sustainable intensification

This study quantifies the water and land footprints of current livestock production systems in three agro-ecological zones in Kenya that contrast strongly in terms of land availability and rainfall. Across the three agroecological zones, improving breeds, feed provisioning and milk production per cow may achieve production intensification but concurrently exacerbates resource limitation. Consequently, the heterogeneity inherent in resource availability across dairy production zones should be considered when developing strategies for increasing dairy production. »

This book promotes the view that sustainable food systems requires thorough insights into the structure and dynamics of agro-food production systems, the drivers for integrating food value chains and markets, and key incentives for supporting healthier consumer choices. The contributed papers focus on interfaces between food system activities and processes of adaptive change that are critical for overcoming key constraints and trade-offs between sustainable food and healthy diets. »

This paper reviews the state of knowledge of the role of herbivores in sustainable intensification of key farming systems in Sub-Saharan Africa. In SSA, the integration of livestock into farming systems is important for sustainable agriculture as the recycling of nutrients for crop production through returns of animal manure is a central element of the dominant mixed crop-livestock systems. The pathways to sustainable agriculture in SSA include intensification of production and livelihood diversification. »

This article examines two dimensions wherein smallholder farmers may adapt agricultural practices; through intensification or diversification. Aspects of adaptive intensification include access to information and human capital. In contrast, there are few global drivers of adaptive diversification, »

This paper analyzes the influence of informal institutions on farmers’ access to land resources, financial resources, and farm inputs to achieve Sustainable Crop Intensification (SCI). Results indicate that informal institutions play a central role in enhancing farmers’ investment in SCI interventions. »

This article discusses the dynamics, drivers and trade-offs of grazing system expansion and intensification. Grazing systems dynamics are driven by a complex combination of socio-economic, political and environmental contexts. »