Báo cáo Nghiên cứu khoa học New technologies for improving goat production in central Vietnam

Collaboration for Agriculture and Rural Development (CARD) Program 110 NEW TECHNOLOGIES FOR IMPROVING GOAT PRODUCTION IN CENTRAL VIETNAM Project title: The improvement and implementation of new appropriate technologies for improving goat production and increasing small-holder income in the central region of Vietnam Project code: CARD 009/05 VIE Author(s): B.W. Norton1, Dinh Van Binh2 and Nguyen Thi Mui2 Project implementing organizations: 1 The University of Queensland (UQ), Brisbane Australia 2 Goat and Rabbit Research Centre (GRRC),NIAH, MARD SUMMARY There have already been clear and demonstrated benefits from this Project for small-holder goat farmers in the central regions of Vietnam. Those that have been supplied with vaccines and medicines have found a greatly reduced mortality in their animals, resulting in better growth and a bigger pool of animals to select from for sale or breeding. Farmers who maintained their goat herds through times of local panic about epidemics of goat pox now have the advantage of rapidly increasing prices for goats (May-June 2009) as a result of many farmers selling their goats at an earlier time in response to the scare. All farmers remaining with the project have more than doubled their goat herd size in the past year, and while they maintain them free of disease, they will continue to produce goats for profit. Testimony to the benefits gained came from both small-holder farmers and the DARD staff when describing their experiences during the National Conference sponsored by the Project in Phan Rang, Ninh Thuan in November 2008. A major focus of the project in the first year was the training of DARD officers from Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan and Lam Dong provinces in goat husbandry and management, and these officers were then used to advise and teach farmers during the many workshops conducted, and during on-farm visits. Both technical and senior management were included in the training programs building the capacity of all levels of participation (farmers, commune leaders, DARD technical and administrative staff) for improving the health and productivity of goats in each region. The creation of demonstration farms is a key element of this training, providing a long term and practical demonstration of the value of these technologies to Vietnamese livestock production systems. 1. Introduction Goat production in Vietnam has rapidly expanded in the north with the introduction of new knowledge for disease control, feeding management and the introduction and selection of both local (Co, Bachthao) and exotic (Boer, Saanen, Jumnapari etc) breeds of goats to village systems. These initiatives have been lead by the Goat and Rabbit Research Centre (GRRC) at Bavi, from which an expanding milking and meat goat industry is being developed. While goat meat is not a common commodity in the markets in Vietnam, economic returns for goat farming are high and are attracting many farmers to add goats to their farming enterprises. Goats are particularly important for poor farmers, providing good returns for little investment. The project proposal which has been developed and successfully funded by AusAID under the CARD program was specifically aimed at providing poor farmers in the central provinces of Vietnam (Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan, Lam Dong) with some of the new technologies which have been developed by GRRC in the north. This aim is reflected in the project title “The improvement and CARD 009/05 VIE – Improving goat production in Central Vietnam 111 implementation of new appropriate technologies for improving goat production and increasing small-holder income in the central region of Vietnam”. This is a program which included elements of farm survey, strategic planning for improving health and nutrition of goats, as well as training of key farmers and Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) staff in these new technologies. Extension of these activities to the wider community was achieved by conducting field days/workshops for local farmers using demonstration farms. The following report describes the final outcomes of successfully implementing this project in southeast Vietnam over the period March 2006 to March 2009. 2. Contents and methodology 2.1 Research Contents o Identification and characterisation of target farms o Training and Information Dissemination o Provision of improved housing and health care for goats o Improve the availability and quality of feeds and forages for goats o Provide local Bach Thao bucks of proven genetic merit for breeding o Economic evaluation of impact of new technologies on goat productivity o Support for pilot meat processing facilities at the Ninh Hai Goat Research Centre, Ninh Thuan. Within each objective there were a series of activities associated with milestones and expected outputs, and the outcomes from each of these activities is presented and discussed below. 