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Kiobia e al.
In . J. Biosci.
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RESEARCH PAPER OPEN ACCESS
Unde s anding he dai y ca le eeding s a egies, awa eness
and pe cep ions o smallholde a me s on hyd oponic odde
echnology, Kibaha Dis ic , Tanzania
Denis O. Kiobia1*, Nelson R. Makange1, Da id D. Maleko2, Hen y F. Mahoo1
1Depa men o Enginee ing Sciences and Technology, Sokoine Uni e si y o Ag icul u e, P.O. Box
3003, Mo ogo o, Tanzania
2Depa men o Animal, Aquacul u e and Range Sciences, Sokoine Uni e si y o Ag icul u e, P.O.
Box 3004, Mo ogo o, Tanzania
Key wo ds: Adop ion, Dai y ca le, Feed, Hyd oponic odde , Seasons, Clima e change, P ac ices
h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12692/ijb/16.6.60-72
A icle published on June 16, 2020
Abs ac
The ole o hyd oponic odde echnology (HFT) on p oducing nu i ious g een eed supplemen s o enhancing
he p oduc i i y o dai y ca le has been mos ly demons a ed in de eloped coun ies. Despi e he bene i s o
HFT, i s adop ion is ye o be popula among smallholde and landless dai y a me s in Tanzania. He e, we
assess he eeding s a egies, awa eness, and opinions o small-scale dai y a me s on HFT. The s udy was a
c oss-sec ional su ey. We ound ha a me s p ac iced ze o-g azing sys ems and none p ac iced on- a m
pas u e p oduc ion. The a e age milk yields in he we season we e highe han milk p oduced in he d y season.
The access o concen a es o supplemen ing he poo oughages was cons ained by un eliable quali y, d y
season sca ci y, and o -season high p ices. The majo i y o a me s we e un amilia wi h HFT and ew a me s
who ha e adop ed he echnology we e cons ained by ag onomic p oblems. The a me 's decision o adop he
HFT o no was ela i ely based on addi ional income e sus he cos o inpu s. Gene ally, we conclude ha HFT
adop ion is s ill poo o nonexis en in mos o he small-scale dai y a ming sys ems o Tanzania. Fu he
esea ch on po en ial solu ions o o e coming he ba ie s owa ds HFT adop ion o sus ainable smallholde
dai y p oduc ion in pe i-u ban a eas is ecommended.
* Co esponding Au ho : Denis O. Kiobia [email protected]. z
In e na ional Jou nal o Biosciences | IJB |
ISSN: 2220-6655 (P in ), 2222-5234 (Online)
h p://www.innspub.ne
Vol. 16, No. 6, p. 60-72, 2020
61
Kiobia e al.
In . J. Biosci.
2020
In oduc ion
In Eas A ica, smallholde dai y a ming has been
no ed o g ow and has g ea po en ial o con ibu ing
o he economic de elopmen o he egion. The
demand o li es ock p oduc s such as milk and mea
is easonably an icipa ed o inc ease because o he
inc ease in popula ion, u baniza ion, and pe capi a
income (Paul e al., 2020). In de eloping coun ies,
smallholde dai y p oduc ion is mos ly ound in
densely popula ed low-income u ban and pe i-u ban
communi ies whe e milk demand is high (F anzel and
Wambugu, 2007).
Abou 33 o 67% o he land in Tanzania is ei he
semi-a id o a id due o empo al and spa ial
dis ibu ion o low and e a ic ain all coupled wi h
high e apo anspi a ion a es (Mongi e al., 2010).
Acco ding o Ku wijila e al. (2012), mos o he
imp o ed dai y ca le a e kep by 37% o o al u al
households who a e concen a ed in he coole
highland egions wi h sub opical clima es such as
Kilimanja o, A usha, Tanga, and Mbeya Regions. The
communal g azing land in Tanzania is sh inking due
o apid human popula ion g ow h. This implies ha
he u u e o milk p oduc ion in he coun y will ely
on in ensi e ze o-g azing sys ems (Ka ana e al.,
2005; Swai e al., 2011).
The basal eeds o con ined animals unde ze o-
g azing sys ems a e mainly ob ained om he c op
esidues such as maize, bean-s o e , and banana
lea es o na u al g asses (Wambugu e al., 2011).
