URBAN DAIRY PRODUCTION AND COPING MECHANISMS FOR FEED SCARCITY AMIDST THE 2020–2022-ARMED CONFLICT IN MEKELLE, TIGRAY, ETHIOPIA

This study aimed to investigate dairy cattle husbandry, strategies for coping with feed shortages, and constraints on dairy production in Mekelle city, Ethiopia. A total of 80 dairy producers were selected via a simple random sampling method from four sub-cities—Ayder, Semien, Hawelti, and Hadnet—out of a total of seven sub-cities. The data were collected through face‒to‒face interviews via structured and semi-structured questionnaires. The collected data were analyzed via descriptive statistics, revealing that the cattle herd was predominantly composed of lactating cattle (9.54 ± 0.47). The majority of respondents (87.5%) produced milk as a means of income generation within a livestock production system. The average daily milk yield (ADMY) and lactation length of the crossbred cows were 8.77 ± 0.11 liters and 10 months, respectively. The overall sources of water in the study area were tap water (43.75%), hand-dug wells (23.75%), rivers (21.25%), and ponds (11.25%). The majority of producers practiced individual feeding (93.75%), primarily using stall feeding (91.25%). The main feed resources, in order of importance, were wheat bran (0.162), crop residue (0.161), hay (0.156), oilseed cake (0.132), and Atela (a byproduct of local brewing, 0.111). Other sources of feed (33.75%) and destocking (33.75%) were used as the main coping strategies during feed shortages. The availability and cost of both basal and supplemental feeds are the main challenges. Therefore, enhancing feed quality, the utilization of nonconventional feed, and the use of improved technologies such as artificial insemination should be intensified to improve milk productivity.