Nigeria's shift to fenced ranches could let investors start with two cattle
Jerry Cunningham, managing director of American West African Agro (AWAA), says the reform would also improve productivity and security.
Jerry Cunningham, managing director of American West African Agro (AWAA), told AgroNigeria that moving from open pastoralism to fenced ranches and feedlots could make commercial cattle production far more accessible. Investors could begin a ranching business with as few as two animals, and a single facility could house as many as 15,000.
Cunningham said the transition, which he expects to take several years, would give small-scale producers new opportunities, raise cattle productivity and improve security. He said Nigerian cattle have good genetic potential but need better feeding to perform, so controlled production is the first step. The Ministry and L-PRES are already working on this, he said.
Better feeding changes the economics: a farmer could raise cattle to between 400 and 500 kilogrammes within 24 months, instead of selling them at seven months at about 250 kilogrammes. In the South-West, small ranchers already keep 10 to 50 cattle in confined systems, and AWAA's work in Kogi State, where it bought local cattle and feed, showed the model could work.