The a ailabili y o on- a m g een odde has been
cons ained by equen d ough s and sho ages o
wa e o i iga ion (Swai e al., 2011). Also, mos
smallholde dai y a me s do no g ow pas u e due o
se e al easons including wa e sho ages, sca ci y o
a able lands, sca ci y o quali y pas u e seeds, and
e en s o na u al calami ies such as wild i es
(Sewando e al., 2016; Salo, 2019).
To o e come he se e e sho age o dai y ca le eed
supplemen s, he usage o g een odde p oduced
h ough he hyd oponic echnology is ad oca ed. The
echnology in ol es g owing plan s in less wa e o
nu ien - ich solu ions wi hou soil p e e ably unde
he g eenhouse en i onmen o a ew days o allow
he g ow h o g een oliage and oo ca pe commonly
called hyd oponic odde (Bakshi e al., 2017). The
hyd oponically g own g een odde esembles a ma
commonly o 20-30 cm heigh including biomass o
oo s, seeds, and plan s (Naik e al., 2015).
Conside ing he a ia ions in season and clima ic
condi ion o he locali y o egion., he p oduc ion o
1kg o g een odde o ba ley, al al a, and Rhodes
g ass has been epo ed o in ol e abou 73, 85, and
160 li e s o wa e in ield condi ion espec i ely while
he same amoun o g een odde o each odde -
p oduc in ol ing abou 1.5-2 li e s o wa e unde
hyd oponic echnology (Kamma e al., 2019). The
HFT has been ecommended in a id and semia id
egions easonably o allow season-less g owing
capabili y, g ow a high numbe o plan s in a limi ed
space, inc ease wa e e iciency, educe he cos o
p oduc ion, manpowe , and he needs o soil as
cu en ly being p ac iced in adi ional a ming
me hods (Agius e al., 2019; Nadu, 2019). The HFT
has also he bene i o elimina ing he soil-bo ne
pes s, weeds, and diseases (Du Plooy, 2012).
Ne e heless, i has been indica ed ha hyd oponic
odde inc eases he diges ibili y o he nu ien s in
poo oughages based a ions and con ibu es
owa ds he inc ease in milk p oduc ion by 8 o 13%
(Naik e al., 2015; Naik e al., 2016). The HFT has
been o g ea po en ial o imp o ing li es ock
p oduc ion including poul y, dai y cows, pigs, and
small uminan species. Success ul ials ha e been
epo ed on ce eal legumes such as maize, ba ley, and
oa s. Among he leading coun ies in he adop ion o
he HFT a e Is ael, he Uni ed Kingdom, Aus alia,
Ne he lands, Spain and Canada (Mu ali e al., 2011).
Acco ding o Schaible e al. 2015, he adop ion o
HFT by smallholde a me s may esul in he good
managemen o he ecosys em, en i onmen al
conse a ion, and good business. In A ica, HFT has
been mainly adop ed in Sou h A ica and o a limi ed
ex en in Eas A ican coun ies in pa icula Kenya
(Sydow, 2010; Njima, 2016). Cu en ly, he s udies in
Tanzania which in es iga e how he inno a ions o
HFT a e being adop ed by small-scale dai y a me s
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Kiobia e al.
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and how a me s pe cei e he co esponding bene i s
and challenges a e limi ed. The o e all aim o his
s udy was o assess dai y ca le eeding s a egies,
awa eness, and pe cep ions on HFT among he
smallholde a me s in Kibaha dis ic , Coas al
Tanzania. This in o ma ion was needed and hough
i al o in o ming he public and p i a e s akeholde s
in e es ed in sus ainable dai y p oduc ion in
Tanzania.
Ma e ials and me hods
S udy a ea
The baseline s udy was conduc ed in he Kibaha
dis ic loca ed app oxima ely 40 kilome e s wes o
Da es Salaam ci y which is he la ges comme cial
ci y o Tanzania. Kibaha is si ua ed be ween la i ude
060 46'S and longi ude 380 55' E, Coas al Tanzania
(Fig. 1).
Fig. 1. Map o Tanzania showing he s udy si e.
Kibaha Dis ic has a opical sub-humid clima e and
wi h a bimodal ype o ain all whe eby sho ains
all be ween Oc obe and Decembe and long ain
be ween mid-Ma ch and May. The ho es mon hs a e
Janua y o mid- Ma ch while he cooles mon hs a e
June and July.
