During 2008-2009 progress has occurred on several fronts. A field research program has commenced on priority research topics identified by project scientists and local extension officers and farmers. Policy and institutional settings have been further studied through two detailed field trips. An approach for analysing household livelihoods will be based on previous ACIAR funded research in Indonesia. Details are outlined below.
A workshop held in Qingyang in April 2009 identified research topics for on-farm research during the current growing season. Farmers, local extension officers, Chinese and Australian project staff participated in research priority identification. Detailed research protocols were developed and implemented in the following areas:
Evaluation of alternative forage crop species in each of three research locations.
Identification of lucerne management and harvest practices for improved quantity and quality of forage.
Exploration of winter wheat as a dual purpose grain and graze forage option.
Identification of improved ration mixes for sheep and goats utilising available feed resources.
Two extensive field trips in the study region have characterised current policy and intuitional settings relevant to local livestock enterprises. A greatly improved understanding of the complex and sometimes conflicting policies that relate to livestock production has emerged. An important finding relevant to both researchers and policy makers is the challenge of connecting local household livestock producers to livestock markets.
A workshop held in St. Lucia, Australia in August 2008 evaluated alternative analytical approaches to understanding livestock production from integrated crop - livestock farming systems. The key characteristics of the local Gansu system include a diverse range of potential forage sources and crop residues, pen feeding of sheep and goats, severely constrained land resources, constrained labour resources, climate variability and market uncertainty. The Integrated Analysis Tool (IAT), developed in previous ACIAR projects, was selected as the main framework for analysing household livelihoods in this project. The IAT will require significant development, for example inclusion of sheep and goats and local forage and crop options, before it can be applied to local farming system issues.

During 2009-2010 significant progress has been made under Objective 1, implementing a participatory research program into forage production and livestock growth; Objective 2, analysis of institutional and policy settings; and Objective 3, developing capacity for analysing crop-livestock farming systems. Work on Objective 4, evaluation of productivity and resource-use efficiency under farmer-managed conditions will commence in 2010-2011.
A series of forage agronomy experiments were conducted during the 2009 and 2010 seasons under Objective 1. The experiments included; lucerne harvest time, lucerne cutting height, dual purpose (grain and graze) winter wheat, and a comparison of annual forage crops. All experiments were conducted as part of a Masters or PhD postgraduate research project enrolled with Lanzhou University. Highlights from the 2009 season include a significant opportunity for increasing harvestable lucerne forage by shifting to a harvest schedule based on appearance of first-flower, a large grain yield penalty from grazing winter wheat, and higher yield potential from summer forage crops compared to winter forages. Research is proceeding in 2010.
In addition, a cashmere goat feeding trial evaluated the influence of different proportions of lucerne hay in the diet on liveweight gain of weaned kids. The inclusion of lucerne in the diet increased the rate of liveweight gain compared to a diet comprised only of maize straw and feed concentrate. Once lucerne was included in the diet, liveweight gains increased at a decreasing rate with any additional lucerne. This suggests the possibility of conserving lucerne and feeding out gradually over the year rather than the current practice of feeding lucerne when it is green and growing. Further feeding trials are planned in 2010, focussing on the role of maize silage.
Research on Objective 2 of the project - to identify and analyse institutional and policy settings relevant to crop livestock systems in Qingyang City - has progressed essentially as planned. The significant amount of fieldwork and the detailed policy review required to fulfil this project objective has been conducted, and information has been collated and ordered. An early analysis of this information is reported in Brown et al. (2009), while several other papers that link Objective 2 with other objectives of the project are under development. In doing so, further information gaps have become apparent, especially on how policies and institutions on crop-livestock systems in Qingyang relate to those at higher, especially province and central, levels. Interviews in Beijing in June 2010 aim to fill these information gaps.
At the same time, fieldwork allowed for the identification of other issues that are beyond the scope of the initial policy and institutional analysis but which will impact significantly on the broader project objectives. In particular, as a result of several major external shocks (the global financial crisis and volatile food prices), the period 2007-2009 has been time of major change in agricultural and rural markets and industries in China. Data on broader industry developments and market prices was collated in form suitable for input into the economic modelling component of the project.