2.2 Approach and Methodology 2.2.1 General approach The project was located in Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan and Lam Dong provinces which are located in the south central coast of Vietnam, 334 km from Ho Chi Minh city and some 1400 km from Hanoi. The local people are mainly Kinh, Cham, Ede and are amongst the poorest in Vietnam (US$45-65 income per annum). The traditional farming systems vary from rice cropping in the river deltas in Ninh Thuan to upland farming systems based on cassava, root crops, fruit and forest trees and livestock. Goat numbers in 2004 in Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan and Lam Dong were estimated to be 93,930; 35,275 and 9309 respectively. Goats are largely managed by women and children. Income from livestock forms 22 to 25% of total income from agricultural production in this region. Three broad categories of farming systems (lowland high rainfall, upland low rainfall and highland high rainfall) have been selected. The plan is to develop 27 farms (15 in Ninh Thuan, 9 in Binh Thuan, 3 in Lam Dong) by firstly surveying each enterprise and then providing new technologies (housing, health care, nutrition, breeding bucks) as indicated. These participating farmers will be also trained in a short course at GRRC and then on farm by DARD officers in the implementation of these management skills. In each province, 2 farms were selected as demonstration farms which will be used to train other farmers in these techniques and as model of progressive goat production systems. The selected farmers all had experience of goat production, having between 20 and 100 goats and generally sufficient land to grow the required forages. This holistic approach to the introduction of new technologies is preferred to a more fragmented approach where only specific interventions (e.g. disease control only) are made. This approach to development has been successfully applied in north Vietnam and was expected to provide a rapid improvement in productivity in similar systems in central Vietnam. An important new initiative for this project was support for a pilot meat processing plant at the new goat research centre to be built at Ninh Hai in Ninh Thuan. Staff and institutional gaps were addressed by a comprehensive training program, firstly, by training DARD staff at GRRC and linking them with specialist GRRC counterparts, and secondly by using the trained DARD staff to train district officers, participating farmers and the local communities through the dissemination of information through written materials, workshops and demonstrations. This approach was planned to build capacity in Australian collaborators, GRRC staff and B.W. Norton, Dinh Van Binh &Nguyen Thi Mui 112 farmers to work as inter-disciplinary and inter- institutional teams, and to foster a more holistic approach to improving agricultural and animal production in these poor villages in central Vietnam. The Australian partner contribution was largely through the active participation of Dr Norton in all matters relating to the development and introduction of the new technologies, and was complemented by the visit of 5 senior Vietnamese staff to Australia, where they visited goat production farms and processing facilities for meat and milk, as well as inspecting a range of fodder conservation systems. The training programs had as a central aim the preparation of materials for distribution to participating and other local farmers on the technologies available and relevant to each farming system. Extension materials from GRRC for goat farmers in the north were modified to meet the particular needs of farmers in central Vietnam. In the second year, demonstration farms were used to train farmers not currently involved in the project, with a view to spreading information about the new technologies as widely as possible during the time of the project. While many problems were anticipated by the Project at the start, few problems were found when implementing the scheme. All diseases were effectively controlled, there were no natural disasters, and all farmers, GRRC and DARD staff (at all levels) were both co- operative and enthusiastic about participation in Project activities. All planned project objectives were achieved over the 3 year period, in many cases, exceeding expectation. 2.2.2 Implementation Methodologies A key component of this project was the identification of the resources available on the selected farms, and it is from this information that management/ intervention strategies were developed by project staff to overcome the perceived limitations to improved productivity. The first activity of the project was therefore to conduct a survey of each farm to provide the above information, and this information then formed the baseline against which change was measured. The expert GRRC and Australian team then devised strategies for each farm depending on their circumstances. In some cases, a common strategy was applied to all farms (replace bucks, improve goat house, provide vaccines, drugs and recommendations for use), in other cases, the strategy was particular to each farm (improved feed and forage supply). It was recognized that local knowledge of feed resources and disease remedies needed to be evaluated and incorporated into our strategies wherever possible. 