Dairy goat welfare in semi-intensive production systems and drought conditions

The region of Coquimbo has the highest percentage of goats (Capra hircus) in Chile and is severely affected by droughts. This can lead to environmental challenges such as limited water and forage availability when goats are kept in natural grasslands. The objective of this study was to assess the welfare of dairy goats in semi-intensive production systems under drought conditions. The study was carried out in La Serena city, region of Coquimbo, Chile and 22 semi-intensive dairy goat farms were assessed using the Animal Welfare Indicators protocol. In each evaluation, the following indicators and information were gathered: physical and behavioural indicators of animal welfare, farmers' sociodemographic information, farm facilities, husbandry practices and management of the farm, and farmers' perception of animal welfare. Of the goats evaluated (n = 446), the vast majority had a body condition score (BCS) considered normal (n = 349; 78.25%). The main welfare problems were poor hair condition, faecal soiling, overgrown claws and improper disbudding or dehorning. The majority of farmers (96%) considered it 'rather important' or 'very important' to handle their goats in a gentle manner, expressing concern about the welfare of their animals and considering pain as a negative experience for goats. A lower than expected percentage of very thin animals (low BCS) were seen, considering the drought conditions and the forage shortage that affects the region, and no animals were observed with signs of thermal stress. The semi-intensive production systems could be an alternative to pasture-based systems to overcome environmental challenges.

analysis of infrastructural support for high-tech development of the domestic economy in the context of neo-industrialization

Nowadays the high-tech sector plays a key role in economic development. The sector of high-tech and knowledge-intensive production is legally considered as a driver for the development of the domestic economy. However, the boundaries of any development are determined by the resource potential, in which the infrastructure component plays an important role. The search for opportunities to maximize the positive effects of investing in high-tech production in conditions of a total shortage of conditionally free financial resources is actualized by the need to implement the neo-industrial concept of economic development as a response to the challenges of the modern world economic system, which confirms the relevance and determines the purpose of this study. The effectiveness of the innovative component of the economic development of the state is predetermined by the quality of the processes of high-tech and science-intensive production in the context of the need to integrate the new industrial basis of the national economy into the system. This problem primarily affects the level of microeconomic systems that form regional economic systems, which, in turn, determine the pace and quality of development of the national economy.

Environmental Impacts Associated with Intensive Production in Pig Farms in Mexico through Life Cycle Assessment

In this research, environmental impacts associated with the intensive production of pigs on a farm in Mexico were determined through the application of life cycle assessment methodology. The research was focused on the following stages of the product system: (i) pig rearing and growth phases; (ii) production operations in the pig-house; (iii) the supply of feed. The life cycle inventory database was mainly made up of data collected in field visits to local farms. The functional unit was defined as one finished swine weighing 124 kg. The results for the selected impact categories of carbon, water, and energy footprints were 538.62 kg CO2eq, 21.34 m3, and 1773.79 MJ, respectively. The greatest impact was generated in the final stages of pig fattening, mainly due to the large quantity of feed supplied. The impacts caused by operation of the pig farm were less significant, their contribution in all cases was less than a third of the total quantified values. The energy conversion of pig slurry improves the environmental performance of the product system by reducing the carbon footprint.

THE STRUCTURE OF PRODUCTION FACTORS IN FARMS AND THEIR PRODUCTIVITY. THE CASE OF VEGETABLE FARMS IN POLAND

An increase in productivity in agriculture is achieved thanks to technological progress and changing the structure of production factors into more economically effective ones. The observed directions of changes include: production intensification and an increase in the capital-labour ratio. The aim of the presented research is to determine whether the level of production efficiency in vegetable farms depends on the structure of production factors involved in the farm. In this study, data from the Polish FADN for 2010-2017 were used. It was found that the productivity of inputs and profitability of production were at a similar level in each group of farms, while the profitability of work was the highest in farms with capital-intensive production techniques. It was 60% and 100% more, respectively, than in farms with land-intensive and labour-intensive techniques. On the basis of the obtained results, it can be concluded that an increase in the capital-labour ratio leads to a significant increase in labour productivity. In future, rational support for investments on farms may lead to an increase in the competitiveness of agriculture, as well as an increase in the scale of production and changes in the structure of agriculture.

