As reported last week in a scientific paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science (PNAS), Global trends in antimicrobial use in food animals, worldwide antimicrobial consumption is expected to rise by a staggering 67% between 2010 and 2030. Continue reading
‘Africa could be on the brink of an agricultural revolution. Political commitment to the sector is thankfully gaining momentum as an effective route to bring African populations out of hunger and poverty. But there is also talk that the region’s potential croplands should feed the rest of the world as well, in addition to providing vast quantities of biofuels. However, a new scientific paper released this week suggests African countries should cast global requests aside and instead focus on staple crop production to feed the continent first.’ Continue reading
Jimmy Smith, director general of the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), gave one of three keynote presentations at the recent Agricultural Research Congress, held in Karnal, India, at the National Dairy Research Institute, from 3 to 6 Feb 2015. Continue reading
Livestock matters a great deal in developing countries, playing an increasingly important role in food security and economic development. In fact, the livestock subsector is growing faster than all other agriculture sectors in developing countries worldwide. And importantly in the International Year of Family Farming, the bulk of that livestock production is occurring on small family farms. Livestock farming offers unique features to support local livelihoods and economies, especially for women. Continue reading
The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), which turned 40 years old in 2014, organized a series of events with old and new colleagues, partners and friends, and with them looked back on what we have accomplished in the past 40 years and fleshed out ideas for the next 40. Continue reading
Jimmy Smith, director general of the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), provided a vision of what livestock production in the developing world will look like in 2054, 40 years from now. He presented this on the first of a two-day conference being held this week (6–7 Nov 2014) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, to mark the 40-year anniversary of ILRI. Continue reading
A major presentation was made at a special side event at the Borlaug Dialogue, in Iowa, on 15 Oct 2014. The side event was hosted by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) as part of a series marking ILRI’s 40-year anniversary this year. The presentation was made by Chris Delgado, who in 1999 led ground-breaking studies showing that a ‘Livestock Revolution’ was taking place in the global South. Continue reading
A slide presentation ILRI director general Jimmy Smith presented last July on why we should care about the world’s ‘so-called ‘mixed’ crop-and-livestock agricultural systems. Continue reading
The topic of this year’s Tropentag International Conference, being held in Prague, Czech Republic, and which opened today, is ‘Bridging the gap between increasing knowledge and decreasing resources’. Jimmy Smith, director general of the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), gave a keynote presentation at the opening titled The interplay of knowledge and natural resources: Health, wealth and environmental benefits of livestock. Continue reading
The new National Climate Assessment released recently by President Obama’s Global Change Research Program contains dour predictions about the impact of climate change on livestock production in the United States. How can the country’s livestock sector adapt to these changes? One strategy suggested in the report will be familiar to experts at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). It involves raising livestock and crops together and taking advantage of the synergies between the two. Continue reading
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