As envisioned in the project design, the policy, institutional, market / industry information collated so far is important in defining the broader environment in which the farm-levels analysis of the project is conducted. While these settings have been communicated between project collaborators, and policy-makers have been consulted throughout the course of the project, the more formal policy-science linkage workshops planned for the project have been delayed to commencement in 2011, when more developed project findings can be presented to policy makers, thus forming a two-way exchange that is a key component of the project.
The Integrated Analysis Tool (IAT) has been adapted to local farming systems as part of research activity under Objective 3. Key changes included parameterisation for local breeds of sheep (Tan and Han) and goats (Cashmere, Longdong), and development of forage supply quantities and forage quality for key local forage sources including; lucerne, maize silage, wheat straw and feed concentrates. Initial analyses have focussed on farm land allocation to grain or forage crops, lucerne harvest practices, and comparing different feeding strategies to utilise available feed resources. A complementary analysis will identify feed gaps under traditional farmer practice and strategies for addressing the feed gap through a combination of improving the feed resource base and improving the utilisation of available feed.
The 2010-2011 reporting period will see a gradual shift in research focus towards integrated analysis of whole farm productivity, profitability and resource use efficiency at the household scale. Preliminary IAT land allocation results have been obtained in one of the three sites, and it is expected that by June 2011 modelling results will available for three scenarios in the three project locations. The three scenarios are all linked to small ruminant production and include: different land allocations, higher lucerne yields obtained through optimal harvesting and feed year planning centred on strategic feeding of lucerne. The main interest is whether significant gains in household income can be achieved for only small losses in food supply when alternative lucerne harvesting and feeding strategies are used.

In the past reporting period progress has been made towards better understanding the biophysical and economic processes operating in the project's location. This has been achieved through a) conducting crop and livestock experimental trials b) developing location specific whole-farm models to assess net income income-grain supply tradeoffs between different enterprise mixes and government policies and c) monitoring on-farm practices. This research has been an integrated effort between Lanzhou University students, Lanzhou University staff and Australian scientists. The modelling and interpreting of research results is currently progressing. In the upcoming year there will be an increased interaction between extension agents, farmers and project scientists.
Progress related to the different components of the project is as follows:
A series of forage agronomy experiments were conducted in 2009 and 2010. These experiments highlight how the management of current crops and the adoption of alternative crops can influence livestock feed availability, and hence household livelihoods.
Two cashmere goat feeding trials have now been conducted. One trial evaluated how different proportions of lucerne hay in a diet can influence liveweight gains of weaned kids. The second trial focused on the effect of lucerne quality on the liveweight gains of weaned kids. In 2011-2012 a third experiment will focus on how feeding maize silage influences the liveweight gains of weaned kids.
The Integrated Assessment Tool (IAT) was used to assess changes in net income and food security when households altered their crop-livestock mix to meet government targets. The IAT used three farm types. These farm types were determined using Principal Component Analysis and Cluster Analysis.
A village-level model was developed to help scale up the farm-level analyses. Lucerne-growing subsidies and more integrated livestock feed markets are required if households are to meet livestock development goals.
A feed-demand analysis was conducted to assess if current farming systems can support increased livestock numbers. Results from the IAT and feed-gap analysis are consistent with each other, and highlight the need to increase livestock forage resources.
In relation to the policy-related work, preliminarily results related to the above research were presented to the Huanxian Animal Husbandry Bureau in June 2010. This interaction session created an opportunity for project staff and local officials to interact and exchange ideas in an informal setting. The interaction session had approximately 20 participants. The topics covered included the timing and frequency of feed shortages in current farming systems, potential for implementation of alternative feeding strategies and optimal carrying capacity of local farming systems. There were two main outcomes of the session: a) local extension officers gained a better appreciation of how lucerne can be fed in conjunction with other feed sources to reduce feed deficits b) project staff gained a better appreciation of extension officers' ideas for feed management, including a desire to increase the use of maize silage in local systems. To improve the dissemination of results and increase linkages with policy makers, a more formal policy-science linkage workshop is planned for 2012.
A key component of the past year has been the development of strong linkages between Lanzhou University students, Lanzhou University staff and Australian scientists. These linkages are expected to have a lasting impact on the capabilities of new agricultural researchers in China and to lead to peer-reviewed publications. In addition, the capacity of Chinese counterparts has been enhanced by the Australian Youth Ambassador for Development (Joshua Philip), who has spent approximately one year in Lanzhou. Adam Komarek is spending up to one year in Lanzhou to continue research related to this ACIAR project.