Steele, Roger E. (author), Wanyama, Dorothy M. (author), and Association for International Agricultural and Extension Education
Format:
conference papers
Publication Date:
1997-03-04
Published:
Kenya
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 133 Document Number: C20298
Notes:
Burton Swanson Collection, Section I; from "1997 conference papers : Association for International Agricultural and Extension Education", 13th Annual Conference, 3, 4, 5 April 1997, Arlington, Virginia
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 195 Document Number: D08010
Notes:
John L. Woods Collection, Ring binder containing agenda and resources for a workshop sponsored by the TIPAN Project funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development. Held at Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, August 5-9, 1991. Irregular page numbering., Addresses problems agricultural scientists from Pakistan face in returning to their home university from doctoral programs at U.S. universities.
24 pages, Soybean (Glycine max (L. Merr.) has been a crop of interest to address both poverty
and malnutrition in the developing world because of its high levels of both protein and
oil, and its adaptability to grow in tropical environments. Development practitioners
and policymakers have long sought value added opportunities for local crops to move
communities out of poverty by introducing processing or manufacturing technologies.
Soy dairy production technologies sit within this development conceptual model. To
the researchers’ knowledge, no research to date measures soy dairy performance,
though donors and NGOs have launched hundreds of enterprises over the last 18 years.
The lack of firm-level data on operations limits the ability of donors and practitioners
to fund and site sustainable dairy businesses. Therefore, the research team developed
and implemented a recordkeeping system and training program first, as a 14-month
beta test with a network of five dairies in Ghana and Mozambique in 2016-2017.
Learning from the initial research then supported a formal research rollout over 18
months with a network of six different dairies in Malawi and key collaboration from
USAID’s Agricultural Diversification activity. None of the beta or rollout dairies kept
records prior to the intervention. The formal rollout resulted in a unique primary dataset
to address the soy dairy performance knowledge gap. The results of analysis show that
the dairies, on average, achieve positive operating margins of 61%, yet cannot cover
the fixed costs associated with depreciation, amortization of equipment and
infrastructure, working capital, marketing and promotion, and regulatory compliance.
The enterprises in our sample operate only at 9% of capacity, which limits their ability
to cover the normal fixed costs associated with the business. The challenge is not the
technology itself, as when operated, it produces a high-quality dairy product. The
challenges involve a business that requires too much capital for normal operations
relative to a nascent and small addressable market.
Paul Hixson Collection., Reports on a speech by representatives of the American Soybean Association expressing concern about resources being directed by the U.S. Agency for International Development toward aiding foreign competitors. They suggested changing emphasis of government programs from helping other countries grow more soybeans to helping them use more soybeans.