Da a collec ion
The s udy used pu posi e sampling o analyze he
awa eness o hyd oponic echnology among dai y
a me s a he s udy si e. The c oss-sec ional su ey,
especially on he s a us o a dai y a me , adi ional
eeding p ac ices, and a me ‟s awa eness on odde
p oduc ion by hyd oponic p oduc ion and u u e
challenges and oppo uni ies, we e collec ed using a
s uc u ed ques ionnai e ha was uploaded in
and oid sma phone and able s ha we e ins alled
wi h Geog aphical Open Da a Ki (GeoODK)
applica ions. Kibaha dis ic was selec ed as a base o
dai y a me s in he Pwani egion. The selec ion
in ol ed a mul is age andom sampling p ocedu e o
selec he wa ds o be co e ed by he s udy in Kibaha
Dis ic . To ensu e a good ep esen a ion o dai y
a me s in he s udy a ea, se en wa ds ou o ou een
we e selec ed as uni s o sampling. These uni s we e
selec ed on he bases o a la ge numbe o dai y cows
and a me s who conduc ed mos ly ze o-g azing.
The wa ds included Kongowe, Maili Moja, Mkuza,
Msangani, Picha ya Ndege, Tumbi, and So u. The
inal sample o 36 was d awn andomly om he
s udy a eas using Yamane (1967) o mula. This
o mula assumed 95% con idence le el and p ecision
o 0.05; n = N/ [1+Ne2], whe e n is he sample size, N
is he popula ion size dai y a me s pa icula ly unde
ze o-g azing and e is he le el o p ecision.
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Kiobia e al.
In . J. Biosci.
2020
Focus g oup discussion
To alida e he indings o he baseline su ey, he
ocus g oup discussion was conduc ed in each o he
selec ed wa ds. Each wa d included 20 key
in o man s who wa e expe ienced and knowledgeable
on li es ock p oduc ion including poul y, pigs, and
small uminan species.
The discussion in ended o cap u e he eeding
p ac ices, awa eness, and opinions o he small-scale
a me s especially on wo ies, in e es s, and possible
d i e s ha may accele a e he adop ion o
hyd oponic odde p oduc ion echnology a small
scale-dai y a ming in pe i-u ban a eas.
Analysis
The S a is ical Package o Social Sciences (SPSS),
IBM e sion 20 was used o analyze he da a o
explo a o y a iables used o desc ibe he gene al
dai y a ming sys em. Mo eo e , The Chi-squa e es
unde IBM SPSS 20 was used o es whe he he e
was a signi ican di e ence be ween d y and we
season milk yields and he in ol emen o males and
emales in dai y eeding ac i i ies a a 95% con idence
in e al.
Resul s
Desc ip ion o he cu en small-dai y a ming
sys em
The su ey on dai y a me s shown ha he
esponden s we e mos ly male (69%) while he lowe
numbe being no ed o women (31%). Bo h males and
emales we e mos ly ound wi h he p ima y le el o
educa ion (Table 1). The pe cen o dai y- a me s
who kep he hyb id dai y cows ha we e highe o
F iesian ollowed by Je sey and Hols ein while ew
dai y a me s we e ound o keep he local b eed o
Zebu and Mpwapwa and Bo an (Table 1).
Table 1. A cu en ypology o small-daily a ming sys em (%).
Ca ego y o a iable
Desc ip ion
Sub-desc ip ion
(%) o esponden s
A
Le el o educa ion o he esponden
P ima y educa ion
80.0
Seconda y educa ion
14.0
Bachelo deg ee
6.0
MSc. deg ee
0.0
Ph.D. deg ee
0.0
B
B eed kep by esponden
F iesian
27.0
Je sey
25.0
Ay shi e
22.0
Hols ein
15.0
Mpwapwa
5.0
Zebu
5.0
Bo an
0.0
C
Concen a es gi en o dai y cows
Maize b an
40.5
Sun lowe seed cake
24.3
Mine als and i amins
18.9
Molasses
10.8
Co onseed cake
5.4
D
Me hod o eeding
Ze o-g azing
83.0
Ex ensi e-g azing
12.0
Semi in ensi e-g azing
5.0
E
The key pu pose o keeping a dai y cow
Income
39.0
Milk o amily consump ion
33.0
Manu e
24.0
Biogas
4.0
Conside ing he ca ego y a iables o B, C, D, and E, each a me was allowed o espond o mul iple op ions o a
co esponding ca ego y.
