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Cleared: E. Kueneman, Chief, AGPCDate: 29/09/2003

TRAVEL REPORT SUMMARY

I. Submitted by: S.G. Reynolds, Senior Officer, Grassland and Pasture Crops Group, AGPC

II. Sub-Programme Code and Registry File Code: 212A3 PL 6/1 Reynolds

TCP/NEP/2901III. Travel to: Nepal, China and Malaysia

IV. Inclusive Travel Dates: 11-28 September, 2003V. Tasks undertaken for

other FAO units: NoneVI. Co-Travellers: NoneVII. Reasons for Travel: Nepal: technical backstopping of project

TCP/NEP/2901; China: field visits and discussion of a possible TCP proposal in Lhasa, Tibet; Malaysia: participation in the eighth meeting of the Working Group on Grazing and Feed Resources for Southeast Asia, in Kuala Lumpur.

VIII. Recommendations, Nepal: FAOR to proceed with next mission of Action to be taken: lead consultant for November 1-14, Hay cst visit revised to March 2004 and NPC to prepare progress report and follow up on work plan; China: AGPC to review draft TCP proposal prepared in Tibet if officially submitted by China to FAO; Malaysia: RO to follow up with WG on preparation of Proceedings and with RAP on draft regional TCP proposal.Action: AGPC, FAOR & NPC Nepal, WG

IX. Future Visits: Nepal: next backstopping visit late 2004 or first quarter 2005 if project extended.

X. Will a detailed report be submitted: No

DISTRIBUTION: He, Reg. Rep., RAP Tsurumi, FAORAhmed, FAOR Solh, AGPDKueneman, AGPC MacMillan, TCODHotte/Kang/Sterringa RAP Gougsa/Voortman, TCOTBatello, AGPC AGPC Groups (3)

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PL 6/1 Reynolds AGP Reg.(3) Reynolds chronoBrief Summary:

Visits were made to Nepal (12-16 September) to technically backstop project TCP/NEP/2901; to Tibet, China (16-20 September) to undertake field visits and discuss a possible TCP proposal with Chinese scientists in Lhasa; and to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (21-27 September) to participate in the eighth meeting of the Working Group on Grazing and Feed Resources for Southeast Asia. Progress in Nepal on project TCP/NEP/2901 is generally good although the very heavy monsoon had affected planting and germination of oat plots and haymaking. From initial observations it would appear that up to 2,000m and maybe even higher to 2,500m fodder oats are best grown as a winter green fodder crop (with very limited hay making and some grain production reported) and summer growing for hay making in the period September - November may only be of interest at higher elevation sites such as Langtang at 3,500m. Small-bag silage making may be a better option for fodder conservation and will be included with haymaking. The recent breakdown in negotiations between Government and the Maoists could have implications for future project activities in isolated sites. Because the present duration to December 2004 only allows one winter fodder oat harvest (in winter/early spring 2003/2004) it is recommended that the project be extended to April 2005 in order to have a second winter fodder oat harvest (in winter/early spring 2004/2005) for a total of two winter fodder oat harvests and to enable all data to be assembled, additional training to be undertaken and a second round of hay-making demonstrations to be carried out in 2005 (all within the existing budget). The report on the project is annexedIn Tibet RO met with Dr Nyima Tashi, Director General of the Tibet Agricultural Research Institute (TARI) and Vice-President of TAAAS and some of his scientists and discussed a draft TCP proposal entitled “Fodder production and double cropping in Tibet”. Visits were made to a number of sites along the middle reaches of the Lhasa River to collect information on the farming systems and assess present fodder crops. It is hoped that the solution to the problem of lack of winter feed for livestock will be increased growing of fodder crops and double-cropping systems based on winter barley and winter wheat which will also lead to an increase in feed and food production per unit of land. A visit was also made to the high plateau to visit fodder oat plots on the experimental farm near Damxung County Hqs at 4,300m.In Malaysia RO participated in the very successful Eighth Meeting of the WG on Grazing and Feed Resources for Southeast Asia organized by a Committee drawn from MARDI, DVS and UPM attended by some 32 participants (20 from Malaysia, 2 from Laos, 4 from Philippines, 3 from Thailand and 2 from Vietnam and RO) as well as a number of additional staff from MARDI, DVS and UPM who assisted with the organization and field visits and who attended to present guest papers. The main theme was “Forages and Feed Resources in Commercial Livestock Production Systems” and the programme of papers, posters, discussions and field visits was well organized with excellent hotel and meeting facilities and was much appreciated by participants. The WG endorsed a regional TCP draft proposal and requested RO to follow up with RAP.

1. Itinerary

RO traveled via Bangkok to Nepal (where 4 working days were spent attending farmer training courses at the project headquarters at Khumaltar - as little travel was possible due to the political situation - and discussing project progress and the future work plan), then to Lhasa in Tibet, China (where approximately 4 working days were spent visiting field sites and discussing a draft TCP proposal with Chinese scientists); and finally to Kuala Lumpur Malaysia (for 6 working days) to participate in the eighth meeting of the Working Group on Grazing and Feed Resources for Southeast Asia.

2. Nepal

The brief visit to Nepal to backstop project TCP/NEP/2901 was undertaken while RO was en route from Bangkok to Tibet, China. The stopover enabled RO to meet with Mr. Jim Suttie (the Hay Consultant fielded under the Partnership Retiree Programme), to attend several training courses for farmers and also to discuss project progress and future activities with NPC Dinesh Pariyar. A report on the project is attached as Annex 1.

RO also met with three Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC) Directors for general discussions, checked with NPC that copies of the Bhutan Meeting TAPAFON Proceedings had been received and also that

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the copy of the requested CD-ROM of the Proceedings of the 1997 Canada IGC [the IGC organizers provided FAO with some of the remaining CDs] and the copy of his paper ["New Approaches for Rehabilitating and Developing Fodder Production from Acid Mountain Soils in Nepal to Alleviate Poverty and Restore the Environment" by Dinesh Pariyar, E.J.Stevens, J. van der Grinten] forwarded by RO had arrived. Dinesh Pariyar requested copies of a number of FAO publications – RO to follow up on return.

3. Tibet, China

In Tibet RO met with Dr Nyima Tashi, Director General of the Tibet Agricultural Research Institute (TARI) and Vice-President of Tibet Academy of Agricultural and Animal Sciences (TAAAS), and some of his scientists and TAAAS officials and, as well as an introduction to the history and achievements of TAAAS and TARI, it was noted that many TARI scientists are focusing their work at grassroots level in an effort to raise the income levels of poor farmers. The institute has a policy where all newcomers and new graduates have to spend a number of years focusing on, and often living in, rural areas so that they get a grasp of the realities of farm life and focus their work accordingly to helping farmers with real problems. RO also discussed a draft TCP proposal entitled “Fodder production and double cropping in Tibet”. Visits were made to a number of sites along the middle reaches of the Lhasa River to collect information on the farming systems and assess present fodder crops. A trip was also made to the high plateau to visit fodder oat plots on the experimental farm near Damxung County Hqs at 4,300m. RO also delivered copies of the Pasture Resource Profile for China, the Rangelands Booklet from the 2003 IRC and a copy of the CD-ROM from the 1997 IRC (of which additional copies had just been received from the organizers in Canada) and Nyima Tashi made available to RO a copy of his ICIMOD publication “Making Tibet Food Secure”. Revisions to a paper on oats in Tibet were discussed with Dr Yang Qingshou and RO noted that the FAO publication “Transhumant Systems in Temperate Asia” (to which Nyima Tashi has contributed a chapter) should be available in October and copies will be forwarded to authors in due course. In a farewell banquet RO met both the President of the Tibet Academy of Agricultural and Animal Sciences (TAAAS), Prof. Chen Zheng Rong and the Deputy President, Prof. Gu Maozhi.

