Improving dairy production in northern Nigeria
Most milk in northern Nigeria is produced by cattle in low input, low yielding systems. Dairy productivity can be increased by cattle feeding better quality diets.
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This factsheet uses production systems from Katsina Province as an example of how milk yields and income from dairy production can be improved in northern Nigeria.
Current production systems
Most milk is produced for home consumption by indigenous cattle kept by pastoralists. Cattle are kept in large herds and graze on natural pasture managed in a traditional pastoral system. In the dry season cattle are fed purchased crop residues. Excess milk is sold at local markets.
Issues limiting milk production
Animal genetics
Local cattle breeds have low milk yields
Low quality feed
Diets are based on perennial grasses and crop residues
High animal mortality & low reproduction rates
Largely caused by disease & inadequate nutrition
Modelled baseline household
- 60 Bunaji cattle (local breed) + their offspring
- Calves weaned at 4 months, and cows milked for up to 9 months
- Cows graze pastures dominated by tropical tussock perennial grasses
- Baseline mortality is 17%
Modelled intervention to increase production
Interventions are limited as nutrition and feed constraints in this region limit introduction of Friesian crossbreds or improved feeds such as concentrates
Improved pasture
Cows fed improved pasture by oversowing natural pasture with a legume (e.g. Stylosanthses sp.)
An intervention can increase production
Modelled impacts of an intervention to dairy production systems in Katsina Province, north Nigeria.
| Herd size (head) | Number of births per year | Number animals sold per year | Adult mortality (%) | Inter-calving interval (m) | Milk yield (kg/cow.year) | |
| Baseline | 60 | 15 | 9 | 17 | 16 | 372 |
| Improved pasture | 70 | 23 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 827 |
Modelling of an intervention shows milk yield can be increased when cattle are fed higher quality diets.
Key messages
There are limited opportunities to increase milk yields in these extensive grazing systems.
Improved breeds such as Friesian cattle and their crossbreds are unsuitable due to the low availability and quality of local feed resources.
Milk yields can be increased by oversowing native pasture with a legume to increase diet quality.
Download the Improving dairy production in northern Nigeria factsheet here.