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Kiobia e al.
In . J. Biosci.
2020
The highe pe cen age o dai y- a me s we e ound o
eed he dai y cows wi h he concen a e o maize-
b an compa ed o a me s who ed he dai y-cows
wi h he sun lowe cake, mine al and i amins,
molasses, and co onseed cake (Table 1). The main
me hod o keeping he dai y cows was ze o-g azing
ollowed by ex ensi e-g azing and semi in ensi e-
g azing me hod. Based on Table 1, i was also ound
ha he main eason behind a me s o keep he dai y
cows was ea ning income and ge ing milk o hei
consump ion while manu e and biogas p oduc s
being gi en low p io i y by he a me s. Fu he mo e,
he household indica ed o keep 1 o 2 dai y cows.
Such dai y cow(s) may ha e a s a us o being
p egnan o lac a ing (Table 2). In he case o
lac a ing cows, he highe pe cen o a me s
indica ed o hold he dai y cow in a s age o 1-3
mon hs o 4-7 mon hs o lac a ion (Table 2).
Table 2. A ailabili y o p egnan cows, lac a ing cows, and cow's lac a ion s age.
Va iable o he cow p oduc ion s a us
Numbe o cows
Numbe o Fa me s
(%) o a me s
P egnan cows
1.0
9
52.9
2.0
6
35.3
3.0
1
5.9
20.0
1
5.9
To al
17
100
Numbe o lac a ing cows
1.0
19
44.2
2.0
13
30.2
3.0
5
11.6
5.0
3
7.0
7.0
2
4.7
8.0
1
2.3
To al
43
100
S age o lac a ion
1-3 Mon hs
19
44.2
4-7 Mon hs
18
41.9
> 7 Mon hs
6
14.0
To al
43
100
Each a me was allowed o espond o mul iple op ions o a gi en a iable indica ing he cow p oduc ion s a us.
P oduc ion o dai y ca le unde we and d y season
condi ion
Conside ing Table 3, he a e age numbe o milked
cows du ing he we season (did no easonably di e
om he a e age numbe o milked cows du ing he
d y season (p- alue =0.34, α=0.5). Howe e , he
a e age daily milk (li e s) pe cow du ing he we
season was ound o di e signi ican ly om ha o
he d y season (P- alue = 0.001, α=0.5).
Table 3. E ec s o he we season (No embe o May) and d y season (June o Oc obe ) on he numbe o milked
cows and milk p oduc ion.
The a e age numbe o milked cows
A e age daily milk (li e s/ cow/day)
We season
D y season
We season
D y season
A e age
2.7 (0.55)
2.5(0.45)
6.2 (0.35)
4.4(0.27)
Sign. (2-Tailed)
++
**
++ = No Di e en (p- alue =0.34, α=0.05) and ** = Di e en (p- alue = 0.001, α=0.05), he numbe s ou side
he b acke indica e he mean and he numbe s inside he b acke indica e he s anda d de ia ion.
65
Kiobia e al.
In . J. Biosci.
2020
Cu en a me 's eeding s a egies in he we and
d y season
The esul s shown in Fig. 2 indica e ha ze o-g azing
was he mos dominan g azing echnique employed
by he in e iewed a me s (84%) du ing bo h we
season and d y season. The a e age numbe o
a me s who used he ex ensi e g azing me hod was
nea ly equal o he a e age numbe o a me s who
p ac iced he semi-in ensi e g azing me hod. The
esul s indica ed also ha he pe cen age o a me s
who p ac iced in ensi e-g azing and semi-in ensi e
g azing did no change hei eeding p ac ices based
on ei he we season o d y season.
Table 4. In ol emen o emale and male in eeding me hod du ing he d y and we season.
Feed me hod
To al
Chi(χ2),p
Season
Ze o g azing
Semi-In ensi e g azing
Ex ensi e g azing
D y season
Female
9(30.0)
2 (50.0)
0 (0.0)
11
Male
21(70.0)
2(50.0)
2(100)
25
(1.597), 0.450
To al
30 (100)
4 (100)
2(100)
36
We Season
Female
8(28.6)
2(40.0)
1(33.3)
11
Male
20(71.4)
3(60.0)
2(66.7)
25
(0.273), 0.872
To al
30(100)
5(100)
3(100%)
36
Fo columns o Ze o-g azing, Semi-in ensi e-g azing, and Ex ensi e-g azing, he numbe s ou side he b acke =
numbe s o a me s and numbe s inside he b acke indica e he pe cen age o a me s.