Draft TCP ProposalAlthough Dr Nyima Tashi had to travel to another part of China after only one day for another meeting, and discussions on the proposal were not as comprehensive as expected, nonetheless most outstanding issues were resolved and other staff from TARI were able to provide detailed information on cropping systems, feeding regimes, climatic details, main cropping seasons and practices and accompanied RO to some of the likely field sites where the project would be implemented, if officially submitted by the Government of China as a priority proposal and approved by FAO.Lack of quality fodder, especially during winter, is a major limiting factor in improving livestock production in the lower and middle reaches of the Yalong Tsangpo River and the middle reaches of the Lhasa River. The project thus focuses on providing fodder for livestock mainly as part of a double cropping system, but RO feels that fodder crop production as a part of the overall cropping systems also needs to be included. The likely title of the draft proposal is therefore: “Fodder production and double cropping in Tibet”. Main objectives: increased awareness of the benefits of fodder production and a double cropping system in Tibet; evaluation of the most promising fodder crop and double cropping production technologies, including fodder crops and wheat and barley cultivars, under local conditions; on-farm demonstrations implemented of the best adapted fodder crop and double cropping production technologies; researchers, extension officers and lead farmers trained on fodder crop and double cropping production technologies, crop varieties and participatory methodologies; formulation of a Medium-Term Programme with time-bound objectives for sustainable fodder and double cropping production technologies in this region of Tibet.The TCP objectives are fully in line with the priorities of the “Strategy for the Development of Western China” which the People’s Republic of China has set as a national strategy to promote sustainable development of the country’s western region. With the TCP assistance it is expected that increased focus on fodder crops and double-cropping systems based on winter barley and winter wheat will be the means to finding the solution to the problem of lack of winter feed for livestock as well as to increasing feed and food production per unit of land. The initial target for double cropping area is 3,000 ha which would potentially benefit 9000 farm families. These farmers are considered some of the poorest in China. Expected benefits will include: production of both food grain and fodder from the same land area and increased total biomass production per unit of land; production of improved fodder and thus livestock production to meet the increasing demand; improved soil fertility through biological nitrogen fixation; improved livelihoods and food security.

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Details of main cropping systems, cropping sequence, planting seasons and feeding practices (notes from various discussions)In discussions with TARI scientists (a number of who are based in rural areas and are working at farmer-level) the following were noted:Linzhou County alt. 3,700m; winter wheat (WW) and winter barley (WB) are planted mid-September and harvested in the period 15 July to 1 August.Lhasa Municipality alt. 3,600m annual precipitation 450mm; WW and WB are planted late September and harvested in the period 15 July to 1 August.Zhanang County alt. 3,500m; WW and WB are planted early October and harvested early July.Mozhugongka County alt. 3,800m and annual precipitation 480mm; WW and WB are planted end September/early October and harvested about 10th August. 80% of the annual precipitation falls from late June to late September (and this is the period when rivers are flowing at their highest) and of this precipitation 80% falls in the two months July and August.Temperatures in the Lhasa area fall to –3 to –120C in winter and occasionally to –140C (on the high plateau winters are more severe).Winter Barley cultivars developed in TARI are simply referred to as WB No.1 to No.10; these appear to be “normal”cultivars and are not early maturing types. The main Winter Wheat cultivars are Lunkang No.6 (from Beijing) and Shandong No.1 (from another province) and these are early maturing types.Fertilizer use appears to depend on the area and near to Lhasa where the farmers are better off and also receive visits from TARI scientists, rates of use are higher. 300kg of NP fertilizer was quoted as the average input with 70% at planting and 30% in a second application. Potassium appeared not to be needed in the river valleys. Some manure is used but less and less (yak dung is mostly saved for fuel).Among the second crops grown (after WW or WB) are vetch [Vicia spp., probably mainly V. sativa but V. dasycarpa also seen] (for hay and silage); turnip [Brassica rapa var. rapa] (sliced and stored and powdered for winter use), oilseed rape [Brassica napus ssp oleifera], spinach [Spinacea oleracea], buckwheat [Polygonum fagopyrum], peas [Pisum sativum], sugarbeet [Beta vulgaris], broad beans [Vicia faba](a new crop) as well as various vegetables (particularly grown under plastic around Lhasa by a number of specialized growers from other provinces), however it appeared that only some farmers grew second crops.It was noted that vetch [the main vetch used is probably Vicia sativa, although some Vicia dasycarpa was also seen] is sometimes grown after the WW or WB is harvested but another practice is to establish (undersow) the vetch in the WW or WB 3 weeks to a month before the main crop is harvested and then the vetch can be harvested twice, as long as the first cut is a high one. Livestock feed regime: January to April fed on crop residues such as wheat and barley straw. In March and April the animals used for ploughing may also be fed on the residues from barley processing. May and June partly still chopped straw but with some tree leaves. June and July weedings from the fields. August to October graze on crop fields eating any residues, stubble, grass etc. (this is possible because very few farmers raise a second crop). November and December residues such as straw. Many of the livestock: cattle, yak, sheep and goats may be away for parts of the year grazing on higher pastures so the described livestock feed regimes apply to the stock such as milking cows kept in the river valleys. If second crops are raised on a significant proportion of the land then free grazing on the fields will have to be re-examined! Housing is available for stock in the winter but only for the nights after the animals are fed and then they graze by day. In summer livestock are kept in fenced areas to prevent them damaging the crops.Oats [Avena spp.] mainly grow wild and are regarded as a weed. With recent fodder oat introductions 6ha have been established (this may be the area seen at Damxung Pasture Research Station on the high plateau at 4,300m, but this was not clear – see later notes on the visit to the high plateau) as well as various trials and plots. If oats [Avena sativa] are established early at the end of March as a food crop then seed can be harvested in mid-August, whereas if oats are established as fodder at the end of May and harvested at the end of September then no viable seed are formed. Some alfalfa [Medicago sativa, M. falcata or M. media?] is grown; it is planted at the end of April and harvested for 3 years (later 5-7 years and 2 cuts per year was mentioned). Mainly grown as a sole crop although sometimes mixed with other crops such as rapeseed. Maize [Zea mays] is grown for food and fodder. From 3,500-3,800m it is planted in mid-April and harvested from August to early October. As fodder it is thought to be better than oats because 1,500 kg is produced per mu compared with only 150-250 kg of fodder oats per mu. It is not grown as a second crop though. Quality of feed was not mentioned!

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From observations and discussions with Prof. Guan Shu Shen it is likely that at least two ways need to be explored to increase fodder production: (a) the poorer fields could be used for fodder production with the fodder being the main crop and this could include alfalfa/lucerne for 5-7 years with 2 cuts per year; fodder oats sown in May (and harvested in October) and probably experiments are needed planting in successive months up to September/October to see if significant quantities of green feed can be produced in the winter period; also oats with vetch; maize; etc.. (b) double cropping is the other area where experiments are needed with vetch undersown in the previous crop, other fodder legumes, and various root crops, peas, etc. as the second crop in the period mid-July to mid-October. Dr Shen started experiments 4 years ago. He is also keen to plant fodder in the farmland areas in the river valleys in such large quantities that the excess could be made available in the high plateau nomadic areas.Three types of alfalfa were mentioned; these are differentiated according to flower colour: yellow, white and purple (it was not clear if these really are true Medicago sp. as it was extremely difficult to obtain scientific names of plants as these appear not to be generally used and common names are not always used for the same species that we use them for; possibly these are M. media). It appears that if the TCP proposal does go through and is accepted by FAO HQ that Dr Shen would be the key person involved in the fodder aspects and probably Mr Jin Tao in Mozhugongka County (one of the likely focus areas). Work mentioned by Dr Shen is still at the experiment farm stage and there has as yet been no consolidated work with the farmers, except for one farmer trying vetch in Mozhugongka County and a larger number of farmers growing turnip as a second crop in several areas, especially where Dr Yang Qing Shou had previously worked (on the Lhasa to airport road). Fodder Oats RO discussed with the author some of the queries raised by the editor on the Tibet oat paper (“Conservation and Utilization of Oat Genetic Resources for Food and Fodder Production in Tibet Autonomous Region, China”) prepared by Dr Yang Qing Shou; Dr Yang Qing Shou will finalize (and maybe elaborate parts of the paper as suggested by RO) as far as he can and e-mail the paper to RO in the near future. It was noted that the oat cultivars from the Bhutan Meeting had been included in trials at several elevations (mainly at TARI in Lhasa] and several were promising. Dr Yang provided RO with photographs from one trial of all cultivars in growth and seed harvest stage. No dry weight data were yet available. Interestingly in discussions the TARI scientists noted that oats grow wild in Tibet and are generally regarded as weeds in other crops such as barley and wheat and are weeded out and fed to livestock. They mentioned that the FAO Meeting in Bhutan was the first time that they had heard of oats being planted as a fodder for livestock (although from other conversations it appeared that oat trials may have been ongoing longer)! Since then Nyima Tashi had obtained several cultivars from Canada and Denmark and evaluation trials were underway. PublicationsRO also delivered to Nyima Tashi copies of the Pasture Resource Profile for China, the Rangelands Booklet from the 2003 IRC and a copy of the CD-ROM from the 1997 IRC (of which additional copies had just been received from the organizers in Canada) and noted that the FAO publication “Transhumant Grazing Systems in Temperate Asia” (to which Nyima Tashi has contributed a paper on “Pastoral systems, change and the future of grazing lands in Tibet”) should be available in October and copies will be forwarded to authors in due course. Nyima Tashi kindly made available to RO a copy of his ICIMOD publication “Making Tibet Food Secure”.

