Indian Research Journal of Extension Education, Special Issue (Volume II), 2012 49

Integrated Crop-Livestock Farming Systems: A Strategy for

Resource Conservation and Environmental Sustainability

Vinod Gupta1, Pradeep Kumar Rai2 and K.S. Risam3

1,2 &3. Directorate of Ext. Edu., Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology-Jammu
Corresponding author e-mail: [email protected]

ABSTRACT
Conventional agriculture is known to cause soil and pasture degradation because it involves intensive tillage, in
particular if practised in areas of marginal productivity. An integrated crop-livestock farming system represents a
key solution for enhancing livestock production and safeguarding the environment through prudent and efficient
resource use. The increasing pressure on land and the growing demand for livestock products makes it more and
more important to ensure the effective use of feed resources, including crop residues. An integrated farming system
consists of a range of resource-saving practices that aim to achieve acceptable profits and high and sustained
production levels, while minimizing the negative effects of intensive farming and preserving the environment. Based
on the principle of enhancing natural biological processes above and below the ground, the integrated system is
the combination that (a) reduces erosion; (b) increases crop yields, soil biological activity and nutrient recycling;
(c) intensifies land use, improving profits; and (d) can therefore help reduce poverty and malnutrition and strengthen
environmental sustainability. The waste products of one component serve as a resource for the other. For example,
manure is used to enhance crop production; crop residues and by-products feed the animals, supplementing often
inadequate feed supplies, thus contributing to improved animal nutrition and productivity. Integrating crops and
livestock serves primarily to minimize risk and not to recycle resources. In an integrated system, crops and livestock
interact to create a synergy, with recycling allowing the maximum use of available resources. Crop residues can be
used for animal feed, while livestock and livestock by-product production and processing can enhance agricultural
productivity by intensifying nutrients that improve soil fertility, reducing the use of chemical fertilizers. A high
integration of crops and livestock is often considered as a step forward, but small farmers need to have sufficient
access to knowledge, assets and inputs to manage this system in a way that is economically and environmentally
sustainable over the long term.
Key words: Integrated farming system; Crop-livestock; Environmental sustainability; Resource conservation;

In recent years, food security, livelihood security, agriculture “Integrated Farming Systems” hold special
water security as well as natural resources conservation position as in this system nothing is wasted, the by-
and environment protection have emerged as major product of one system becomes the input for other.
issues worldwide. Developing countries struggling to Integrated farming is an integrated approach to farming
deal with these issues and also have to contend with as compared to existing monoculture approaches. It
the dual burden of climate change and globalization. It refers to agricultural systems that integrate livestock
has been accepted by everyone across the globe that and crop production. Moreover, the system help poor
sustainable development is the only way to promote small farmers, who have very small land holding for
rational utilization of resources and environmental crop production and a few heads of livestock to diversify
protection without hampering economic growth. farm production, increase cash income, improve quality
Developing countries around the world are promoting and quantity of food produced and exploitation of
sustainable development through sustainable agricultural unutilized resources. Population growth, urbanization and
practices which will help them in addressing socio- income growth are fuelling a substantial increase in the
economic as well as environmental issues demand for food of animal origin, while also aggravating
simultaneously. Within the broad concept of sustainable the competition between crops and livestock (increasing
50 Indian Research Journal of Extension Education, Special Issue (Volume II), 2012