Pa icipa ion o emale and males on eeding me hod
du ing he d y and we season
Conside ing he pa icipa ion o he males and
emales on eeding p ac ices du ing he we season
and d y season (Table 4), he numbe o males who
conduc ed he ze o-g azing eeding me hod du ing
he we and d y season was highe han he numbe o
emales. Bo h male and emale dai y a me s
indica ed li le in e es o conduc ex ensi e and
semi-in ensi e g azing me hods in he we and d y
season. The p opo ion o emales and males in
op ing he ex ensi e g azing was simila . The e was
no di e ence be ween emale and male a me s who
op ed o use any o he me hod nei he in d y season
(Chi (χ2) =1.597, p= 0.45 α =0.05) no in we season
(Chi (χ2) =0.273, p= 0.872 α =0.05). Besides, he e
was no any a me who exp essed o se aside an a ea
o g ow pas u e unde i iga ion.
Table 5. Fa me 's awa eness and adop ion o hyd oponic odde p oduc ion.
% o a me ‟s esponses (n =36)
To al (%)
The aspec o hyd oponic odde p oduc ion
Yes (%)
No (%)
Awa eness on hyd oponic odde
16.7
83.3
100
Adop ion o hyd oponic odde p oduc ion echnique
5.6
94.4
100
Majo challenges o dai y ca le eeding
The p io i iza ion o eeding p oblems (Fig. 3) was
ound in h ee g oups o animal odde 19 (53%) and
eed concen a es 15 (42%) and o he s.
The odde s we e exp essed in e ms o high dis ance
o odde a eas, high cos o odde anspo a ion,
and accessing o good quali y odde especially in d y
season while he concen a es we e exp essed based
on cos , quali y, and a ailabili y ega dless o he ype
o season. O he s included he ejec ion o ei he
odde o concen a es by animals and lack o
innocen hi ed casual labou s o eeding animals.
Conside ing Fig. 4, abou 58.3% did no exp ess he
use o di ec cash o pu chase he odde . The odde
was collec ed by ei he amily membe s o casual
labou who we e paid a he end o he mon h due o a
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Kiobia e al.
In . J. Biosci.
2020
combina ion o wo ks. I was u he no ed ha abou
10 (27.8%) o he a me s elied on he odde die
wi h o wi hou ou ine supplemen s. Besides, we
no ed ha a me s did no eed o age and
concen a es based on animal weigh and
physiological condi ions.
Table 6. Fa me 's opinion on hyd oponic odde p oduc ion echnique.
Decision
To al
Aspec s
Desc ip ion
Yes (%)
No (%) No (%)
Posi i e
esponse
In e es on hyd oponic odde p oduc ion
36 (100.0)
0 (0.0)
36 (100)
Need o aining and dissemina ion
36 (100.0)
0 (0.0)
36 (100)
Space o ins alla ion o p oduc ion acili y
36(100.0)
0 (0.0)
36(100)
Accessibili y o wa e o i iga ion
36(100.0)
0 (0.0)
36(100)
Doub s
A ailabili y odde quali y seeds and espec i e seed cos
23 (63.9)
13(36.1)
36 (100)
Cos o ino ganic nu ien s and a ailabili y
31(86.1)
5 (13.9)
36 (100)
The need o a pe manen s uc u e such as g eenhouse
27(75.0)
9 (25.0)
36(100)
Rejec ion and accep abili y o li es ock animals
19 (52.8)
17 (47.2)
36 (100)
Low odde p oduc ion unde o ganic nu ien s
26 (72.2)
10 (27.8)
36 (100)
Cyanide e ec o ende e plan odde s
11 (30.6)
25 (69.4)
36(100)
Low nu i i e alue o odde due o he use o ino ganic e ilize s
32 (88.9)
4 (11.1)
36 (100)
P oducing hyd oponic odde a la ge scale
17 (47.2)
19 (52.8)
36 (100)
Numbe s ou side he b acke = numbe s o a me s, and numbe s inside he b acke = pe cen age o a me s.