Grassland Group WebsiteA number of TARI scientists were aware of the FAO Grassland website and had found there several interesting fodder papers, especially from Pakistan. RO to forward copies of several FAO publications. RO was also requested to ascertain if there is available a multilingual (including Chinese) FAO dictionary of agricultural terms. Field VisitsOne whole and two half days were spent on field visits to sites along the Lhasa river valley as well as to high altitude rangelands and farmlands.

On the first half-day field visit we traveled from Lhasa at 3600m along the Lhasa river valley to Mozhugongka County at 3,850m. It was noted that the land in the river valley can grow only one main crop,

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but that there is a window for secondary crops in the period between winter wheat and winter barley harvest and sowing in the period mid-July to mid-October. A few farmers grow crops of vetch, turnip, sugarbeet etc. Other main crops grown include maize, oilseed rape and in one place a new introduction was broad bean. The Government is keen to increase farmer income and also to increase the meat and milk production in what is mainly a grain producing area. It was noted that average landholding (from the Government for approx. 50 years) is 1,300 m2 per farm family, but in areas where there is more land this may rise to 3,300 m2. Although double cropping was spoken of by TARI researchers it was clear that very few farmers in the areas visited by RO had any secondary crops and most of the winter wheat and winter/spring barley was still stacked in the fields or cattle were grazing the stubble, crop residues and weeds. So a considerable demonstration and extension effort will be required. Although the initial target is 3,000ha some thought will also need to be given to moving the stooked crops off the land earlier (stooks are usually left in the fields for at least 3 weeks and sometimes longer as transport may not be available or the threshing ground may be wet etc). Although a few sheep, goats and yak were noted most animals were away in the higher areas on transhumance. It was noted that the Government was encouraging the establishment of wetland areas and a number of these had areas for fishing and recreation which brought in additional income to some villages. RO met with a farmer who was cutting the remnants of his broad bean crop and laying the foliage out in rows to dry for hay (and for taking seed for next year’s crop from the remaining pods) after having harvested most of the beans for home consumption and sale. He had planted in March and was now cutting the last of the crop in mid-September. He had previously grown a smaller area but as the Government provided seed and fertilizer free he quickly expanded the area because it was a very profitable crop. After drying the bean foliage (and carrying to his house for storage) and ploughing he would plant winter wheat in about 20 days time. He commented that the usual cropping sequence in this area is: first year winter wheat, second year rapeseed, third year barley then back to winter wheat again. The beans are not a traditional crop. It was also noted that the areas of vegetables under plastic tunnels were not grown by local farmers, but by persons from other provinces who had moved to Tibet. Tibetan farmers are not traditionally vegetable growers and apparently do not have the aptitude for vegetable growing. Vegetables are grown all-year round under plastic for the Lhasa market as vegetable prices are very high in winter and profits can be high. Trees along the river valleys are mainly poplar and willow.On the full day field visit travel was to the high plateau. En route RO was able to observe the fertile bottom lands along the Nyezhont river (flowing to Lhasa) with crops of barley (the main cereal) and wheat and rapeseed and peas being harvested. Much of the rapeseed, barley and wheat still stood in small stooks of 10 – 20 sheaves in the field. Some barley and wheat remained to be harvested. In the third week of September the first signs of autumn were seen in the brilliant yellow leaves of the poplars and birches and fresh snow covered most mountain tops. Generally barley grew up to about 4000 m. Crops of peas and black bean and rape were interspersed with the barley and wheat in the lower areas from 3600 to 3900m. Numbers of cattle, sheep and goats were seen. The area up to about 4000m is agropastoral while on the high plateau at around 4000-4300 m (and higher) large herds of sheep and yak (and some horses) graze and the way of life is very much pastoral. This is referred to as the nomadic area. Two types of nomads are recognized: the true nomads who keep moving all year round (even in winter) to find fresh grazing (although it seemed that even these nomads had places of shelter in really severe winters), and the semi-nomads who have winter shelters for themselves and walled enclosures (without roofs) for their stock. From the rangelands, which appear to be vast outwash plains from ancient glaciers (now much shrunken) and old lakebeds, many foothills and sharp mountains with permanent ice caps and snow fields rise up to 7000 m plus. It was difficult to assess the status of the rangelands; although some areas near the roads appeared to be heavily grazed, and the TARI staff with RO estimated that 80% of the rangelands are overgrazed and especially nearer to the settlements. Stocking was especially heavy on the plateau areas close to Damxung County Hqs. One of the big debating points on many rangelands in China is whether to fence or not to fence and whether to adopt a ranching model rather than the present pattern which is based on mobility, nomadism and transhumance. While in some cases fenced pasture reserved for winter feed appears to be a reasonable approach it also appears to be important to maintain the mobility of the herders so that they can move their animals to higher summer pastures and through movement go to where the feed and water is available for their animals. In many pastoral areas of the world there is growing evidence that livestock mobility is a key factor in the sustainable development of rangeland areas. Among the major problems with fencing is that some herders may be excluded from access to water for their stock and also from grazing at different elevations and micro-environments. [In Xinjiang where FAO has worked with Kazak herders, winter bases with irrigated areas for summer production of alfalfa hay, wheat and sunflower have been introduced, but the mobile nature of the lifestyle has been maintained with movement to the high pastures in spring and return in the autumn]. It remains to be seen what system will predominate in pastoral communities on Tibet’s vast rangland areas, but for the moment mobility is

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maintained. The major change in the area will be the building of the railway from Golmud to Lhasa, a distance of more than 1,100 kms. Already the route of the railbed stretches from near Lhasa right across the high plateau as far as Damxung County Hqs (as far as RO went) and beyond, with bridges, tunnels and embankments and cuttings simultaneously under construction over this whole distance of 200 plus kms. Completion is scheduled in about 6 years (although RO also heard that it must be ready before the Olympic Games in 2008). At over 4,000m we passed Yangbajin thermal power station and climbed onto the high plateau. Some plots of oats and barley were noted on the plateau at 4,600m, but no stop was made. Near to Damxung County Hqs at 4,300m RO visited the TARI Pasture Research Station where a number of fodder oat cultivars from China have been introduced as well as cv Canadian (brought by Dr Nyima Tashi from Canada); RO to check if it is cv Canadian or merely a Canadian cv. Also peas were being grown. Several oat trials were underway including a fertilizer trial with NPK and various combinations. The oats were planted in May and will be harvested in early October. Although the oat crop had headed it was still green and no viable seed will be harvested at this altitude. Oats will be harvested, dried, chopped and stored for winter feed for distribution to herders. Seed will have to be brought from lower areas around Lhasa. They plan to expand the area by a factor of ten, but although good quantities of winter feed can be produced (and the Government appears to be willing to subsidize this and many other programmes in Tibet) the negative aspect is that once the soil is disturbed strong winter winds at this altitude can lead to soil erosion on the ploughed areas, so long term sustainability of this system needs to be re-examined and efforts made to undersow the oats with a cover crop that remains on the land in the winter period to bind the soil, as the stubble appears not to be sufficient [RO to check on the altitudinal range of white clover and lucerne]. The land and thin soil are very fragile at these elevations and great care is needed before embarking on major cultivation programmes. Later oat planting is not possible at this altitude to have winter green feed as the oats dry off rapidly after October (but this practice will be tried at lower elevations). RO suggested trying vetch or other legumes with the oats and suggested that if various crop cvs are introduced through the TCP project that the oat cultivars could be tried at this altitude as well as in the lower river valleys at 3,600-3,800m. There are also trials applying fertilizer to natural grasses. The nearby Animal Husbandry Research Station has also introduced 10 or more fodder crops, but no details were available (officers promised to obtain information and forward to RO). It was noted that herders were growing barley and peas in walled enclosures on nearby plateau areas. After Damxung a visit was made to the famous Namtso Lake at 4,718m, which meant crossing a 5,000m, pass. The Lake is the highest salt-water lake in the world and has great religious significance for Tibetans. It lies some 250 kms from Lhasa. The lake is ringed by snow covered mountains and clearly was once much more extensive as seen from old lake shorelines. There are also many outwash fans from the surrounding mountains and grazing is poor on these rather saline soils.The second half-day field visit was again along the Lhasa river, but this time towards the airport. Farmers were mainly busy bringing the wheat, barley and rape sheaves in from the fields. In places threshing was in full swing. Stops were made at a number of places where a second crop was growing. At the first, turnips had been planted in mid-August after a late maturing winter wheat and would be harvested at the end of September; turnips were maximum about 8-10 cms in diameter. Seed for the sowing of the winter wheat crop would come from the threshing of the crop just being carried in. At another stop turnips were already being harvested (for human and livestock feed; it was noted also that many of the children were eating raw turnips on the roadsides and in the fields) after only 3 – 4 weeks, in readiness for the ploughing and winter wheat sowing in October. Another area had quite extensive plantings of turnips (after winter barley) and this clearly is the main second crop in this area. The farmers save their own seed. In one place much larger turnips were seen interplanted with recently harvested potatoes and rape. Vetch is not widely planted because the seed is expensive at 4 Yuan per kg and will require subsidization and support from Government to establish. In one field a 60-day crop of rape had been taken as a second crop after winter wheat. In further discussions it appeared that Government had been demonstrating pit silage with maize, but this was not particularly popular.

