Contents

1. INTRODUCTION.......................................................................................................................................2
1.1 General overview...............................................................................................................................2
1.2 Why fattening s needed?...................................................................................................................3
1.3 Systems of fattening in Ethiopia........................................................................................................3
1.4 market systems..................................................................................................................................4
1.5 Statement of the problems................................................................................................................4

1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 General overview
The agricultural sector plays an important role in the overall developments on the
economy of Ethiopia. The sector plays a major role in the national economy and it is the
source of income and employment for the rural population. The sector account for 46%
of the gross domestic product (GDP) and livestock contributes 30% to the agricultural
GDP and 19% to the export earnings.
Ethiopia has large livestock population in Africa that has been contributing considerable
portion to the economy of the country, and still promising potential for the economic
development of the country. An estimate indicated that the country is a home for about
55.35 million cattle, 27.35 million sheep 28.16 million goats, 9.27 million equine, 1.1
million camels, 51.35 million poultry and 5.05 million beehives (CSA, 2014).
In Ethiopia, both farming and pastoral households are largely dependent on livestock for
their livelihood systems. Livestock have diverse functions in the livelihood of Ethiopian
farmers in the various farming system (Ehui et al., 1998; Belete et al., 2010) and serves
as a source of food, traction, manure, raw materials, investment, cash income, foreign
exchange earnings and social and cultural identity. In terms of contribution to the
national economy, livestock contribute about 16.5% of the Gross Domestic product
(GDP) and 35.6% of the agricultural GDP and currently the subsector supports and
sustains livelihoods for 80% of rural population (Metaferia et al., 2011). In many cases,
livestock are a central component of smallholder risk management strategies (Demeke,
2007).

1.2 Why fattening s needed?

Meat production and consumption is important in Ethiopian economy and ruminants
contribute over 3.2 million tons, representing over 72% of the total meat production.
Cattle production in Ethiopia is an integral part of the mixed farming, agro-pastoral and
pastoral production systems. In both rural and urban areas, cattle fattening is emerging
as an important source of income for both small farmers and investors.
Beef cattle are one of a few agricultural commodities in Ethiopia from which the country
earn foreign currency through both live and processed forms of the commodity export
and also most of rural poor are engaged in rearing it to fulfill their daily needs and
economic gaps (Halala, 2015). In Ethiopia meat consumption was about 8 kg per capita
per year (Sebisbe, 2008) of which about 4.3 kg comes from beef.
Cattle fattening farming business are a very profitable business, and many people are
making money all over the world by doing cartel livestock farming business. Cattle beef
fattening involves the feeding of beef cattle with a protein balanced, high-energy diet for
a period of 90 days under confinement to increase live weights and improve degree of
finish and thus obtain better grades at the abattoir. Beef fattening enables the cattle to
express fully their genetic potential for growth. To build a successful, sustainable cattle
fattening business, you require sufficient knowledge of how to efficiently do cattle pen
fattening i.e. cattle fattening techniques, good management skills, and good business
plan.

Cattle fattening farming is a lucrative business, but there are some essential things that
should be need to do before someone venture into livestock farming business. The
promoter (s) has to decide on the size of livestock project i. e. the no of cattle which is
wanted to keep per cycle; location of the business, cattle farm, and target market.

1.3 Systems of fattening in Ethiopia

In rural Ethiopia cattle fattening is based on locally available feed resources. According
to MOA, Cattle fattening practices in Ethiopia is categorized in to three major fattening
systems, namely: traditional system, by product based system and Hararghe fattening
system. For investment purposes, by-product fattening system is mainly based on agro-
industrial by-product such as molasses, cereal milling by-products and oilseed meals.
Intensive feeding of the available feed supply to young oxen used for draught power
could best describe the Hararghe fattening practice. The Hararghe fattening system is
characterized by the use of the available feed resources to young oxen through cut-and-
carry feeding system of individual tethered animals. The most common feed types used
for this system are thinning, leaf strip and part of maize and sorghum plants.
Beef cattle are one of a few agricultural commodities in Ethiopia from which the country
earn foreign currency through both live and processed forms of the commodity export
and also most of rural poor are engaged in rearing it to fulfill their daily needs and
economic gaps (Halala, 2015). In Ethiopia meat consumption was about 8 kg per capita
per year (Sebisbe, 2008) of which about 4.3 kg comes from beef.

1.4 market systems

Marketing of livestock and livestock products is an important activity allover Ethiopia.
The primary reason for selling livestock in the highlands of Ethiopia is generation of
income to meet unforeseen expenses. Pastoralists also, besides using livestock as
sources of food and as a form of saving and wealth, sell animals at the times of cash
needs to purchase food and other necessities. According to UNDP-EUE livestock
marketing in Ethiopia follows a three-tier system: primary, secondary and terminal
markets through which animals go into the hands of small traders and large traders,
final buyers, which include butchers, meat-processing factories, fattening farms or live
animal exporters. Prices are usually fixed by individual bargaining and depend mainly
on supply and demand, which is heavily influenced by the season of the year and the
occurrence of religious and cultural festivals.

