. Sustainable growth of the Kenyan dairy sector; A quick scan of robustness, reliability and resilience. Report 3R Kenya/WLR 979. AbstractThis report provides an overview of how the Kenyan dairy sector performs in three analytical domains: the robustness of the supply chains, the reliability of institutional governance and the resilience of the innovation system. Analysis is by literature review, stakeholder interviews and a validation workshop guided by a SWOT framework to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. The findings inform the existing opportunities and challenges that potentially impede growth in the sector.The report is a first step towards documenting and sharing insights that support the move towards a more Robust, Reliable and Resilient (3R) dairy sector. The findings and recommendations presented will guide policy engagement and action in the transition of Dutch government bilateral engagement in Kenya from development aid-support to a trade approach in the agricultural sector, with a focus on partnering opportunities to drive competitive market-oriented dairy sector development that attracts investments. Work in progressThis working paper aims to identify how the dairy sector in Kenya performs in terms of the robustness of supply chain, reliability of institutional governance and resilience of innovation systems, by analysing the opportunities and constraints with respect to the 3Rs. The working paper entails the first output of the 3R project and provides a first stepping stone in project implementation. Therefore this is work in progress and the authors welcome any feedback from stakeholders on this working paper. DownloadThis working paper can be downloaded for free at http://dx

Litter moisture contents vary greatly between and within practical poultry barns. The current experiment was designed to measure the effects of 8 different dietary characteristics on litter and excreta moisture content. Additionally, free water content and water activity of the excreta and litter were evaluated as additional quality measures. The dietary treatments consisted of nonstarch polysaccharide content (NSP; corn vs. wheat), particle size of insoluble fiber (coarse vs. finely ground oat hulls), viscosity of a nonfermentable fiber (low- and high-viscosity carboxymethyl cellulose), inclusion of a clay mineral (sepiolite), and inclusion of a laxative electrolyte (MgSO4). The 8 treatments were randomly assigned to cages within blocks, resulting in 12 replicates per treatment with 6 birds per replicate. Limited effects of the dietary treatments were noted on excreta and litter water activity, and indications were observed that this measurement is limited in high-moisture samples. Increasing dietary NSP content by feeding a corn-based diet (low NSP) compared with a wheat-based diet (high NSP) increased water intake, excreta moisture and free water, and litter moisture content. Adding insoluble fibers to the wheat-based diet reduced excreta and litter moisture content, as well as litter water activity. Fine grinding of the oat hulls diminished the effect on litter moisture and water activity. However, excreta moisture and free water content were similar when fed finely or coarsely ground oat hulls. The effects of changing viscosity and adding a clay mineral or laxative deviated from results observed in previous studies. Findings of the current experiment indicate a potential for excreta free water measurement as an additional parameter to assess excreta quality besides total moisture. The exact implication of this parameter warrants further investigation.

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We argue that an understanding of livestock farming as normative practice clarifies how sustainability is to be understood in livestock farming. The sustainability of livestock farming is first approached by investigating its identity. We argue that the economic aspect qualifies and the formative aspect founds the livestock farming practice. Observing the normativity related to these aspects will be the first task for the livestock farmer. In addition, we can distinguish conditioning norms applicable to the livestock farming practice which should be observed for competent performance of the practice. Failing to do justice to this normativity might affect the practice’s sustainability only in the long term—this is especially the case with conditioning norms. Motives to observe normativity have, therefore, the character of an ultimate conviction regarding the flourishing of the practice. Finally, the sustainability of the livestock farming practice crucially depends on the broader food system of which it is part.

The role of faith and religion in international development cooperation is hotly debated today. The legitimacy of this role remains, however, often confided to instrumental reasons. Yet, thinking about faith and religion only in instrumental terms leaves unquestioned the possibility of a religious background of development cooperation as a practice itself and the potential role of faith through individual practitioners that operate within secular NGOs, and research and policy institutes. The aim of the present paper is therefore to consider the structural role of faith and worldview in relation to agricultural development, moving beyond the discourse of instrumentality. We do this by focusing on Giller and Andersson's political agronomy analysis of the promotion of Conservation Agriculture in Zimbabwe by the faith-based organisation 'Foundations for Farming'. We argue that a distinction should be made between religion as a practice of believers and faith functioning as a worldview in every practice. In addition, we argue that it is helpful to distinguish between different kinds of practices involved in agricultural development in sub-Saharan Africa, namely farming practice, agronomic scientific practice, and faith practice. The value of this philosophical analysis is that it challenges a dichotomous model of 'science-based versus faithbased' approaches to agricultural development. Furthermore, specific kinds of normativity are identified as always already functioning inside practices, rather than practices being neutral spaces that are (subjectively) infused with normativity by applying external ethical standards.