Production objectives of smallholder farmers: Implications on beef value chain in livestock development programmes

In this current context of production objectives which has shifted from pro commercial to one that is largely dominated by the small to medium cattle producers a case study in beef agro- ecological zones was conducted in Gokwe South and Mount Darwin, two administrative districts in Zimbabwe, to assess its effectiveness in beef value chain (BVC) in livestock development programmes. A total of 100 respondents were randomly drawn from the two districts three villages from Gokwe South and six from Mount Darwin. A structured questionnaire was developed and pretested to ensure that the questions were properly developed and structured. The tool was uploaded on Kobo, a data collection Kit and administered by well-trained enumerators. Key modules of the collected Data included biodata, profiling production systems, objectives of keeping animals, constraints in the production systems, marketing practices, herd dynamics and adaptive mechanism. Data was analyzed by SPSS version 23. The findings showed that smallholder beef farmers in the surveyed districts practice subsistence farming prioritized keeping cattle for draught power, and as a moving bank which also has a positive bearing on their socio-economic status. The study also noticed that breeding was rarely practiced thou pen-fattening was popular production systems among farmers. The marketing of the cattle was random and opportunistic, mainly to solve immediate family problems, with a small niche of farmers adopting business models such as pen fattening. Natural grazing was identified as the main source of feed, with minimal to no rangeland management system in use such as paddocking, this exposed the farmers to seasonal drought risks. Farmers highlighted challenges which they encountered, these ranged from lack of technical know-how due to limited access to advice from extension workers/experts, lack of infrastructure, lack of inputs, and diminishing herd sizes due to drought and diseases. The study concluded that cattle production remained a priority livelihood for the smallholder farmers with multiple roles including direct income and supporting other enterprises such as cropping. The smallholder participation in the BVC remains critical for the livestock development programmes. Recommendations were framed around capacity building efforts, innovations around extension methods, improving market access, herd rationalization and supporting modern farming practices such as breed improvement and feedlots.