1.5 Statement of the problems

Although Ethiopia owns large numbers of cattle population, its potential has not been
fully utilized. This is associated with a number of complex and inter-related factors such
as inadequate feed and nutrition, widespread diseases, poor genetic potential of local
breeds, market problem, inefficiency of livestock development services with respect to
credit, extension, and infrastructure (Benin et al., 2003; Solomon et al., 2003;Jabbar et
al., 2007; Negassa et al., 2011).

In addition to this, the low level of meat consumption in Ethiopia is due to low level of
meat production which in turn is due to low productivity of the livestock sub-sector. Only
a small fraction of Ethiopian beef is raised in feedlots. Livestock marketing systems of
Ethiopia is not well developed still as it was expected. It is characterized by markets that
lack basic infrastructure, facilities like cattle pen, weighing scale, water troughs, feed
and market information.

2. Policy issues in Ethiopia

2.2 Rationale for an Ethiopia livestock master plan and

livestock sector analysis
Over the last 20 years the livestock sector has been a priority in all GoE strategies,
policies, and plans, and continues
to be a priority in its current GTP, running through 2015 (MoFED 2010). Although the
government clearly recognizes

Executive summary
This Ethiopia LSA was undertaken by the new Livestock Resources Development Sector (Livestock State
Ministry,LSM), MoA, of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (GoE), with technical support from
ILRI. The study was funded by the BMGF to build the capacity of the MoA for fact-based planning.
To effectively launch and carry out its work, the new LSM requires a vision of what can and needs to be
accomplished to develop the sector, built on a factual baseline and realistic targets and priorities, along
with a realistic strategy and ‘road map’ or action plan – what the LSM calls an LMP. This Ethiopia LSA is
a critical input into the LMP.
This report also seeks to inform other GoE policymakers involved in livestock development on the current
status and future potential for poverty reduction and economic growth of the livestock sector. It is based
on a quantitative analysis of the technical performance of the sector and its economic contribution to the
household and national economy, using a set of LSIPT tools. This toolkit was developed by a group of
international agencies under the aegis of ALive at AU-IBAR. The analysis is based on field surveys,
literature and expert opinions, continuously validated through consistency tests.

1.1 Development of the Ethiopia livestock sector

analysis
Using the most recently available data, from 2013, ILRI and the LSM employed the LSIPT to develop
livestock herd and sector models and a baseline assessment of the current state of agricultural
development in Ethiopia upon which to assess the potential long-term, 15–20 years, impact of proposed
combined technology and policy interventions, referred to as the LSA. The LSA results then formed the
basis for the development of the Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP) II targets and the LMP 2015–
2020. The LMP is a series of five-year development implementation plans or ‘roadmaps’, to be used to
implement the GTP II period and beyond.
The LSA and LMP interventions were tested using the sector model measures of GoE livestock
development and policy objectives for the GTP I and GTP II. The GTP objectives employed to assess the
investment interventions of the Ethiopia LMP were to:
• reduce poverty;
• achieve food and nutritional security;
• contribute to economic growth (GDP); and agro-industry development;
• contribute to exports and foreign exchange earnings; and

1.1. Objectives
1.1.1. General objective
To assess smallholder beef cattle fattening and marketing systems in south omo Zone.

1.1.2. Specific Objectives

To identify major constraints and opportunities of beef cattle fattening and marketing
To identify the marketing system and the main actors in marketing of beef cattle
fattening
To identify locally available feeds used for beef cattle fattening
To derive recommendation for market oriented beef cattle fattening

2. GENERAL INFORMATION
2.1. Description of the Study Area
South Omo Zone is one of the 13 administrative zones found in SNNPRS which covers
an area of 25530 km2
and is located 4.43
0
-6.46’ N and 35.79
-36.06’E, and has a human population estimated 472977. The population
density of the zone is 21 persons per km2 it’s bordering with GamoGofa Zone, Keffa
Zone and Konta and Basketo
special Woreda in north, Kenya in south, konso and Derashe special woredas in east
and Sudan & bench maji Zone
in west.
© 2016 Conscientia Beam. All Rights Reserved.
0
The Zone is divided into 8 woredas and 1 city administration. Generally the altitude of
the zone ranges
between 360 and 3500 m.a.s.l. The traditional agro-ecologies Dega, woinadega, kola
and semi-arid cover 0.5, 5.1,
60, and 34.4 percent respectively of the total area. Rainfall pattern in the area is both
unimodal and bimodal. The
mean annual rainfall ranges between 400 and 1600 mm. The mean annual temperature
ranges between 10.1 and
›27
0
c.
The zone has a huge animal resource with an estimate of about 906,442 cattle, 497,092
sheep, 846,611 goats,
311 camels, 453,366 chickens, 322,599 bee colonies and 87510 equines. Whereas
Maize, Sorghum, Barley, Wheat,
Teff, Godore, Millet, Cassava, Haricot bean and field pea are the major crops grow in
the area.
Regarding the land use the proportion of cultivated land, grazing land, forest land,
cultivated land and noncultivable
land
and
others
are
11.22,
29.25,
12.55,
15.69,
10.85,
and
20.42
percent
respectively.