cropping areas and reducing rangelands). The livestock techniques; and cropping systems that reduce nutrient
revolution is stretching the capacity of existing losses and can improve livestock impacts on the soil
production, but it is also exacerbating environmental environment.
problems. Therefore, while it is necessary to satisfy Key principles :
consumer demand, improve nutrition and direct income Cyclic. The farming system is essentially cyclic (organic
growth opportunities to those who need those most, it is resources – livestock – land – crops). Therefore,
also necessary to alleviate environmental stress management decisions related to one component may
(Delgado et al., 1999). affect the others.
An integrated farming system consists of a range Rational. Using crop residues more rationally is an
of resource-saving practices that aim to achieve important route out of poverty. For resource-poor
acceptable profits and high and sustained production farmers, the correct management of crop residues,
levels, while minimizing the negative effects of intensive together with an optimal allocation of scarce resources,
farming and preserving the environment. Based on the leads to sustainable production.
principle of enhancing natural biological processes above Ecologically sustainable. Combining ecological
and below the ground, the integrated system represents sustainability and economic viability, the integrated
a winning combination that livestock-farming system maintains and improves
(a) Reduces erosion; agricultural productivity while also reducing negative
(b) Increases crop yields, soil biological activity and environmental impacts. Some lessons learned and
nutrient recycling; recommendations
(c) Intensifies land use, improving profits; and • The maintenance of an integrated crop livestock
(d) Can therefore help reduce poverty and malnutrition system is dependent on the availability of adequate
and strengthen environmental sustainability. nutrients to sustain animals and plants and to
Livestock and crop production systems are an maintain soil fertility. Animal manure alone cannot
integral part of one another (Kallah and Adamu 1988). meet crop requirements, even if it does contain the
Crop residues provide fodder for livestock (Van Raay kind of nutrients needed. This is because of its
and de Leeuw 1971; Al hassan et al. 1983) while, relatively low nutrient density and the limited quantity
occasionally, grain provides supplementary feed for available to small-scale farmers. Alternative sources
productive animals. Animals improve soil fertility through for the nutrients need to be found.
manure and urine deposition and animal power for farm • Growing fodder legumes and using them as a
operations and transport. Sale of animals sometimes supplement to crop residue is the most practical and
provides cash for farm labor and agricultural inputs. cost-effective method for improving the nutritional
There are several examples of completely integrated value of crop residues. This combination is also
crop–livestock production systems where sustainable effective in reducing weight loss in animals,
increases in both crop and livestock production have particularly during dry periods;
been achieved after considerable periods (30–40 years) • Given their traditional knowledge and experience,
of continuous cropping without resulting in land local farmers are perfectly able to apply an
degradation. Some of them are the close settled zone integrated system. In practice, however, relatively
(CSZ) of Kano in northern Nigeria (Harris 1995), few adopt this system, mainly because they have
Banamba in Central Mali (Abou Berthe, personal limited access to credit, technology and knowledge.
communication), and Batalay in southern Chad (K.N. The crop-pasture rotation system is complex and
Ngwara, personal communication). The key success to requires a substantial capital outlay for machinery
these farming systems is effective crop–livestock and implements. Associations of grain and livestock
integration involving the recycling of nutrients within the producers are useful for filling these gaps and can
system. A particular challenge facing farmers is to promote the adoption of a crop livestock system;
minimize nutrient losses through good management • Better livestock management is needed to
(Powell and Valentin 1997); improved feed safeguard water. Livestock water demand includes
production, quality, availability, and more efficient feeding water for drinking and for feed production and
systems; new ways to capture and conserve nutrients processing. Livestock also have an impact on water,
excreted by livestock; improved manure spreading contaminating it with manure and urine. All of these
Indian Research Journal of Extension Education, Special Issue (Volume II), 2012 51

aspects need to be given due consideration. The result of this cyclical combination is the mixed
• Intensification of agriculture through appropriate farming system, which exists in many forms and
incorporation of small livestock has the potential to represents the largest category of livestock systems in
decrease the land needed for agricultural production the world in terms of animal numbers, productivity and
and relieve the pressure on forests. the number of people it services. (Van Keulen and
Advantages : Economic analysis of different farming Schiere, 2004).
systems (one hectare of irrigated land or 1.5 ha of un- Animals play key and multiple roles in the
irrigated land) indicated that under irrigated conditions, functioning of the farm, and not only because they
mixed farming with crossbred cows yielded the highest provide livestock products (meat, milk, eggs, wool, and
net profit, followed by mixed farming with buffalo, and hides) or can be converted into prompt cash in times of
arable farming. Mixed farming with Hariana cows made need. Animals transform plant energy into useful work:
a loss (Singh et al. 1993). Comparative productivity animal power is used for ploughing, transport and in
and economies of dairy enterprises (mixed farming with activities such as milling, logging, road construction,
three crossbred cows on one hectare of canal irrigated marketing, and water lifting for irrigation. Animals also
land versus mixed farming with three Murrah buffalo) provide manure and other types of animal waste.
indicated that mixed farming with crossbred cows under Excreta have two crucial roles in the overall
canal-irrigated conditions was more efficient for the sustainability of the system:
utilisation of land, capital, inputs and the labour resources (a) Improving nutrient cycling: Excreta contain several
of the farmer (Kumar et al. 1994). Baseline surveys
nutrients (including nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium)
in Gujarat India, indicated that around 75 per cent of
and organic matter, which are important for maintaining
rural households kept cattle in the face of under-
soil structure and fertility. Through its use, production is
employment. More particularly, the farm surveys
increased while the risk of soil degradation is reduced.
showed that cattle kept mainly for milk, contributed 32
per cent and 20 per cent for tribal and non-tribal ethnic (b) Providing energy: Excreta is the basis for the
groups respectively (Patil and Udo 1997). By production of biogas and energy for household use (e.g.
comparison to cows and buffaloes, lactating goats cooking, lighting) or for rural industries (e.g. powering
contributed between 54-68.9 per cent to total farm mills and water pumps). Fuel in the form of biogas or
income through the sale of milk (Deoghare and dung cakes can replace charcoal and wood.
Bhattacharyya 1993; 1994; Deoghare and Sood Crop residues represent the other pillar on which
1994). The significance of milk production from goats the equilibrium of this system rests. They are fibrous
and the links to food security and livelihoods of the poor by-products that result from the cultivation of cereals,
has recently been reviewed (Devendra 1996). In an pulses, oil plants, roots and tubers. They are a valuable,
integrated system, livestock and crops are produced low-cost feed resource for animal production, and are
within a coordinated framework. (Van Keulen and consequently the major source of nutrients for livestock
Schiere, 2004). The waste products of one component in developing countries. The overall benefits of crop-
serve as a resource for the other. For example, manure livestock integration can be summarized as follows:
is used to enhance crop production; crop residues and • Agronomic, through the retrieval and maintenance
by-products feed the animals, supplementing often of the soil productive capacity;
inadequate feed supplies, thus contributing to improved
• Economic, through product diversification and
animal nutrition and productivity.
higher yields and quality at less cost;
• Ecological, through the reduction of crop pests (less
pesticide use and better soil erosion control); and
• Social, through the reduction of rural urban migration
and the creation of new job opportunities in rural
areas.
This system has other specific advantages
• It helps improve and conserve the productive
capacities of soils, with physical, chemical and
biological soil recuperation. Animals play an
Fig 1. Integrated Crop–Livestock farming system:Key aspects
52 Indian Research Journal of Extension Education, Special Issue (Volume II), 2012