3. Results and discussions The progress made in this Project was documented in two places, firstly, reports on management visits to Vietnam by Dr Norton (Management Reports) which were distributed only to Project Managers (Norton, Dr Mui, Dr Binh) as a record of decisions made and secondly as reports on the achievement of objectives listed milestones set by CARD PMU. Comprehensive and detailed reports of the outcomes from each Project activity were recorded in each CARD Milestone Report, and only broad outcomes in relation to Project Objectives are now listed in this report. Implementation Highlights The following objectives were set as outputs of Project activity over the 3 year program. Detailed information from these activities has been reported in “New Technologies for Improving Goat Production in Vietnam” by Barry W. Norton, Nguyen Thi Mui and Dinh Van Binh. The reader of this report is referred to relevant sections of this book for more detail on outcomes. 3.1 Identification and characterisation of target farms A total of 56 farms were surveyed, and 27 chosen for the introduction of the new management technologies. This data were used to describe typical goat farming system in Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan and Lam Dong provinces in south-eastern Vietnam (Chapter 2) and was the basis for determining the impact of Project activities on the productivity of goats in these areas (Chapters 6 and 7). In addition to this baseline information, specific information from selected farms in year 3. These activities were completed in two parts, a CARD 009/05 VIE – Improving goat production in Central Vietnam 113 quarterly assessment of progress on each farm which involved a visit from technical staff to administer vaccines and drugs as well as to record the numbers and weights of goats in each herd (Productivity Survey), and a final survey of farmers circumstances and attitudes to the activities of the Project. The outcomes from these activities were reported in Chapters 6 and 7, and publicised in annual Advisory Board meetings, workshops, and national and international conferences. Goat farm survey 3.2 Training and Information Dissemination Training at all levels of participation was a major focus of project activities and consisted of 8 different programs with various participants. 3.2.1 Training of provincial DARD officers at GRRC These activities continued throughout the 3 year period of the project, starting with a training course at the Goat and Rabbit Research Centre (GRRC) in March 2006, which was then complemented by on-farm training of DARD officers in their own districts and also by including these staff in the workshops held to train local farmers in each province. These trained staff also attended the final conference in Ninh Thuan where they presented their views on the effectiveness of their training and on the relevance of the new technologies used to improve goat production in their districts (Conference Proceedings). There was a good level of continuing participation in the Project following this initial training, with about 75% of staff trained still being involved at the end of the project. The effectiveness of this training was assessed and reported in Chapter 4). 3.2.2 Preparation of demonstration and instructional materials for use with participating farmers Four instructional books in Vietnamese were prepared covering the general areas of Goat Diseases, Goat Care and Housing, Pastures Establishment and Management and Goat Nutrition and Breeds and Breeding Management, and were distributed at all workshops conducted. These manuals have also been translated into English, and were presented as attachments to Milestone 10. The information was continually upgraded as new data on local goat production became available through project activities. 3.2.3 Training participating farmers in the application of new technologies The selection of participating farmers at the beginning of the Project involved assessment of their willingness to learn and implement the new technologies being recommended. Instruction in the application of these new technologies was provided by Project staff during their quarterly visits to each farm, and the effectiveness of their implementation was assessed by senior Project staff who visited each farm at least once every six months. At the end of the project, 19 of the original farmers 27 farmers were still involved in project activities. The effectiveness of their application of the new technologies was assessed at the end of the project by recording the changes in the productivity of their goats and farming enterprises (Chapters 6 and 7) and by assessing the extent to which they continued with the recommended practises after the project ended. These farmers were also used in Workshops to describe their experiences to other farmers interested in taking up new techniques in goat farming. 