4. Malaysia

The main purpose was to participate in the eighth meeting of the Grazing and Feed Resources Working Group for Southeast Asia, held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 22-28 September, 2003. The meeting, organized on behalf of the Working Group by a Committee under Dr Mohd. Khusahry Mohd. Yusuff, the Director of the Strategic Livestock Research Centre, MARDI, was attended by some 32 participants (20 from Malaysia, 2 from Laos, 4 from Philippines, 3 from Thailand and 2 from Vietnam and RO) as well as a number of additional staff from MARDI, DVS and UPM who assisted with the organization and field visits and who attended to present guest papers. The main theme was “Forages and Feed Resources in Commercial Livestock Production

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Systems”and the programme of papers, posters, discussions and field visits was well organized with excellent hotel and meeting facilities and was much appreciated by participants. RO delivered speeches in the opening technical session and in the opening and closing ceremonies and took an active part in meeting discussions, but encouraged participants to act as chairpersons and play the major role in all sessions.RO displayed folders of the Country Pasture Resource Profiles for countries in the region and welcomed new contributions (particularly Laos) and updating of existing profiles.A number of recommendations were made in the Business Session at the end of the Meeting held as part of the meeting. The Meeting Proceedings will be published in Malaysia and should be available within 2 months (i.e. by end November 2003) and at the latest by the end of 2003.It was agreed that the next meeting of the Group could take place in Thailand sometime in the period February/March 2006 (exact dates to be decided) avoiding 2005 the year the next IGC is held, possibly with the theme “Dry season management and utilization of feeds and forages” with papers being considered under six or seven sub-themes (with the exact wording to be decided in consultations between the Regional Coordinator Frank Moog and Dr Chaisang from Thailand): (1) Conserved fodder; (2) Use of agro-industrial by-products, crop residues and non-conventional feedstuffs; (3) Browse fodder cultivation and utilization; (4) Techniques for overcoming drought through agricultural practices; (5) Species selection for dry seasons; (6) Effects of dry spells on animal performance; (7) Farmers’ experience in overcoming dry season feed problems. [it was also suggested that items (3) and (5) could be replaced by “Drought tolerant species and fodder trees”].No project proposals were presented for possible funding, although RO may follow up with several countries to prepare case studies on the role of pastures and forages in improving livelihoods. The WG discussed and inprinciple endorsed a draft regional TCP proposal entitled “Capacity Building for Fodder and Feed ResourceTechnologies in Southeast Asia” and requested RO to follow up with RAP (and TCOT). The exact wording of

the resolution was “The 8th Meeting of the RWG on Grazing and Feed Resources for Southeast Asia fully endorses

the draft Regional TCP Project proposal entitled “Capacity building for fodder and feed resource technologies in Southeast Asia” and requests the FAO Officer present (Dr S. Reynolds) to follow up and discuss with the FAO Regional Office in Bangkok”.

a. BackgroundThe Working Group (WG) on Grazing and Feed Resources for Southeast Asia was formed in 1989 at a meeting in Serdang, Malaysia. Since then regular meetings have been held - at Los Banos in Philippines (1991), Khon Kaen, Thailand (1993), Nha Trang, Vietnam (1995), Vientiane, Lao P.D.R. (January 1996), in Legaspi, Philippines (October, 1998), and most recently in Manado, North Sulawesi, Indonesia in July, 2001. Proceedings for the Seventh Meeting were somewhat delayed being published only in 2003 to be ready for participants at the Eighth Meeting. This delay was unfortunate as it meant that the material was not available either to participants or for distribution throughout the network. The outlines of the present Eighth Meeting were planned in 2002 by the Organizing Committee and finalized during a March 2003 visit by RO to Kuala Lumpur. Due to the SARS outbreak the meeting had to be postponed from May 2003 to September 2003.

b. MeetingThe meeting, which was organised on behalf of the WG on Grazing and Feed Resources for Southeast Asia by a Committee under Dr Mohd. Khusahry Mohd. Yusuff, the Director of the Strategic Livestock Research Centre, MARDI, was held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 22-28 September, 2003. The Meeting Programme comprised an Opening Ceremony (at which Dr. Mohd. Khusahry Mohd. Yusuff welcomed participants on behalf of the Organizing Committee, and the keynote address was given on behalf of the Director General of MARDI by Dr Ahmad Zamzam, Deputy Director General (Research)of MARDI), 5 technical sessions with paper and poster presentations and discussions [the main theme was “Forages and feed resources in commercial livestock production systems” with papers being considered under 5 sub-themes (Role of native and improved forages for commercial livestock production, Increased utilization of crop residues, agro-industrial by-products and other feed resources, Livestock/tree crop integration/industrial system, Feedlotting and dairying, Quality and safety/environmental concerns from feed in commercial livestock production] and concluded with a session at which Working Group business and future activities were discussed. In addition two full days were spent visiting the FELDA beef cattle-oil palm integration at Serting, Negri Sembilan, a smallholder’s dairy farm in Melaka, the RML beef cattle feedlot at Padung Hijau in Johor, the MARDI Research Station at Kluang in Johor and finally the Institut Haiwan in Kluang, Johor. The meeting was attended by some 32 participants (20 from Malaysia, 2 from Laos, 4 from Philippines, 3 from Thailand and 2

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from Vietnam, and RO) as well as a number of additional staff from MARDI, DVS and UPM who assisted with the organization and field visits and who attended to present guest papers. Unfortunately communication problems with the National Co-ordinator in Manado, Indonesia meant that no participants attended from Indonesia. The programme of papers, posters, discussions and field visits was well organised with excellent hotel and meeting facilities and was much appreciated by participants. The presentation of posters [a new initiative at the Manado meeting] was continued and was well received; in fact there were 22 papers and 23 poster papers, so this aspect of the WG Meetings has quickly expanded and provides an opportunity for more informal presentations by colleagues who are maybe less fluent in English but who have no less important technical messages to convey. In addition 2 participants from the commercial sector (1 each from Philippines and Thailand) covered their own air fare and accommodation costs, plus one attended from Malaysia, demonstrating that there is commercial interest in accessing potential new technologies and opportunities and networking in the region (this follows on from Manado where two young entrepreneurs who run commercial feedlots in Philippines attended the Meeting at their own expense); this is adding a new dimension to WG activities. Many guest speakers also attended. There was excellent exchange of ideas and participants from perhaps less developed countries were very interested in various technologies described and discussed during the presentations and also observed during the field visits. The entrepreneurs who attended were no less keen to network and exchange information and contacts. RO delivered speeches in the opening technical session and in the opening and closing ceremonies and took an active part in meeting discussions, but encouraged participants to act as chairpersons and play the major role in all sessions.RO displayed folders of the Country Pasture Resource Profiles for countries in the region and welcomed new contributions (in particular for Laos) and updating of existing profiles.As an indication of recent progress it was noted that all paper presenters used PowerPoint and that many of the posters were of a high standard as per those presented at other international meetings and congresses.It was mentioned that the Meeting Proceedings will be made available both in hardcopy and on CD-ROM and one copy in PDF will be provided for the FAO Grassland website. These could be ready within 2 months.Details of the Meeting Programme and Participants are included in Annex 2.

c. Key Issues

Key issues to emerge during the 5 sessions:

Session 1 : Role of native and improved forages for commercial livestock production – three main papers and six poster papers. The first paper by Dr Khusahry (Malaysia) provided a good overview of the use of native and improved forage use in commercial livestock production. Although only 10% of beef consumed is presently locally raised the aim is to increase this to 50%, and by 2025 to meet the projected increase in livestock production it is estimated that there will need to be a sevenfold increase in forage production. Two key strategies will be the increased use of oil palm fronds (OPF) from large plantations and the utilization of other new forage sources such as kenaf and mulberry to produce composite feed resources with OPF. The second paper by Dr Jelan (Malaysia) emphasized the exceptional feed qualities and potential of mulberry as a commercial protein supplement. Dr Chaisang Phaikaew (Thailand) provided details of the increased use of improved forages in commercial livestock systems in Thailand. In particular it was noted that in some former rice growing areas commercial forage production is now a preferred alternative cash crop for selling to dairy farmers or feedlots (as fresh forage, hay or silage). Two poster papers (from Malaysia and Thailand) focused on commercial pasture seed production, another looked at the effects of legume inclusion on grass based silage (Malaysia), posters from Vietnam and Laos provided details of improved grasses for commercial dairy production in peri-urban areas and forage technology development, while a final poster from Philippines looked at Brachiaria decumbens and B. humidicola for beef production.