important role in harvesting and relocating nutrients, in digestibility and protein content. Improving intake
significantly improving soil fertility and crop yields. and digestibility of crop residues by physical and
• It is quick, efficient and economically viable because chemical treatments is technically possible but not
grain crops can be produced in four to six months, feasible for poor small farmers because they require
and pasture formation after cropping is rapid and machinery and chemicals that are expensive or not
inexpensive. readily available (Keftasa and International
• It helps increase profits by reducing production Livestock Centre for Africa, 1988).
costs. Poor farmers can use fertilizer from livestock • Crop residues are primarily soil regenerators, but
operations, especially when rising petroleum prices too often they are either disregarded or misapplied.
make chemical fertilizers unaffordable. • Intensive recycling can cause nutrient losses.
• It results in greater soil water storage capacity, • If manure nutrient use efficiencies are not improved
mainly because of biological aeration and the or properly applied, the import of production and
increase in the level of organic matter. transportation, and the surpluses lost in the
• It provides diversified income sources, guaranteeing environment.
a buffer against trade, price and climate fluctuations. • Farmers prefer to use chemical fertilizer instead of
One key advantage of crop-livestock production manure because it acts faster and is easier to use.
systems is that livestock can be fed on crop residues • Resource investments are required to improve intake
and other products that would otherwise pose a major and digestibility of crop residues. Mixed farms are
waste disposal problem. For example, livestock can be prone to using more manure than crop farms do.
fed on straw, damaged fruits, grains and household Manure transportation is an important factor
wastes (Fakoya, 2002). Integration of livestock and affecting manure use.
crop allow nutrients to be recycled more effectively on Challenges
the farm. Manure itself is a valuable fertilizer containing
• Develop strategies and promote crop livestock
8 kg of nitrogen, 4kg of phosphorus and 16 kg of
synergies and interactions that aim to
potassium to the tone (FAO, 1999). Adding manure to
the soil not only fertilizes it but also improved its structures (a) Integrate crops and livestock effectively with
and water retention capacity (ILCA, 1988; FAO, 1996) careful land use;
opined that where livestock are used to graze, the (b) Raise the productivity of specific mixed crop-
vegetation under plantations of coconut, oil palm and livestock systems;
rubber, as in Malaysia, the cost of weed control can be (c) Facilitate expansion of food production; and
dramatically reduced, sometimes by as much as 40 (d) Simultaneously safeguard the environment with
percent. In Colombia sheep are sometimes used to prudent and efficient use of natural resources.
control weeds in sugarcane. Draught animal power is • Devise measures (for instance, facilitating large-
widely used for cultivation, transportation, water lifting scale dissemination of bio-digesters) to implement
and powering food processing equipment. Using draught a more efficient use of biomass, reducing pressures
animal reduces the need for foreign exchange to buy on natural resources; and develop a sustainable
expensive tractors and fuel (Jahnke, 1992). According livestock manure management system to control
to International food security treat Campaign (1984) environmental losses and contaminant spreading.
it was estimated that 52 percent of the cultivated area
Opportunities
in developing countries excluding China is farmed
• Intensification of agriculture which is currently
exclusively with draught animal, animal traction, bringing
heavy but potentially very productive soil into production. occurring in most farming systems favours crop–
According to FAO (1997) cow dung is highly valued livestock integration.
for used for cooking and heating in many countries. • Poor soil fertility, unavailability or increases in prices
Alternatively, 25kg of fresh cow dung makes on cubic of fertilizers, and labour shortages, have forced
metre of biogas, which can be used to provide energy farmers to rely on alternatives such as manure and
for light, heat or motive power. traction.
• Farmers can grow crop in the wet season and
CONSTRAINTS engage in livestock enterprises in the dry season.
• Nutritional values of crop residues are generally low • Livestock enterprises are more lucrative than crop
Indian Research Journal of Extension Education, Special Issue (Volume II), 2012 53