Main concen a es and a e age use
Following he concep o a a me using mo e han
one eed supplemen as indica ed in Table 1, he
maize b an was men ioned as he main supplemen
ollowed by sun lowe seed cake in he supplemen a y
a ion. The mine als and i amins sco ed he hi d
posi ion while he co onseed cake and molasses
supplemen s indica ed lowe sco es among he
men ioned concen a es. Mos o he a me s (10-
30%) supplemen ed hei cows wi h 2 o 5kg pe day
when excluding he mine al concen a es (Fig. 5).
In o mal discussion wi h he a me s e ealed ha
less han 2 Kg/cow/day is ine ec i e owa ds
s imula ing inc eased milk ou le . While o e 5 Kg
was hough unp ac ical due o he high p ices o he
concen a es, he p ice o hese concen a es was
ound o be be ween $0.35 and $ 0.6 pe kilog am.
Fig. 2. Pe cen age o he me hod o eeding unde d y and we season.
67
Kiobia e al.
In . J. Biosci.
2020
Awa eness and adop ion o hyd oponic odde
p oduc ion
Based on Table 5, i was ealized ha he majo i y o
dai y li es ock a me s we e unawa e o he
hyd oponic odde p oduc ion echnique. Few
a me s (16.7%) we e ound o be amilia wi h HPFT
and decla ed ha he majo sou ce o in o ma ion on
HPFT was h ough he in e ne and adio. On ano he
hand, he pe cen age o adop ion was lowe among all
in e iewed dai y li es ock a me s.
Fig. 3. Lack o adequa e animal eeds o dai y
a me s.
Pe cep ions o a me s on hyd oponic echnology
Based on Table 6, mos o he a me s 26 (72.2%) and
17 (47.2%) exp essed he conce ns on he abili y o
o ganic nu ien s o p oduce he hyd oponic odde
and he possibili y o p oducing i a a la ge scale
espec i ely. On he o he hand, a me s exp essed
conce n abou he a ailabili y o odde quali y seeds
and espec i e seed cos s. Fa me s 27(75%) indica ed
he wo ies on he need o a pe manen s uc u e
such as a g eenhouse.
Discussion
P oduc ion o dai y ca le unde we and d y season
condi ion
We ound ha he a e age numbe o milked cows
du ing he we season did no easonably di e om
he a e age numbe o milked cows du ing he d y
season. The a e age daily milk (li e s) pe cow du ing
he we season was lowe han ha o he d y season.
Simila indings we e obse ed in Paul e al. 2020.
The e ec on milk yield may be due o lack o odde
du ing he p olonged d ough s ha a ec he g azing
land, dec ease he wa e a ailabili y o li es ock, and
some imes leading o animal dea h (Sewando e al.,
2016). Mo eo e , he dis ance o sea ching he
odde , quan i y, and quali y o na u al pas u e has
been epo ed o exace ba e he milk quan i y du ing
d y and sho ain pe iods (Epaph as e al., 2004).
Lack o land o odde cul i a ion, labo equi emen ,
and high cos o e iliza ion has been conside ed as a
sou ce o low milk p oduc ion o such small a me s
(MOA, 2014). Rod iguez e al. 2004 sugges he
g owing hyd oponics odde as he con ol o such
li es ock eed die s and imp o e pe o mance
Feeding s a egies in he we and d y season
The ze o-g azing me hod was he mos dominan
g azing echnique employed by he in e iewed
a me s du ing bo h he we season and d y season.
The same indings we e obse ed in Ka ana e al.
(2005). The ze o-g azing a ms we e ound o
pe o m poo ly unde ecological and economic poin
iews due o he use o low e icien concen a es and
byp oduc s as sugges ed in Meul e al. (2012).
Reco e ing on he eeding o inadequa e and low
quali y concen a es o op imizing cows‟ a ions wi h
mo e o age would be suppo ed by he use o
hyd oponic odde . Such kind o odde would be
easily accessed annually unde he household le el
h ough he use o hyd oponic odde p oduc ion
echnology. Mo eo e , we ound 11-14% o a me s o
engage wi h ex ensi e g azing in d y and we seasons.
