Smallholder dairy farmer characteristics and their relationships with type of breeds kept in Uganda

Abstract

Smallholder dairy farming is increasingly becoming an important source of livelihoods for farmers in Lake Victoria agro-ecological Zones (LVZ) in Uganda. This study was carried out in 3 major milk producing regions in Uganda. The main objective was to establish relationships between household characteristics with type of dairy breeds (technology) and also identify the factors that influence choice of a given dairy breed technology. Data came from 236 dairy producing households obtained from a secondary data set of the Uganda National Household Survey (UNHS) for year 2009. The data generated were analyzed using both descriptive statistics (ANOVA tests and chi-square tests) and a multinomial logistic model. The results revealed that out of the 236 studied households 166 had local dairy cows, 58 had improved dairy cows and 12 mixed breeds (both local and improved). The average milk yield was significantly different across households by type of dairy breed. The highest average milk yield was observed among households keeping improved dairy breeds (4.1l/day), 3.5l/day for households keeping mixed breeds and those keeping local had the lowest average milk yield (2.1l/day). The multinomial logistic model further revealed that the choice of improved dairy breeds for milk production over local dairy cows was significantly influenced by access to veterinary services, bicycle ownership and being located in the south western region at 1% level, education and age of the household head at 5% level, ownership of a motorcycle and market access at 10% level. Adoption of mixed breeds over local breeds is strongly influenced by household size, market access and farmer being located in the south western region at 5% level. The study evidently indicated the need to promote improved cows and local cows alongside improved cows (mixed) for sustainable dairy subsector development through extending veterinary services and training of dairy households especially among elderly household heads to adopt better dairy management practices.

Keywords: Smallholder farmers; dairy technology; multinomial logistic, choice of breeds