F odder makes up 70 percent of livestock inputs and is crucial to the livelihood of poor livestock-keepers in most developing countries. However, several factors continue to threaten its supply. Most livestock-keepers depend on agricultural crop residues and grass provided by the grazing of common or fallow land supplemented by cultivated grasses. But most crops are rain-fed and can’t be relied on. In addition, shifts in crop type and variety tend to reduce the availability of feed, as does encroachment from other land uses. Over-grazing often leads to the degradation of grazing ground, and to make matters worse, a consistent push to develop crossbred animals that are more productive but input-intensive, has accelerated the problem.