3.2.3 Presentation of six-monthly reports and review of project progress A total of 6 six-monthly reports of progress were submitted to and approved by the CARD PMU as satisfactory. Appendices of large files were provided as electronic files on an B.W. Norton, Dinh Van Binh &Nguyen Thi Mui 114 accompanying CD. Agenda and minutes of all Annual Board meetings were also reported. 3.2.5 Field day demonstrations of improvements in goat productivity on selected farms in each province in year 2 A total of 11 training courses involving more than 279 farmers have been run across three provinces in 2007 and 2008. Six 2 day workshops were held on demonstration farms. The farms used for this purpose were as follows: Lam Dong - Mr Lung (Farm 25, Duc Trong). Ninh Thuan - Mr Hoa (Farm 22, Thuan Bac), Mr Hung (Farm 23, Thuan Bac), Mr Duc (Farm 17, Ninh Hai), Mr Thanh (Farm 16, Ninh Hai), Mr Long (Farm 12, Ninh Phuoc) and Binh Thuan- Mr Lang (Farm 3, Bac Binh), Mr Man (Farm 2, Bac Binh). 3.2.6 Training visit to Australia to inspect goat production systems and technologies relevant to improving goat productivity in Vietnam This visit to Australia took place between 3-14 May 2008. The following staff came to Australia: Dr Dinh Van Binh Director, Goat and Rabbit Research Centre, and Vietnamese Director, Vietnam-Australia Goat Improvement Project (2006-2009), Dr Nguyen Thi Mui, Senior Consultant, Forage and Pasture Systems, National Institute of Animal Husbandry, Ministry of Agricultural Research and Development, Mr Nguyen Ngoc Hung Vice-Director, Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Phan Thiet, Binh Thuan, Mr Nguyen Duc Hung, Vice-Director, Provincial Veterinary Department, Lam Dong Province, Mr Truong Khac Tri, Director of Animal Breeding Centre, Ninh Thuan Province. During this visit, an inspection tour of sheep and goat properties in southeast Queensland was made, with the intention of providing information on the application of appropriate technologies for optimising animal productivity in Australia farming system. The relevance and application of such technologies for Vietnamese goat and sheep production systems was the main topic of conversation between the visiting Vietnamese scientists. 3.2.7 Train other local and non-participant farmers in goat management This activity was related to other training activities, as stated, a total of 11 training courses for “other farmers” were carried out in 2007 and 2008. All farmers were provided with instruction manuals and first-hand experience of goat management on the demonstration farms listed above. 3.2.8 National Conference/Workshop in Ninh Thuan in year 3 to report impact of new technologies on goat productivity in central Vietnam A National Conference sponsored by the Project titled “The Development and Implementation of New Appropriate Technologies for Improving Goat Production and Increasing Small-holder Income in the Central Region of Vietnam” was held at Hoan Cau Resort, Phan Rang on 20-21 November 2008. The Proceedings of this Conference (English and Vietnamese) is available from CARD or Dr Dinh Van Binh at GRRC. The impact of the new technologies on goat productivity was reviewed by senior Project staff (Dr Dinh Van Binh, Dr Nguyen Thi Mui, Dr Barry Norton), DARD and other government agencies staff and by participating farmers over a two day period. The conclusions from this workshop were that the Project had provided the technologies, leadership and training to make a significant impact on the productivity and profitability of goat farming systems in southeast Vietnam. 3.3 Provision of improved housing and health care for goats 3.3.1 Improved housing for goats Improved housing for goats on each selected farms was achieved by all farms being provided with well constructed and hygienically managed goat houses by the end of the first year of the Project (Chapter 3) 3.3.2 Control of all disease to improve health of goats on all farms. CARD 009/05 VIE – Improving goat production in Central Vietnam 115 Disease control was an on-going issue for the Project until completion of support in June 2009. The most important disease controlled was Goat Pox for which a vaccine was developed and tested by the Project. Other vaccinable diseases controlled were enterotoxaemia and pastuerellosis, but in many cases, these diseases were of less importance that Goat Pox. Intestinal parasites and liver fluke were controlled partly by using anhelminthics and sustained control achieved by improved management practices. Fortunately, no other major disease were encountered during the study. A comprehensive review of disease incidence and treatment has been presented in Chapters 2 and 3 of the Goat Book. Additional information was also provided in the Training Manuals and in the Conference Proceedings. All farmers remaining with the project at the end were continuing to apply the recommended measures for disease control. Examining and taking medicine 3.4 Improve the availability and quality of feeds and forages for goats There were two programs under this heading which were aimed at improving the nutrition of goats on the farms studied. 