Effects of Intensive and Semi-Intensive Production on Sheep Milk Chemical Composition, Physicochemical Characteristics, Fatty Acid Profile, and Nutritional Indices

Dairy sheep farming is a vital sector of the agricultural economy in Greece. Information on the effect of the farming system on sheep milk characteristics is critical for producing dairy products with improved nutritional value according to the current guidelines for healthy food consumption. This study aimed to investigate the basic composition, physicochemical characteristics, fatty acid composition, and nutritional indices of milk produced in intensive and semi-intensive sheep farms. Bulk tank milk samples from 20 intensive and 20 semi-intensive sheep farms were examined. Sheep in the intensive farms were kept indoors and were fed with roughage, silage, and concentrates. Sheep in the semi-intensive farms were kept indoors during the night and were moved to the pastures during the day. Sheep were fed with roughage, silage, and concentrates in combination with grazing. Milk composition and somatic cell count were determined with automatic analyzers. The physicochemical characteristics were determined with standard laboratory methods. The fatty acid composition was analyzed by gas chromatography. The farming system did not affect milk chemical composition and physicochemical characteristics. However, milk fatty acid composition and nutritional value were significantly improved in milk from farms using the semi-intensive production system, and this favorable effect was attributed to the inclusion of pasture in sheep diet.

Effect of Intensification Practices, Lambing Period and Environmental Parameters on Animal Health, and Milk Yield and Quality in Dairy Sheep Production Systems on Crete

Due to increasing demand, many traditional, grazing-based Mediterranean sheep production systems have introduced intensified feeding regimes, increased investments in infrastructure and drug use to increase milk yields. However, compared to bovine milk production systems, there is limited knowledge about the impact of these intensification practices on animal welfare and health and on the quality of dairy products. The aim of this study was therefore to quantify the effects of management practices and environmental conditions background on udder health, parasitism and milk quantity and quality in Cretan traditional production systems. Milk yields were higher in semi-intensive production systems while concentrations of several nutritionally desirable compounds such as omega-3 fatty acids were found to be higher in milk from extensive systems. Antibiotic and anthelmintic use was relatively low in both extensive and semi-intensive production systems. There was no substantial difference in parasitic burden, somatic cell counts, and microbiological parameters assessed in milk. Recording of flock health parameters showed that animal health and welfare was high in both extensive and semi-intensively managed flocks, and that overall, the health status of extensively managed ewes was slightly better. In contrast, environmental conditions (temperature and rainfall) had a substantial effect on parasitism and milk quality.

Farm Production Diversity in Aquaculture Has Been Overlooked as a Contributor to Sustainability

Like many sectors, the expansion of aquaculture has issues related to sustainable resource use and environmental change. These challenges are widely recognised and are addressed with sectoral strategies. Even when culturing a single species, the specifics of impacts, constraints, and pressures are likely to vary in effects for different farm types. On the other hand, production efficiencies can drive farms towards homogeneity. A simple model is used in this study to demonstrate farm-scale budgets and the pressure to intensify production towards an optimum. A range of interventions can provide incentives for less intensive production: these include price premiums and altered cost bases. Integrated multitrophic aquaculture (IMTA) does not offer a route to less intensive production systems if the productivity of the extractive species (e.g., algae) is linked to the intensity of the fish farm, although alternative incentives for IMTA are possible. Increases in the intensity of production (as stocking density) can be mitigated by increasing farm capacity. An expanded production model suggests that this will lead to larger farms at relatively high stocking densities. Where farms are subject to variable economic and biological processes, this can lead to some combinations of intensity and capacity to have less variable earnings than others. The promotion of diverse aquaculture sectors may allow some of the ecological and social synergies available to smaller farms to be combined at a regional scale with the greater production of large farms. Cost, price and/or regulatory incentives are needed to create diverse production systems.

Intensity of Khasi Production: Understanding the Challenges of Modern Agriculture System in Betel Leaf Cultivation

The intensive agriculture system is prominent in the mainstream production technique of Bangladesh. The paper illustrates the contests of the traditional production system of Khasi about mainstream social and economic expectations of resource use. The specific Khasi adaptation process and the patterned dependency on available environmental resources can be observed in the traditional Khasi production practices. Meanwhile, the logic on the need for intensive production has been rising in the changing socio-economic resource maximization process towards sustainability. The impact of the mainstream trends of agriculture practices on a small-scale economy has been analyzed here with the changes in labor mobility, mechanism of labor control, production cost, and hierarchy issues of the traditional production system. The research findings reflect that modernity initiatives have changed the social and natural support system in production, and changes occur in the system through the market-induced priority of development. The production process is trending towards intensive cultivation. Whether a generalized community, i.e., dependent on multiple natural yielding, diversified forest resources, and social value-oriented cultivation system, can continue the traditional living in a staple food dominated mainstream agro-economy. The study shows that intensive production is growing in the traditional production field of Khasi with modern technologies. As the ongoing production process is found segmented and capital intensive, the research suggests the community-based production behavior to defend the vulnerability of the economic capital-poor Khasis of Bangladesh.