Session 2 : Increased utilization of crop residues, agro-industrial by-products and other feed resources – five main papers and five poster papers. Remy Acasio (Philippines) described investigations of control methods for the weed Chromolaena odorata in pastures, especially involving mowing frequency and grazing management with the aim of increasing pasture quality and quantity. Then Wan Zahari (Malaysia) described various feeds derived from the oil palm and especially oil palm fronds, noting that potentially the amount of OPF available from the 3.3 M ha of oil palm was 26.2 M tonnes in 2000; based on available information 225 ha of oil palm (fronds) can feed 2,000 head of cattle and 356 oil palm processing plants countrywide could double beef and dairy production. He noted the various challenges to be faced in fully commercializing OPF feed processing. Mai Van Sanh (Vietnam) focused on research undertaken on the use of urea (4%) treated rice straw for feeding

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dairy cattle in the dry season. In spite of good results from including 25-50% urea treated rice straw in dairy cattle diets uptake by farmers was limited, possibly because farmers did not regard it as cost effective, because of difficulties in straw treatment and the time required and the alternative of using the expensive urea on crops instead where a more obvious benefit was noted. In resulting discussion recent Malaysian experience on commercial rice straw baling (small bales) and urea treatment, use of rice straw for mushroom growing and for chipboard production were mentioned. Mr Chin (Malaysia) then gave an excellent overview of commercial silage production and utilization in Southeast Asia noting that silage has particularly gained importance in the specialized commercial farming system (both beef and dairy) where there is considerable potential for further adoption. He noted the various technologies that have been investigated and focused on the cost:benefit ratio and the economics, and particularly looked at the cost problems in commercializing the small (plastic) drum technology. Mr Tayag (Philippines) then looked at strategies for stable cattle production and marketing particularly in the face of globalization, noting that trade liberalization requires fair trade rather than purely free trade. The key need was to transform smallholder agriculture production to a market driven and integrated agribusiness system and emphasise farm to market linkages. Poster papers focused on crop waste use to increase milk production in Thailand, forage and livestock innovation in Laos, the use of SILAGER (a machine) in commercial drum silage production in Malaysia and the role of silage from fodder, crop residues and agro-industrial by-products in commercial livestock production in Malaysia.

Session 3 : Livestock/tree crop integration/industrial system – four main papers and five poster papers. Dr Khusahry (Malaysia) provided a good overview of R & D on livestock integration with tree crops and noted how through organizations like FELDA that cattle raising under oil palm has now been adopted by some of the large plantations as an effective and low cost method of beef cattle production, increasing bunch weight and weed control. He mentioned that there is a manual (presently only in Malay) for feedlotting with beef cattle under oil palm in Malaysia. The areas where more research is required were highlighted (shade tolerant forage species; suitable cattle breeds; optimum stocking rates; longer term studies of soil compaction; modifications to the planting system; increased use of by-products and system modelling). M. Najib Amin (Malaysia) then looked at the processing and handling of fodder products in Malaysia and especially focused on hay and hay chaff/meal production (from guinea grass, dwarf napier, leucaena and gliricidia) and the difficulties of drying hay in the wet season, necessitating artificial drying methods. Frank Moog (Philippines) reviewed the status of cattle/coconut integration in the Philippines noting that a large percentage of the 3.1M ha of coconuts are more than 70 years old, that several organizations are focusing on cattle distribution to smallholder farmers and that pig raising on coconut juice is an alternative to copra production when copra prices are low. Najib (Malaysia) then reviewed the use of the multipurpose annual crop Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus) as an animal feed noting that it can also be used for fibre products including fibreboard. With crude protein levels of more than 20% it can be used as animal feed if cut between 6-8 weeks and for fibre products if cut after 3-6 months. Yields of 30 M tonnes per ha per year can be achieved. Feeding trials with kenaf suggest that 20-30% inclusion of kenaf in rations gave the best results with average LWG of 0.70kg per day. The main drawback was the need to replant every year! Poster papers focused on commercial silawrapped silage production by small farmers (Malaysia), changes in pasture availability and botanical composition under oil palm (Malaysia), and growth of native and improved forages under orchard crops (Malaysia).

Session 4 : Feedlotting and dairying – seven main papers and six poster papers. A key feature of this session was the presentation by two commercial entrepreneurs (one from Malaysia and the other from Thailand). Rosli Mai from Malaysia described aspects of commercial feedlot operation (he has feedlots in Malaysia and Cambodia); some 80,000 tonnes of beef are imported per year and cattle brought in are feedlot-finished to fatten, to add value and also to increase employment in Malaysia. Fattening is usually done over 70-90 days; the key to profitability is the cost of the feed, the LWG per day and the number of animals; with the better animals he aims for between 1.2-1.6 kg LWG per day but with local feeds (especially by-products from the oil palm industry, pineapple waste, brewers waste, cocoa waste, corn stover etc.) gains are often lower. There are only 2 feedlots in Malaysia with >3,000 animals and 20-30 with <1,000 head. Choak Bulakul (Thailand) provided details of commercial dairying experience at Chok Chai Farms (8,000 acres and 5 farms and 5,000 head of dairy cattle, mainly Friesian with a milking herd of 2,000 producing on average 30 tonnes of raw milk per day at an average of 18 kg per cow from 3 milkings per day) as well as details of the various linked companies from feedmilling, dairy plant, a steakhouse chain and property development to agrotourism etc. and a growing export business to China, Laos, Malaysia and Vietnam. The Government School Milk Programme in Thailand appears to have been a considerable encouragement to dairying. Najib (Malaysia) dealt with processing and handling of fodder products while M. Sukri Idris (Malaysia) focused on fattening of beef cattle with oil palm by-products. Abu

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Bakar Chik (Malaysia) continued the focus on OPF-based feed, this time for dairy production. Azizan Abd. Rashid looked at variability of small-scale beef feedlotting enterprises (in Malaysia) based on oil palm frond silage feeding and the Chaisang Phaikaew (Thailand) looked at technology verification for dairy male beef feedlotting in SakonNakorn Province in Thailand and provided the results of a number of trials both on-station and with farmers. Poster papers dealt with the effects of improved nutrition and management system towards better milk production and fertility in a commercial dairy herd in Malaysia, dairy cow production in southern Vietnam, commercial goat milk production in Malaysia, strip grazing and cut and carry feeding in a feedlot in Philippines, pasture preferences of Timor deer and forage and feedstuff quality prediction using near infrared spectroscopy (Malaysia).

Session 5 : Quality and safety/environmental concerns from feed in commercial livestock production – two main papers and two poster papers. The key paper by F.Y. Chin (Malaysia) focused on feed safety concerns and the role of the proposed Malaysian Animal Feed Act in feed quality and safety assurance with the objective of ensuring feed quality (safe feed) and the production of safe food. Posters dealt with Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) and Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) principles for quality and safety assurance in feed production (Malaysia) and determination of pyrethroid insecticide in oil palm fronds by capillary column gas chromograph (Malaysia). Copies of 2 manuals were made available. Key issues related to the WG:

- Regional Coordinator (RC) Francisco Moog explained the purpose of the WG and requested that National Coordinators forward comments on what they viewed as the main achievements and outputs of the WG since its inception in 1989;

- New National Coordinators (NC) were nominated for Laos (Dr Viengsavanh) and Philippines (Remy Acasio) and Malaysia might suggest a new NC before the end of 2003. Details of any changes in National Coordinators to be communicated to RC and RO;

- Participants noted that for the second time a WG Meeting was attended by three self-financed entrepreneurs one from Malaysia (feedlotting), one from the Philippines (Integrated agribusiness systems), as well as one person from Thailand (Dairy Ranching and other businesses including Agrotourism). In order to increase local funding for the WG network it was hoped that for the next meeting in Thailand additional funding sources and sponsorship would be identified and there would be more self-financed participants, so that the network would become less reliant on FAO funding;

- It was agreed that the next meeting of the Group could take place in Thailand sometime in the period February/March 2006 (exact dates to be decided) with the theme “Dry season management and utilization of feeds and forages” with papers being considered under six or seven sub-themes (with the exact wording to be decided in consultations between the Regional Coordinator Frank Moog and Dr Chaisang from Thailand): (1) Conserved fodder; (2) Use of agro-industrial by-products, crop residues and non-conventional feedstuffs; (3) Browse fodder cultivation and utilization; (4) Techniques for overcoming drought through agricultural practices; (5) Species selection for dry seasons; (6) Effects of dry spells on animal performance; (7) Farmers’experience in overcoming dry season feed problems. [it was also suggested that items (3) and (5) could be replaced by “Drought tolerant species and fodder trees”].

