Livestock Production Systems and Their Implications for Beef Supply in District Shaheed Benazirabad, Sindh, Pakistan

Livestock Production Systems and Their Implications for Beef Supply

Abstract

Pakistan is considered to have a huge livestock sector that is important in terms of agricultural and food security, of which beef contributes greatly. To improve, it is necessary to understand trends in production locally. Objectives: To determine the farm attributes, animal husbandry, health management, and their marketing trends among livestock farmers in the district of Shaheed Benazirabad and the implications of this on beef production. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of 72 livestock farmers in four talukas (Sakrand, Nawabshah, Daur, and Qazi Ahmed) was conducted using a standardized questionnaire. The information on the type of farms, housing, feeding, herd size, health practices, record keeping, and marketing was collected and analyzed using descriptive statistics and LSD tests. Results: Agriculture was mainly dairy (84.54%), with no professional meat farm. The most prevalent types of housing were a semi pacca (65.79 percent) and medium herd sizes (11 50 animals, 68.56 percent). Feeding was mainly stalling feeding and grazing (76.25), and 72.50% of the farmers were using concentrates. Some of the most vital gaps were noticed: animal identification was not done in all the farms, and only 10.42% of the farms had records. The farmers were treated by veterinarians (82.99%), but 17.01% self-medicated. Intermediaries contributed to 49.29 percent of the total marketing. Conclusions: The production of beef in Shaheed Benazirabad is limited through the ancient traditional methods, poor record keeping, and market inefficiencies. Housing, nutrition, health management, identification systems, and coordinated marketing interventions are much needed to enhance the productivity and livelihoods of farmers.