Dairy Production and Livelihood Scenario in Different Climatic Regions of Bangladesh

Background and Objective: The dairy industry has undergone rapid structural changes and transformed into a profitable enterprise in recent years. However, many farmers still fail to recognize the critical elements determining dairy output and farm profitability. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the present scenario of dairy farming in different climatic regions of Bangladesh. Materials and Methods: A total of 450 farmers and 150 dairy cattle specialists from five regions (plane, hilly, coastal, flood and milk pocket areas) were interviewed using pre-tested questionnaires. Dairy farms were described as small (2-5 cows), medium (6-9 cows) and large (more than 10 cows). The collected data was summarized and analyzed using Microsoft Excel 2007 and SPSS 16.0. The differences among treatments were determined with Duncan’s New Multiple-Range Test. Results: The highest average milk yield was 8.36 L in medium farms in the milk pocket region. The highest lactating cows in the herd were 50.82% in the medium farm of the coastal region. In the entire survey area, about 34% of the farmers for artificial insemination preferred 75% HF bull semen, the overall roughage:concentrate ratio was found 59.15:40.85 and around 86.93% of farmers utilized cow dung for fuel and agricultural land preparation. Along with floods and extremely hot weather, high prices of concentrate feed, repeat breeding, mastitis and technological knowledge were the major challenges in all regions. Conclusion: An area-based scenario for dairy cattle breeding, farm management techniques, feeding and technology practices, disease frequencies and climatic risks has been identified through this research, which will be effective for future research and policy development.