Economic importance of livestock

It is true that eating of too many animal products can increase the risk of heart disease, but this is only a problem in the developed world not in the developing world because the meat they eat is less fatty. Indeed, recent studies from Kenya, Egypt and Mexico show that children who do not eat enough meat and drink enough milk in their diets may grow up physically and mentally compromised. Livestock play a very important role in agriculture and the rural economies of the developing world, not only do they produce food directly, they also serve as farm inputs for crop production. Most of these rural farmers do not have enough capital to buy a tractor, so animal power or human power is used. For many smallholder farmers, livestock are the only ready source of cash to buy inputs for crop production - seeds, fertilizers and pesticides. Livestock income also goes towards buying things the farmers cannot make for themselves. And that includes paying for school fees, medicine and taxes. Income from cropping is highly seasonal. In contrast, small stock, with their high rates of reproduction and growth, can provide a regular source of income from sales. So can milk and milk products like butter and cheese. Larger animals such as cattle are a capital reserve, built up in good times to be used when crops are poor or when the family is facing large expenses such as the cost of a wedding or a hospital bill. In the past, farmers could restore the fertility of their land by letting it lie fallow for several years or longer. But as population pressure increases, fallow periods decline or even disappear and different ways of maintaining food production are needed: enter the animal. Animals are a crucial link in nutrient cycles, returning nutrients to the soil in forms that plants can readily use. They can bring nutrients from pasture and rangeland and concentrate them on crop land through their manure and urine. The animal manure and urine that people in the developed world see as pollutants are vital fertilizers in the developing world. Few smallholders can afford enough mineral fertilizers. Animals give farmers a reason to plant legumes as pastures and cover crops that protect the soil and restore its structure and fertility.