- The Proceedings will be published in Malaysia (co-ordinated by Dr Rizwan from UPM) and should be available within 2 months (i.e. by the end of November 2003) and at the latest by end of 2003;

- Copies of past proceedings held are as follows: 1989 (0); 1991 (30 in Philippines); 1993 (? In Thailand, to be checked); 1995 (Vietnam ? in Malaysia, to be checked); 1996 (Laos, ? to be checked in Malaysia); 1998 (? Philippines, to be checked); 2001 (200 printed, 80 distributed already and further distribution to follow); once numbers are available RO and RC to discuss distribution;

- A draft regional TCP proposal had been prepared on behalf of the WG by Dr Chin from Malaysia entitled “Capacity building for fodder and feed resource technologies in Southeast Asia” and following discussion was endorsed in principle (possibly with written comments to follow) by participants with the recommendation that RO follow up with RAP and TCOT;

- No country project proposals were presented for possible funding, but RO may follow up with several countries regarding the preparation of case studies of the role of pastures and forages in improving livelihoods;

- RO requested countries to consider the preparation of new Country Pasture Resource Profiles (e.g. Laos) and the updating of existing profiles (e.g. Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, and in due course Vietnam);

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- At the end of the Meeting several members of the Malaysian Press attended the Farewell Luncheon and RO, RC Frank Moog, NC Aminah Abdullah Deputy Director (Communications) MARDI and Mr Chin spent about 2 hours discussing the Working Group and aspects of Integrated Agriculture (especially oil palm – cattle) in Malaysia.

Field Visits

On Thursday 25 September visits were made to the FELDA beef cattle-oil palm integration in Serting, Negri Sembilan and a smallholder’s dairy farm in Melaka. The oil palm plantation was about 2,000 ha and 700 cattle were being run on a “paddock” of 15 ha in 3.5 year old oil palms (usually cattle can be put in after about 3 years, after which little damage is done to the oil palm), the “paddock”or daily grazing area being demarcated with a single strand electric fence. By moving the fence daily the stock do not overgraze the available feed and a large plantation area can be covered in this way with a return period of about 3 months. The smallholder dairy farm run by Mr How Kwe was about 4 ha in size and supplied milk to an MCC (Milk Collection Centre). Established in 1993 the farm has 2 ha of napier grass and sugarcane and produces about 350 litres of milk twice per day from a feed mix prepared from soybean waste (1.5 tonnes per day), OPF (1 tonne per day), sugarcane (300 kg per day), napier grass (200 kg per day), copra cake (50 kg per day), reject feed from the feedmill (200 kg per day). Oil Palm Fronds (OPF) are chopped with a motorized chopper and the resulting feed mixture has a CP % of about 17%. The cattle particularly sought out the soybean waste in the feed!

On Friday 26 September 6 July visits were made to the RML beef cattle feedlot at Padung Hijau in Johor (400 acres; fattening of beef cattle, camels, goats and sheep were observed as well as feed ingredients [PKC, corn, wheat bran, pineapple, soyabean waste etc.]; 3,500 head of livestock plus receives animals from an RML - owned feedlot in Cambodia, as well as from Australia; aim is for >1.30 kg LWG per day), the MARDI Research Station at Kluang in Johor (LWGs of various cattle breeds in various production systems, with focus on the integrated system – with oil palm and supplementing with oil palm by-products; mainly excellent B. decumbens pastures) and finally the Institut Haiwan in Kluang, Johor to visit the 1,400 ha farm, agrotourism area, well managed B. decumbens pastures (grazed every 18 days to obtain better production rather then the longer grazing cycle of 28 days often suggested e.g. in Australia), the equine section, to a demonstration of SILAGER I (hydraulic press and vacuum pump), to a plot of a new B.decumbens cultivar (?Kluang Chamel) a mutant cv produced by gamma ray treatment and selection on B. decumbens seed [the new cv has more leaf then stem, is highly palatable, is a dwarf cv with higher CP% but not yet tested under grazing conditions and is not as aggressive as normal B. decumbens, suggesting that either weeds will be more competitive or that legumes will be more compatible with the new cv] and to the training and extension institute – Institut Haiwan, itself (part of DVS) for a briefing by the Deputy Director.

d. Other Matters

Letter of AgreementThe Letter of Agreement with MARDI was discussed with National Co-ordinator Ms Aminah Abdullah and it was noted that a final report was due as well as a certified, itemized statement of expenditures. These documents should be forwarded shortly and then final payment (of US$2,000) will be made.

CD-ROM from 1997 IGC in Canada RO distributed copies of the CD-ROM from the 1997 IGC held in Canada; these had been forwarded by the organizers with a request that they be widely distributed to appropriate Universities and Research Institution libraries. Copies would be placed in libraries and Institutes in Laos, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.

e. Follow up Activities With Other Projects and Organizations

With meeting organisers Dr. Mohd. Khusahry Mohd. Yusuff and Aminah Abdullah RO to ensure that all those who contributed to the success of the meeting are appropriately thanked.

5. Acknowledgements

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Thanks are due to Dinesh Pariyar and the office of FAOR for arrangements in Kathmandu. RO also appreciated the opportunity to discuss project and other issues with retired FAO staff member Jim Suttie. Ms Sonam, FAO Administrative Officer, and Dr Nyima Tashi kindly assisted RO to obtain the visa for Tibet at the Chinese Embassy in Kathmandu. RO also appreciated the opportunity to meet with three NARC Directors, Dr N.P. Shrestha, Mr S.P. Pandey and Mr H.R. Shrestha. In Tibet Dr Nyima Tashi discussed the TCP draft proposal and arranged an interesting programme and ensured that RO was accompanied throughout by English speaking staff in his absence. Particular thanks to Mr Yang Yong for arranging the visa and Letter of Invitation and for his interpretation skills; also to Ms. Weisi Baiyang for interpretation during field trips. Mr Liu Qi Yong, Dr Guan Shu Shen, Dr Jin Tao and Dr Yang Qingshou provided technical insights during field visits and in several meetings. Prof. Cheng Zheng Rong and Prof. Gu Maozhi President and Vice-President respectively of TAAAS kindly attended a farewell banquet for RO. Thanks to all persons met in Tibet for the warm hospitality. Thanks to the Organizing Committee under Dr Mohd. Khusahry Mohd. Yusuff, the Director of the Strategic Livestock Research Centre, MARDI, for the excellent arrangements made for the eighth Meeting in Kuala Lumpur of the WG on Grazing and Feed Resources for Southeast Asia, to the MARDI Deputy Director General (Research) Dr Ahmad Zamzam [on behalf of the Director General of MARDI, Y. Bhg. Datuk Dr. Saharan bin Hj. Anang] for giving the keynote address and to Deputy Director General (Corporate Communications) MARDI, Mr Rozhan Dardak for attending the Closing Ceremony. Thanks to Frank Moog, Regional Co-ordinator of the Working Group on Grazing and Feed Resources for Southeast Asia, for finalization of the Manado Proceedings and for his usual excellent co-ordination and chairing of the WG Business Meeting and to Malaysia National Co-ordinator Ms Aminah Abdullah for her considerable inputs both leading up to and during the Meeting in Kuala Lumpur. The inputs of Mr Chin from Malaysia in preparing the draft TCP Regional proposal were particularly appreciated. The success of the meeting was largely due to their efforts. The very warm hospitality extended to all participants by all persons met in Malaysia is likewise much appreciated. Finally thanks to the Regional Co-ordinator Francisco Moog for his dedicated service to the WG since 1998, and to national co-ordinators and all participants for the excellent spirit in which the meeting was held. Ms Phatumratt Apaisuwan (FAORAP) kindly booked the hotel in Bangkok.

