Silvopasture Systems for Round-the-Year Fodder Production and Building Ecological Resilience on Degraded Landscapes

Livestock, a crucial element of rural livelihoods, currently faces a pressing challenge of low productivity due to poor genetic traits, subpar health conditions, mineral deficiencies, limited availability of high-quality fodder throughout the year, land degradation, and the impact of climate change. Sustaining livestock productivity is of paramount importance to support rural livelihoods across the globe and the world economy as a whole. Therefore, a consistent supply of top-quality fodder, rich in crude protein, minerals, and other essential constituents, is crucial to enhancing livestock productivity. Further, the livestock sector is also a notable contributor to climate change, with the release of 7.1 gigatons (GT) of CO2-equivalent per year. Additionally, land degradation, affecting 23% of the Earth’s terrestrial area, poses a significant threat to fodder, food, nutrition, and environmental security, rendering our planet more susceptible to the impacts of climate change. Thus, silvopasture can play a pivotal role in addressing two critical challenges on degraded landscapes, ensuring a year-round fodder supply and building ecological resilience. By integrating trees or shrubs and fodder grasses or legumes with livestock grazing, silvopasture provides a sustainable solution that enhances the availability of nutritious forage throughout the year. Moreover, silvopasture contributes to ecological resilience by restoring degraded soils, enriching soil fertility, sequestering carbon, reducing erosion, improving water retention, and fostering a healthier ecosystem. In essence, silvopasture not only sustains livestock but also revitalizes and fortifies landscapes that have suffered from degradation, making it a powerful strategy for achieving long-term livelihood and ecological sustainability.