Howe e , acco ding o Bohm e al. (2009); Keyyu e
al. (2006), his ype o g azing p ac ice has been
no ed o lead o highe a es o in e -he d con ac and
disease ansmission han unde o he managemen
p ac ices. The eason behind such pe cen o dai y
li es ock a me s o engage in ex ensi e g azing
me hods could be he lack o adequa e odde o eed
he dai y cows du ing ze o-g azing. Fu he mo e, he
numbe o males was highe han he numbe o
emales unde he ze o-g azing me hod du ing he
d y and we season. The eason o he li le numbe
o emales o engage in he keeping o dai y cows
could be he challenges associa ed wi h eeding he
68
Kiobia e al.
In . J. Biosci.
2020
li es ock such as sea ching o g een odde ,
anspo a ion o o age om a long dis an a ea, and
accessibili y o quali y eed concen a es.
Majo challenges o dai y ca le eeding
The p io i iza ion o eeding p oblems was ound
especially on animal odde and eed concen a es.
We ound he o age o be ob ained om a long-
dis ance especially du ing he d y season. The same
indings we e epo ed in Gillah e al. (2013) who
ound a me s in nea by pe i-u ban a eas o Da -es-
Salaam o co e abou 14.7km in sea ching o o age
mainly using ehicles and bicycles/heads. The
a ailabili y o o age du ing he d y season was also
associa ed wi h he high cos o anspo a ion and
low-quali y condi ions. The access o he imp o ed
a ie y o plan ed o ages, c op- esidues, and high-
ene gy concen a es was limi ed.
Fig. 4. Pu chase o odde and animal supplemen s.
On ano he hand, he ene gy and p o ein- ich
concen a es we e obse ed as a second majo
p oblem acing a me s due o sca ci y, lack o good
quali y, and high p ice. Simila esul s we e epo ed
in Meul e al. (2012). O he p oblems included he
disease o animals, labou s o eeding animals, and
lack o enough d inking-wa e o animals we e
obse ed o con ibu e abou 6% o he hind ance.
Mo eo e , mos o he a me s (58.3%) did no
exp ess he use o di ec cash o buy he odde . The
o ages we e collec ed ei he by amily membe s o
casual labou . I was u he no ed ha abou 10
(27.8%) o he a me s elied on he odde die wi h
o wi hou ou ine supplemen s. Howe e , he
amoun o o age ha is b ough o li es ock is o en
limi ed due o o age a ailabili y and ela i ely
limi ed g azing land (Keyyu e al., 2006; Caudell e
al., 2017). Besides, a me s did no eed o age and
concen a e based on he animal's weigh and
physiological condi ions. Fo ins ance, mos o he
a me s exp essed o eed abou 2kg/cow/day wi hou
conside ing any o he animal‟s weigh and he
physiological condi ion o he speci ic cow. The
eason o eeding he dai y cows wi hou conside ing
he physiological condi ion o he animal could no
only be a ibu ed o a lack o adequa e capi al bu
also he beha io due o adi ional eeding and li le
ag icul u al ex ension se ices.
Awa eness and adop ion o hyd oponic odde
p oduc ion echnology
Al hough hyd oponic odde has been ad e ised and
pe cei ed by some p oduce s as a solu ion o d ough ,
he majo i y o he esponden s we e ound unawa e
o he hyd oponic odde p oduc ion echnique. The
ba ie o awa eness and adop ion could be a ibu ed
o he low le el o educa ion among he a me s.
Howe e , in o he published s udies, he cos o
se ing up hyd oponics sys ems was a majo ba ie
(Singh, 2012). C o e al. (2017) also p opose he
eason o less adop ion in de eloping coun ies o be
subjec o he nega i e pe cep ion o he p o i abili y
o he hyd oponic sys em and lack o c i ical
e alua ion on i s po en ials. Bu he au ho
encou ages a me s o apply e o s on high- alue
nu i i e c ops in a eas whe e soil-based p oduc ion
is no an op ion. Also, wo se clima ic ac o s (namely
high ho ai and oom empe a u e) and he poo
quali y o supply wa e due o high ha diness and
salini y (mos ly due o sodium chlo ide) cha ac e ize
some o he main ag onomic cons ain s o he
di usion o hyd oponic sys ems o he g eenhouse
(Tognoni and Pa dossi 1998).
Pe cep ions o a me s on hyd oponic echnology
A e a sho desc ip ion o he exp ession o
hyd oponic odde p oduc ion, a me s exp essed an
in e es in he knowledge and skills a di e en