Itinerary:

Thursday 11 September p.m. Depart RomeFriday 12 September a.m. Arrive/Depart Bangkokp.m. Arrive Kathmandu and meet with FAOR and Office staff, ‘phone discussions with Nyima Tashi and

meeting with cst Jim SuttieSaturday 13 September a.m. Meet with NPC Dinesh Pariyar and attend farmer training coursep.m. Farmer training course continues and discussions with NPC and Jim SuttieSunday 14 September a.m. Attend farmer training coursep.m. Discussions with NPC and cst Jim SuttieMonday 15 September a.m. Collect visa Chinese Embassy, discussions in FAO Office and attend farmer training coursep.m. Discussions with NPC and Jim Suttie and with three NARC Directors Tuesday 16 September a.m. Depart Kathmandu p.m. Arrive Lhasa, Tibet and meeting with Nyima Tashi and some of his colleagesWednesday 17 September a.m. Visit to TARI for meetings and discussions p.m. Visit to Mozhugongka County, one of the potential project areas in the Lhasa river valleyThursday 18 Septembera.m. Visit to the high plateau including oat trials in Damxung Countyp.m. Visit to rangeland areas and to Namtso Lake at 4,718m Friday 19 September a.m. In Lhasap.m. Visit to farmers fields in the Lhasa river valley and farewell banquetSaturday 20 September

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a.m. Depart Lhasa and arrive Kathmandup.m. Depart Kathmandu and arrive BangkokSunday 21 September a.m. Report preparation p.m. Report preparation Monday 22 September a.m. Depart Bangkokp.m. Arrive Kuala Lumpur and various meetingsTuesday 23 September a.m. First day of Meeting, various papers and postersp.m. Papers/posters continued and evening Opening Ceremony and dinnerWednesday 24 September a.m. Second day of Meeting, various papers and posters p.m. Papers and posters continued

Trip to PutrajayaThursday 25 September a.m. )Third day – Field tripsp.m. )Friday 26 September a.m. )Fourth day – field tripsp.m. )Saturday 27 September a.m. Fifth day – Business Meeting and Concluding Ceremony

Press Conferencep.m. Evening depart Kuala Lumpur and arrive BangkokSunday 28 September a.m. Depart Bangkok and arrive Romep.m. Report preparation in HQ Office

Principal Persons Met:

Nepal Mr K. Tsurumi, FAOR NepalMr Laxman Gautam, Assistant FAORMrs Sonam Genpo, Administrative Officer, FAO OfficeMr Dinesh Pariyar NPC (Nepal Agriculture Research Council - NARC)Dr N.P. Shrestha, Director Administration, NARCMr S.P. Pandey, Director Planning and Co-ordination, NARCMr H.R. Shrestha, Director Livestock and Fisheries, NARCMr Chaudhury, Chief Livestock Development Officer, Department of Livestock Services (DLS)Mr C. K. Mishra, Technical Officer (NARC)Ms Sushma, Accountant, NARCMr J.M. Suttie, Hay consultant TCP/NEP/2901

China Prof. Chen Zheng Rong, President Tibet Academy of Agricultural and Animal Sciences (TAAAS), Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, ChinaProf. Gu Maozhi, Deputy President, TAAASDr. Nyima Tashi, Director General, Tibet Agricultural Research Institute (TARI) and Vice-President Tibet Academy of Agricultural and Animal Sciences (TAAAS), Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, ChinaMr Liu Qi Yong, Deputy Director, Tibet Agricultural Research Institute (TARI)Mr. Yang Yong, Coordinator/Acting Head, Division of International Cooperation (formerly ICTC), Tibet Academy of Agricultural and Animal Sciences (TAAAS), Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, ChinaProf. Guan Shu Shen, Soil and Cropping Systems Specialist, TARIMr Jin Tao, Assistant Professor and agronomist, TARI e-mail jt6637@163.com Mr Yang Qing Shou, Head of the Project Management Office, TARIMr Jiao Guo Cheng, Assistant Researcher, The Project Management Office, TARI

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Ms Weisi Baiyang, Division of International Cooperation (interpreter on field visits), TAAAS [e-mail: weisi_25@yahoo.com ]

Malaysia Dr Ahmad Zamzam, Deputy Director General (Research) of MARDIDr Rozhan Dardak, Deputy Director (Corporate Communications) of MARDIDr. Francisco Moog, Chief, Research Division, Bureau of Animal Industry, Quezon CityDr. Mohd. Khusahry Mohd. Yusuff, Director of the Strategic Livestock Research Centre, MARDI,Rosli Mai Lam, Director, R.M. Livestock Corp. MalaysiaChoak Bulakul, President, Chokchai Ranch Group, ThailandRenato S. Tayag CEO/President Mother Earth Products Inc. PhilippinesAhmad Ridzuan Zakaria, General Manager, Ventures, MalaysiaDr Mohd Fauzi Ahya, Marketing Manager, Ventures, MalaysiaTajuddin Ismail, Head Taman Warisan Pertanian, Putrajaya, MalaysiaJeffrey Ong, Manager, RML beef cattle feedlot, Padung Hijau, JohorDr Basery Mahamed, OIC MARDI Station, KluangMr Ghazali, MARDI Station, KluangMr Tiekri, MARDI Station, KluangDr Hussein, Deputy Director of the Veterinary Institute (Institut Haiwan),Kluang, Johor

Annex 1. TCP/NEP/2901

Summary:

The brief visit to Nepal to backstop project TCP/NEP/2901 was undertaken while RO was en route from Bangkok to Tibet, China. The stopover enabled RO to meet with Mr Jim Suttie (the Hay Consultant fielded under the retiree programme), to attend several training courses for farmers and also to discuss project progress and future activities with NPC Dinesh Pariyar and to visit the FAO Office to briefly discuss project activities and

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progress. The project is generally making good progress, although a wetter than usual monsoon season made June planting difficult. At Khumaltar the very wet conditions and excessive weed growth meant that the large cultivar trial could not be established. Although summer planting of oats was undertaken in the higher altitude sites to have 2 plantings per year in the short duration TCP (to collect more data) and for cv evaluation and seed multiplication at Dunche, the main reason was to see how fodder oats would fit into the cropping system and see if late summer hay making is possible; it would appear that up to 2,000m and maybe even higher to 2,500 fodder oats are best grown as a winter green fodder crop (with very limited hay making and some grain production reported) and summer growing for hay making in the period September/October/November may only be of interest at higher elevation sites such as Langtang at 3,500m, but this needs to be explored further and this is only an initial observation following discussions with the Hay consultant, farmers and NPC. Farmers at lower elevations have sufficient green feed in the summer monsoon period and excessive weediness in fodder oat crops will be a major problem. Some oat hay was made at Dhaibung and Bhorle and possibly other sites in spite of the generally damp conditions, but clearly was not a priority with the farmers that RO spoke with. Small-bag silage making may be a better option for fodder conservation. The recent breakdown in negotiations between Government and the Maoists could have implications for future project activities in isolated sites.

Some conclusions and recommendations arising from this short visit by RO:

the major purpose of the ongoing TCP project is to evaluate new oat cultivars for fodder production at a range of elevations. Some data have already been collected but it is much too early to come to any conclusions, although clearly some of the new cvs are superior to existing oat cultivars;

fodder oats are probably best sown in the period September to November (depending on site elevation/location) for use as winter green feed; in the summer monsoon season excessive weed competition and the availability of adequate supplies of green feed from fodder trees, napier grass, grass and weeds from roadsides and bunds etc. means that farmers have little need for fodder oats and are focusing on their paddy rice crops on irrigated land and also maize on non-irrigated areas; the exception may be in areas above 2,000-2,500m where summer oats may be grown and conserved as hay for winter feeding. Further work is needed and particularly at Langtang from where reports will be available in due course for both June (summer) sown and September/October sown fodder oats and hay-making.

the Hay consultant was unable to demonstrate hay-making in his September visit due to travel restrictions and also due to the continuing wet conditions; therefore it was agreed that his second 3-week visit should take place in February/March (NPC to advise on exact dates in due course and preferably by mid-December 2003) to coincide with good drying conditions for hay-making. NPC to implement all activities and put in place all conditions necessary for his visit.

it was also agreed that forage conservation in the form of small-(plastic) bag silage should be given more emphasis in the project as this method of fodder conservation (if appropriate precautions are taken both in preparation and in protecting the bags in storage from rat damage) could be more attractive to farmers in some situations and areas.

in line with increased emphasis on small-bag silage RO fully supports the utilization of some of the equipment funds for silage making instead of hay-making, where generally local materials are available. As both are methods of forage conservation and were already in the work plan then both technically and administratively this is fully supported and in line with the project objectives.

every effort should be made to ensure that the project is provided with the laptop computer within one or two weeks of RO visit to the project;

it was noted that the seed cleaning machine provided was defective and it is strongly recommended that NPC and FAO request that the supplier provide a substitute machine and take back the delivered machine which was only test-run during the visit of the Hay consultant and RO.

because the present duration to December 2004 only allows one winter fodder oat harvest (in winter/early spring 2003/2004) it is recommended that the project be extended to April 2005 in order to have a second winter fodder oat harvest (in winter/early spring 2004/2005) for a total of two winter fodder oat harvests and

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to enable all data to be assembled, additional training to be undertaken and a second round of hay-making demonstrations to be carried out in 2005 (all within the existing budget).

(a) Background

The project document was approved on 26th March 2003 for immediate implementation and a twenty-one month duration from April 2003 to December 2004. Full details of Project Background and Justification are described in the project document and in the first mission report of RO for the period 1-11 May 2003 and are not repeated here.

