The project commenced work in June 2008 on the two objectives of a) Increasing adoption of forage fodder banks, reducing the time associated with feeding cattle and, b) increasing small-holder farmer income from cattle production by improving feed quality and availability; . Preliminary results were reviewed at the inception workshop held in Phnom Penh in February 2009. The preliminary results were used to inform planning for the remaining project period.
The project is building on the successful introduction of forages through the earlier Livestock and Livelihoods Systems Project implemented by CIAT between 2003 and 2005.. Therefore, one of the first activities of the current project was to evaluate the impact that the introduction of these forages had on small-holder farming families. The impact study identified that:
The introduction of forages reduced the time associated with feeding cattle by 2 hours per day.
Children are used for feeding cattle and therefore are beneficiaries of this labour saving
We do not understand the factors driving adoption or non-adoption of forages for feeding cattle.
Key findings reported at the meeting included a description of the farming families and operations in the pilot sites established in Kampong Cham province. This was developed through a series of surveys of farm income (district averages ranging from US$1900 to $3300), farm size (1 to 3 ha), number of family household members (5 to 6), dependence on off-farm income (district averages ranged from 10 to 20%), contribution of cattle to income (approximately 20%), the number of cattle per household (averages of 4 to 5, maximum of 15), the uses of these cattle (50% breeding, 30% draught, 20% sale) and the some measures of cattle productivity (inter-calving interval of 18 months).
To increase adoption of forages, a program of training courses, field visits and community activities have been undertaken. These activities have resulted in adoption of forages by farmers in 6 provinces, beyond the geographical scope of this project. This has largely been achieved through engaging and training over 200 farmers, NGO, university and government staff in the establishment, management and feeding of forages for cattle production.
To ensure that a long-term, sustainable source of forage planting material is available within Cambodia, a private industry supply system has been established. This has been very successful with farmers who report an income of US$250 from the sale of forage cutting material, and efforts will be continued to assist with the expansion of this supply system.. Availability of planting material currently represents the greatest constraint to adoption of forages.
To develop feeding recommendations for farmers in Cambodia, research programs have commenced in the Royal University of Agriculture (RUA) in Cambodia and the University of New England (UNE) in Australia. The first two studies (one at each of RUA and UNE) were completed and 3 scientific papers have been submitted for publication. To increase research capacity at RUA laboratory, equipment has been purchased and the animal house facility improved and expanded A Masters student from RUA spent 3 months based at UNE to gain skills in laboratory analyses and animal experimentation. This student has now returned to Cambodia and commenced her first experiment.
To maintain engagement with our project partners and improve the potential impact of the project, the Cambodian Cattle Learning Alliance was formed. This initiative has now held two meetings in Phnom Penh and Kampong Cham and brought together over 60 people, representing projects related to cattle production, including; 5 NGO's (CARE, Heifer International, AVSF, CRWRC, Celagrid) , 2 international aid programs (France - FSP and EU - EULP), 1 Cambodian university (Maharishi Vedic University), two schools of Agriculture (Preak Leap and Kampong Cham National Schools of Agriculture) and 2 other ACIAR projects (AH/2005/086 and CARDI).,. The project facilitates this initiative, and it is expected that meetings will be hosted in different locations and by different projects on each occasion. The project does not pay participants for their attendance at the meetings or any of their costs. We have only engaged partners that have the resources to deliver impact through their respective programs and projects.
We have worked closely with ACIAR project, 'Best practice health and husbandry of cattle, Cambodia' (AH/2003/086) on a number of initiatives related to cattle nutrition and the introduction of forages. More recently, closer collaboration with ACIAR project, 'Understanding livestock movement and the risk of spread of transboundary animal diseases' (AH/2006/025), has been established and this will become an important linkage as the project progresses. The information collected from AH/2006/025 will be potentially important information assisting our understanding of the Cambodian beef markets.

With one year of the project remaining, preliminary evidence suggests that most objectives and outputs will be achieved. Defining and reporting the project impacts, securing the long-term sustainability of the project outcomes and developing a bank of information relevant for future cattle-related initiatives in the Cambodia and the region, have become the primary focus of activities for the remainder of the project.

The project objectives are, a) increasing adoption of forage fodder banks, reducing the time associated with feeding cattle and, b) increasing small-holder farmer income from cattle production by improving feed quality and availability.

The adoption of forages for feeding to cattle has exceeded expectations. Forages have been adopted in 7 provinces beyond the initial focus of the project (Kampot, Battambong, Pursat, Kampong Speu, Takeo, Kampong Thom and Svay Rieng). The most common reason cited by farmers for choosing to adopt forages is "time saving". Evidence generated from this project indicates that the average time saving is 2 hours/day and up to 8 hours/day. This has potentially profound social and community impacts as cattle feeding is undertaken by fathers and children. This time saving therefore presents opportunity for increasing off-farm income and improving educational outcomes for school children (increased time spent studying rather than feeding cattle). These potential impacts will be investigated during the remaining 14 months of the project.

Data generated from on-farm validation of recommended feeding practices indicate that the feeding interventions double the value of cattle (from US $200/head to US $400/head) following a 4-month forage feeding period. In addition, the demand for these cattle, as a consequence of improved body condition (from 1.5 to 3, using a 5-point scale), is significantly greater than those cattle not subjected to the recommended feeding practices. The increased rate of turn-over of cattle also provides opportunity for farmers to increase stock numbers. All cattle that have been subjected to the recommended feeding interventions have been sold to traders that have transported the cattle directly to Vietnam (live cattle trade). A market survey undertaken by the project indicates that most of these cattle are destined for slaughter and consumption in Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam.

Re-engagement of the project partners, CARE and Heifer International occurred in early 2010. This was required due to changes in key personnel in these organisations. Pleasingly, both organisations have identified the introduction of forages for feeding to cattle as priority activities and have recommenced activities with our project. Cooperation with other ACIAR-funded projects (AH/2006/086, ASEM/2003/007, ASEM/2006/130) has been critical to the success of this project and in particular for driving the adoption of forages to provinces beyond the initial scope of this project.

Five scientific papers have been published and one technical bulletin (in the Khmer language) for in-country extension personnel and farmers has been produced and distributed. Further papers and industry booklets are in development. The proposed research program for UNE, Australia has been completed and half of the proposed research program for RUA, Cambodia has been completed. RUA has expanded the original cattle research facility, built a new cattle research facility and equipped an on-campus, dedicated animal nutrition laboratory. A number of undergraduate (4 x honours) and post-graduate (3 x Masters, 1 x PhD) students have been/are engaged in the research activities of this project.