3.4.1 Provision of improved forage supply to participating farms All participating farms had 1000-1500 square metres of pasture established in the first year during the wet season, and after some minor replanting, vigorously growing pasture plots were available to feed goats by year 2. Well established pasture plots on demonstration farms were used in the workshop to show the techniques of pasture establishment and maintenance. An important component of pasture management was the application of manure collected from under the goat houses as fertiliser. Establishment and maintenance of pastures were presented in Chapter 5 (Pasture development for goat production systems in southeast Vietnam) and Chapter 6 (The impact of new technologies on the productivity and economic returns to goat farming systems in southeast Vietnam) and in the Conference Proceedings and Workshop Manuals). Leucaena K636 in Ninh Thuan (left) and Guinea grass in Binh Thuan (right) 3.4.2 Conservation of forage and local feed resources for dry season The short-term nature of the project (3 years) meant that initiatives in fodder conservation were only possible in the third year, and evaluation could not be easily made in the time available. Most farms studied had a source of irrigation water through the dry season, and were able to maintain the perennial grasses and legumes through this period, providing some feed for stock during the driest periods. The only farms needing conservation were those without access to dry season irrigation, and not only was fodder conservation needed, but also annual rather than perennial pasture plants were needed. However, conservation techniques (hay, silage) were demonstrated and applied to some farms, and reported in Chapter 5 Pasture development for goat production systems in southeast Vietnam) and in the Workshop Manuals. Making hay and silage 3.5 Provide local and introduced Bachthao bucks of proven genetic merit for breeding This objective was achieved by the following broad programs: 3.5.1 Provision of Bachthao bucks to all farms B.W. Norton, Dinh Van Binh &Nguyen Thi Mui 116 As planned, bucks from all farms were replaced by the project in June/July 2007 with new younger bucks (including some Boer and Saanen bucks) from other farms in the south and GRRC. All bucks were weighed and ear- tagged prior to introduction. Four of the 16 Bachthao bucks died been the time of introduction (May 2007) and the end of the Project (June 2008). A record of the impact of these introductions has been reported in Chapters 6 and 7 of the Goat Book. Boer (left) and Saanen (right) bucks provided to farmers in 2007 3.5.2 Successful kidding using proven Bachthao bucks At the time of introduction of new bucks, all other breeding bucks were removed from the farmer’s herd. This was done to maximise the opportunity for the new bucks to mate with the herd does, also allowing an accurate estimate of the mating date from the birth dates of new born kids. All provided bucks proved fertile, and good kidding rates were recorded in the December following this introduction. A detailed analysis of the reproductive performance of these bucks and their progeny has been reported in Chapter 7. (The impact of applying new technologies on the productivity of goats in southeast Vietnam). 3.5.3 Introduction of Boer bucks for cross- breeding in final year It was considered important to first introduce improved management technologies to farmers before giving them exotic breeds to use for cross-breeding. As a consequence, there was only a limited introduction of exotic breeds to Project farmers, one farm was given a Boer buck in May 2006 (start of project) which dies and was replaced by another in September 2007. Two farms were given Saanen bucks which were introduced in December 2007. This limited data was analysed and presented in Chapter 7 (The impact of applying new technologies on the productivity of goats in southeast Vietnam, pages 116-118). There appeared to be little difference in the performance of these two breeds when compared with Bachthao, and all had very similar weights at 12 months of age. Cross-breeding Bachthao with Saanen to improve milk production 3.6 Economic evaluation of impact of new technologies on goat productivity Detailed data on economic activity was collected during the initial survey of goat