CASE STUDY

• Biotechnology


  The application of biology to create fresh products, processes, and creatures that aim to benefit human health and society
• Biotechnology has been around since the beginning of civilization, with the domestication of plants and animals and the discovery of fermentation
• Biotechnology is interconnected with several branches of Science, each with a purpose for contributing to the lives of people within our society, including the branch of Agriculture
• Agriculture


  Humans are environmental engineers who disrupt the livings' habitats in particular ways
• Biotechnology


  • Provides tools for the farmers to make a much cheaper and manageable production
  • One example is the engineered crops that were made through biotechnology, which tolerates herbicides making the weed control more simple and efficient
• Use of artificial insemination (AI) in dairy farming

  1. Importing high milk-yielding breeds like Holstein/Friesians

  2. Establishing the National AI Center (NAIC) to locally produce and distribute semen

  3. Crossbreeding the Malawi Zebu with superior dairy genetics through the use of imported semen
• Adoption of AI


  Significant increases in average milk yields, from 2-3 liters per day for Zebu cows to 8-15 liters per day for the crossbred animals
• Milk marketing is organized through milk bulking groups (MBGs) that bulk milk and sell to processors
• A typical farmer can earn net profits of around $6,240 annually from milk sales with a herd of 10 crossbred cows
• Challenges remaining


  • Limited availability of high-yielding breeding stock within the country
  • Irregular supply of semen and liquid nitrogen for AI
  • Low-input feeding systems limiting productivity
  • Low AI adoption rates with only 10% of the national herd bred through AI due to service delivery constraints
• Lessons learned highlight the need to improve domestic breeding populations and AI service delivery to reduce dependence on genetics imports for sustainable dairy development