breeds at government units and on smallholder farms

Performance of 7/8 Friesian -1/8 Malawi Zebu and Friesian cows at Chitedze and Bwemba
Performance of Friesian - Malawi Zebu crosses and Friesian 'off-type' crosses
Performance of Friesian cattle at Mikolongwe, Bwemba and Chitedze

Conclusions and recommendations

References

The consultative group on international agricultural research