production systems in southeast Vietnam (Chapter 2) and again in the final survey conducted in June 2008 (Chapter 7, 8). Income and expenditures are reported against the major farming enterprises, cropping and animal production, and some aspects of marketing were investigated. This data was used to estimate farm profitability and accumulation of wealth by farmers inside and outside the project. There was no doubt from these analyses that application of the new technologies significantly increased the profitability of each farming enterprise, in particular, the raising of goats for sale and meat. A detailed discussion of these aspects have been reported in Chapter 2. (Characterisation of Goat Production Systems in Vietnam) and Chapter 6 (The impact of new technologies on the productivity and economic returns to goat farming systems in southeast Vietnam, pages 91-97) and again in Chapter 7 of the same book. The economic outcome of adoption of the recommended technologies was clear, fewer young goats died before weaning and consequently more goats were available for sale or upgrading of the herd. Most farmers preferred to maintain their existing herd sizes and selling all goats in excess of this need. A more detailed analysis CARD 009/05 VIE – Improving goat production in Central Vietnam 117 of this data may not be warranted given that all the information collected was from farmers, and is not able to be verified for its accuracy. 3.7 Support for pilot meat processing facilities at the Ninh Hai Goat Research Centre, Ninh Thuan The aim of this additional activity was to initiate the development of a goat meat processing plant to encourage alternative markets for goat meat and products in central Vietnam. The need for alternative marketing outlets for goat products was considered be an important aspect of this project, although it was realised that any impact would not be evident until sometime after the current project was completed. The initial plan was to establish a pilot meat processing plant at the Ninh Hai Sheep and Goat Research Centre (NHSGRC) near Phan Rang in Ninh Thuan province. However delays in the construction of this new centre meant that an alternative plan was needed, and it was fortunate that there was a new commercial goat slaughter house being built not far from Phan Rang city, offering the possibility of a joint venture in goat meat processing being developed between NHSGRC and a commercial company. This negotiation was duly completed, and agreement reached on using CARD funding providing meat processing equipment to be installed at this location. It is hoped that this new facility will provide an opportunity for small-holder farmers to market processed and packaged meat in the super-markets of Vietnam. 4. Conclusions and recommendations Substantial achievements have been made in this period of the Project with the completion of all planned measurements as well as the implementation of all the strategies proposed at the beginning of the study. In addition, 39 farms outside the project were surveyed for comparison with farms which had successfully implemented Project technologies. Analysis of this data provide a comprehensive view of the limitations to goat production in central Vietnam, and the means to overcome these limitations. Eleven workshops were conducted in 2007 and 2008, involving more than 300 farmers from the three provinces. Training manuals have provided to each farmer, and will form the basis for other workshops run by DARD in the future. A National Conference held in Phan Rang, Ninh Thuan in November 2008 summarised the achievements of the Project which has been judged as highly successful in delivering an improved productivity and profitability of goats to small- holders in southeast Vietnam. The holistic approach of this project to the solution of poor productivity in goats should be used as a model for delivering practical outcomes to farmers in other livestock-farming systems, such as cattle, sheep and integrated cropping systems. Innovative machinery for de-hairing goats References 1. B.W. Norton, N.T. Mui, D.V. Binh. New Technologies for Improving Goat Production in Vietnam (2009) 2. Proceedings of a Conference held in Phan Rang, November 2008. New technologies for improving goat production in southeast Vietnam (2008) 3. Papers presented at The Asian-Australasian Animal Production Conference (AAAP) will be held in Hanoi in 22-25 September 2008 4. D.V Binh, N.T Mui, B. W. Norton. Management technologies for maintaining healthy goats in small-holder systems in south Vietnam. 5. N.T Mui, D. V. Binh and B. W. Norton. New grasses and legumes for small holder goat production systems in south Vietnam 6. Norton, Binh and Mui. Improving the reproductive performance of Bach Thao goats in small holder systems in south Vietnam 7. N. V. Thanh, D. V. Binh, N.T. Mui and B. W. Norton. Prediction of liveweight from girth circumference in Bach Thao goats in south Vietnam