There are 16 different ethnic groups found in 8 woredas. Except the Ari ethnic group
which covers 2 of the 8
woredas and a farming system of sedentary farming. The rest of the ethnic groups
having a farming system of
pastoral and semi-pastoral type.

The fattening project will have a capacity of 2500 heads of cattle, per batch and the objective
is to process four batches per year with 90 days feeding period per batch. Stock mobilization
can be arranged on weekly basis with 210 cattles per week. This level of production (10,000
heads per annum) is considered to be more realistic as it will enable proper management and
efficient utilization of resources and assets. An average weight of each animal after fattening
is assumed to be about 300 kg.

Production Programme

The farm will work all the year round. The farm will start at 75% of its rated capacity in the
first year and full capacity in the second year and thereafter.
MATERIALS AND INPTUS

A. MATERIALS

Annual raw material requirement and cost of the fattening farm at full operation capacity is
given in Table 4.1.

Table 4.1
ANNUAL RAW MATERIAL REQUIREMENT AND

COSTS OF FATTENING FARM AT FULL CAPACITY

S/N Description Unit Qty

Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4
Cattle (head) no 90 120 150 200
Feed tones 3,700
Other feed tones

Vaccine & treatment injections

The cattle for fattening should be receiving their hay and best quality a silage feed supplemented with 1.5
to 2.5 kg of the GOV-1 feed mixture.

Cost, Birr in ’000 No Description Qty

Local Foriegn Total
1 Cattle (head) 10,000 6,000 6,000
2 Feed (tonnes) 3,700 2,236 - 2,236
3 Other feed (tonnes) 9,000 1,620 - 1,620
4 Vaccin & treatment
injection
LS 24 216 240

Total 9,880 216 10,096

B. UTILITIES

Annual requirement of electricity, water and fuel is estimated at 12,950 kwh, 110,500 m
and
75,500 liters, respectively. The total costs of utilites is, therefore, about Birr 455,650 per
annum.

V. TECHNOLOGY AND ENGINEERING

A. TECHNOLOGY

1. Production Process

Generally, the fattenig farm will have the following process. Cattles purchased from
purchasing centres – holding areas – feed lots - marketing. The holding areas are used as
3

7-10
quarantine and treteatment. Treatment include: weighing, vaccination, deeping, etc. It is
important that animals in the fattening programme receive adequate disease protection.
Unhealthy and unproductive animals do not make good use of high quality fed, which is
scares therefore, animals poorly performing after 2 weeks, needs to be culled and sold in the
local market. Well performing animals kept for three months are expected to gain an average
wieght of 60kg.

2. Source of Technology

The machinery and equipment required can be supplied by Hagbes Ethiopia PLc.

B. ENGINEERING

1. Machinery and Equipment

The required machinery, equipment and tools are listed in Table 5.1. Total cost is estimated
at Birr 3.7 million, out of which Birr 3.1 million (84.0%) is in foreign currancy.

Table 5.1
LIST OF MACHINERY AND EQUIPMENT FOR FATTENING FARM.

No Description Qty
(No.)
Unit Price
(Birr)
Total cost ('000 Birr)
Foreign Local Total
1 Deeping vat 1 50,000 10.0 40.0 50.0
2 Cruch 1 5,000 4.5 0.5 5.0
3 Syringes 50 500 22.50 2.50 25.00
4 Hoof treamer 15 700 9.45 1.05 10.50
5 Burdizzo crusher 15 800 10.80 1.20 12.00
6 Knapsak sprayer 15 1,500 20.25 2.25 22.50
7 Weigh bridge/scale 2 75,000 135.00 15.00 150.00
8 Feeder and water trought 30 6,500 156.00 39.00 195.00
9 Tractor 3 200,000 540.00 60.00 600.00
10 Trailer 4 75,000 270.00 30.00 300.00
11 Water tank 4 95,000 190.00 190.00 380.00
12 Reservior 4 400,000 1,534.24 65.76 1,600.00
13 Molasses tank 2 35,000 35.0 35.0 70.00
14 Urea mixer tank 2 95,000 95.0 95.0 190.00
15 Silage Graps 2 50,000 75 25 100
Total Cost - 3,107.74 602.26 3,710.00