farming so it is advantageous to integrate livestock can help in to reducing the poverty and malnutrition and
into farm activities. strengthen environmental sustainability.
• Many indigenous, emerging, and developed The increase in demand for livestock products
technologies are available to support sustainable presents opportunities for small farmers who can
crop–livestock integration. These include improved increase livestock production and benefit from related
cereal and grain legume varieties, cropping systems, income. (Delgado et al.,1999). However, in terms of
weed and nutrient management strategies, the environmental impact, the growing number of livestock
eradication of most livestock diseases, and the and the increase in livestock processing can have a
development of modeling and all-year-round feed negative impact on natural resources unless actions are
packages for animals. taken to identify farming practices that are economically
Socioeconomic factors : Systems modeling and GIS and ecologically sustainable. The highly improved
applications, combined with socioeconomic information, integrated crop-livestock system can guarantee more
such as identification of areas where market driven sustainable production and therefore constitutes a valid
intensification is ongoing and impact is likely to be greater new approach. Experience in the use of this system
(Ndubuisi et al. 1998), should have a role in optimizing has shown that
the targeting of new technologies. For instance, an (a) Adopting sustainable management practices can
approach needs to be included encompassing the “whole improve production while preserving the
system” while aspects including the determinants of environment;
farmer decision-making and opportunities for using (b) Residues, wastes and by-products of each
technologies (such as improved varieties, cropping component serve as resources for the others; and
systems, better ruminant nutrition, weed and nutrient (c) Poor farmers have the traditional knowledge needed
management) to enable existing sustainable systems to to integrate livestock and crop production, but
address the challenges of increased intensification need because of their limited access to knowledge, assets
to be included. and inputs, relatively few adopt an integrated
Establishing effective input (e.g., fertilizer) and system.
support services (e.g., veterinary delivery systems) and The challenge for development practitioners is to
establishing infrastructure (e.g., roads, processing, and ensure that poor small farmers can increase the
marketing facilities); are important. An appropriate productivity of traditional farming systems, adopting an
strategy would be to select technologies with the highest effective integrated system that produces usable
potential impact from the above areas, in order to form biomass while conserving natural resources, and can
a holistic package for testing and dissemination with a therefore be sustainable in the long term. Within this
view to maximizing total productivity at the farm level. framework some key questions discussions are:
This holistic approach should be supported by • How can livestock production increase to meet the
socioeconomic information such as determinants of growing demand for livestock products, using
farmers’ decision making for certain technologies as methods that the resource base can sustain?
well as the development of tools to assess whole farm • Do the strategies devised for raising productivity in
impacts of new interventions. integrated crop-livestock systems take into account
the stage of development of the target population
CONCLUSION with respect to the nature of crop-livestock
Sustainable development is the only way to promote interactions?
rational utilization of resources and environmental • Do the farmers concerned have the right skills,
protection without hampering economic growth and knowledge, capital and technology to set up this
integrated Farming Systems hold special position as in system?
this system nothing is wasted, the by-product of one • Are the roles and responsibilities of men and women
system becomes the input for other. India has a given sufficient consideration?
considerable livestock, poultry population and crop • How can additional needed nutrients be obtained?
wastes. All efforts have to be mobilised to reclaim the And, can the productivity of the system be increased
resources and to put them to use effectively. Suitable without stressing the environment?
technology has to be developed for the treatment of • Is enough good-quality feed available to sustain
wastes and their all round effective utilisation, so that, it animals, especially during the dry season?
54 Indian Research Journal of Extension Education, Special Issue (Volume II), 2012

• Are nutrients that are relocated from grazing areas integrated?

to croplands efficiently recovered? Therefore, a lot of extension attention is however
• Are the different components of the farming system required to educate farmers on utilization of crop-
(crop, livestock and, eventually, fish) efficiently livestock production systems.

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