(b) Progress

Since the two-week mission (29 April-13 May 2003) by the Lead Consultant in Fodder Oats Breeding and Evaluation, Keith Armstrong, and the RO visit from 2-10 May 2003 the main activities undertaken have been oat harvesting from the October 2002 pre-project oat plots (including the large trials of all 21 oat cultivars from New Zealand at Khumaltar, Riyale and Dhunche), planting at a number of sites in June 2004 and various technician and farmer training courses. While in Kathmandu RO met with the Hay consultant Mr Jim Suttie (fielded under the Retiree programme from 1-21 September) and discussed progress and amendments needed to the project work plan with him and NPC, Dinesh Pariyar.

(c) Status of Field SitesFrom the earlier October to November 2002 pre-project sowings of 21 cvs a total of 228 kg of seed was harvested (from Khumaltar, Riyale and Dhunche) as well as other seed from the smaller farmer field trials. In May/June 120 farm sites (farmers fields) were sown, with 30 farmers at 4 sites including Langtang (3,500m), Riyale (1870m), Dhaibung (1,500m) and Bhorle (2,000m) with two main aims: to see how the cultivars performed at these altitudes and also to see if hay-making was possible. The Langtang site has already been harvested and has been sown again for a winter crop of oats. Other sites are being harvested. Oats sown in May/June for a summer crop tends to be weed infested and hay making is difficult in the monsoon rains (although it has been made at Dhaibung and Bhorle), and green feed is the main use. Possibly only at the higher altitudes will September/November haymaking be possible. (d) Testing on Farmer FieldsNew trials will be sown at 8 sites on farmer fields from September to November, depending on altitude. The highest site at Langtang (3,500m) has already been sown. Oats will be sown with vetch (Vicia dasycarpa) of which 50 kgs of seed has been purchased from a local source.

(e) Cultivar evaluation at Khumaltar and DuncheThe 23 new cvs from New Zealand sent in May/June after the last visit of the lead cst were to have been sown in large replicated trials at Khumaltar and Dunche, but because of excessive rain and weeding problems only Dunche was sown. In fact summer sowing at lower elevation sites is not likely to be practical on farmer fields because of weed problems, because there is green feed available and because focus is on the rice crop. Even at Bhorle at 2,000m where maize is the main summer crop a lack of land and other tasks means that summer oat sowing is not likely to be popular. The main reason for wanting to sow at Khumaltar was to expedite screening of new cultivars. In late September/October large cultivar evaluation and seed multiplication trials will be established at Khumaltar and Dunche.

(f) Field Visits

Because of the break down of talks between the Government and the Maoists no field visits outside the Kathmandu Valley were possible for RO. Cst Jim Suttie had visited Pokhara and several sites in the Terai prior to RO arrival, but travel was becoming even more restrictive after the RO departed Kathmandu, so that the cst would have to delay his departure by one day. RO made a number of visits to Khumaltar in Kathmandu to NPC offices and the site of one of the large cultivar trials where farmer training in hay making and small-bag silage was being undertaken with the assistance of cst Jim Suttie. During the training sessions RO spoke with two groups of farmers from Dhaibung and another group from Bhorle. The farmers from Dhaibung indicated that they had been growing fodder oats for 13 years and usually sowed in November (after harvesting paddy) on irrigated land (from 0.025-0.1 ha per farmer) harvesting in 3 cuts from January to March

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for green feed for their buffaloes (fed along with crop residues and concentrates) used for draught and milk production. Usually each farmer set aside a small area of oats for seed that was either not cut or only cut once before seed harvest, to prevent lodging. On non-irrigated land oats would be harvested with only one cut. The main cropping system is irrigated rice in the monsoon season followed by winter wheat and fodder oats in the winter period, with some vegetables and mustard etc grown for sale or home use. In the winter green oats are fed with various crop residues. In the summer period fodder trees, grass and weeds from the roadside and bunds and napier grass provide green feed. The period January to April is the lean feed period for their animals when oats play an important role. Although they had sown the new cultivars “out-of-their usual season”and would not normally sow summer oats because of excessive weeds and the need to focus on paddy rice rather than green feed, of which there was already enough, they were interested in the new cultivars for the winter season. They indicated that they only made hay from finger millet in November, because when the grain was harvested the straw was still green so they dried for winter feed. Probably they would not make hay from oats. Whether they would make silage from excess wet season grass remained to be seen!The farmers from Bhorle had sown oats for at least 4 to 5 years and some up to 10 years. They usually sowed in September and harvested in December (first cut) and in March (second cut), although one farmer who sowed around 0.5ha each year sometimes sowed in September and sometimes as late as February (and harvested within 2 months) depending on his cropping sequence! Usually the average area per farmer sown to oats was much smaller, being from 0.025-0.05 ha. The main crops grown are maize and finger millet in summer and barley and wheat in winter plus some potatoes. About 90% of the area is rainfed and only 10% irrigated. The cropping and feed calendar showed that there is plenty of green grass (including napier grass and native species) and weeds from terraces and bunds from May to October; millet straw and tree leaves are used as animal feed from October to January and maize stover, barley straw, wheat straw and green fodder oats from February to April. Hay is usually made from fenced off areas of native grasses in October (i.e. when conditions are dry but by which time the standing grass is over mature!). Most farmers indicated that although they were impressed by some of the new oat cultivars and had made some oat hay from the June planting, they would not normally plant oats in June because the land is needed for other crops and the labour is needed for other tasks; so June is not a good time to sow oats. It was noted that napier produces from about May to August when frosts start and that napier can be grown up to about 2,200 m. In discussions as well as hay making from oats, the possibility of producing small-bag silage in the summer period for the winter feed deficit period was discussed. One interesting fact to emerge from the discussions was that some farmers produce oat grain and mix with maize and grind in a hammer mill to produce concentrate feed for their livestock (cattle and buffalo mainly, plus some goats); oats appear to be used as green feed, as hay and as grain for concentrate feeding. Milk is usually made into ghee (as selling fresh milk would require too much time each day to carry to a nearby village to sell).

(g) Training

In-service technical and farmer training – a number of courses had been held, starting during the visit of Keith Armstrong and continuing during the visit of Jim Suttie. Subjects being emphasised during the present series of one-day farmer training courses were hay making (mainly theory because the monsoon season has not yet finished so drying conditions were not appropriate and little or small-(plastic) bag silage making (mainly practical). Two groups each of 16-20 farmers from Dhaibung (one group was all male the other had 35% women) traveled to Kathmandu for training during RO visit as well as a group of 15 farmers from Bhorle (because of the Maoist problem it is not safe for Kathmandu based officers or consultants to travel to the field sites, plus the roads to some sites were impassable). Two other farmer courses and a technician’s course were due to be given after RO departed for Tibet. Some 90 farmers and 20 technicians will have been trained by about 17th of September.Study Tour to NZ – Keith Armstrong is finalizing details. RO to follow up. NPC to prepare and forward nomination forms for HQ clearance. Probable candidates were discussed and RO emphasised that these should be officers involved in project implementation who would return to work on the project activities.Farmers Field Days – these would be held in the next round of trails as significant cultivars and technologies emerged; with the present troubles one day training courses were being held in Kathmandu.

(h) Work Plan

Small changes are suggested to the work plan and a slightly revised work plan is submitted with this report.

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(i) Consultancies

It was confirmed that the second visit of the Lead cst should proceed as agreed in the workplan from 1-14 November. Because of the difficulties with hay-making in the period at the end of the monsoon in August/September it was agreed that the second 3-week visit of the Hay cst was better advanced to February/March 2004 with exact dates to be decided by NPC. TOR for the second visit were slightly amended – see end of this Annex. The National cst first mission was better from 1 November (and possibly starting one week earlier, dates to be confirmed) to 15 December to overlap with the lead cst (rather than 1 October to 15 November as in the workplan, so this to be amended) with slightly modified TOR (see end of this Annex). Mr Sharma was the candidate originally identified, but if for any reason he is no longer available NPC to forward details of 3 candidates, giving order of preference, through FAOR for FAO HQ technical clearance.

(j) Equipment

Expenditure against the project budget of US$40,500 for non-expendable equipment and US$14,000 for expendable equipment has been initiated. The vehicle is due within the next month and the laboratory seed cleaning and quality testing equipment has been received (however, it was noted that the seed cleaning machine had a number of defects – including the seed feeder, blower, wrong sieve sizes etc. and cleaned seed at a very slow rate – it was suggested that as this was from a local agent of an Indian company with other machines in stock that the machine be replaced by one in full working order with the correct sieves for dealing with grain). RO stressed that the machine must be thoroughly cleaned between cultivar samples otherwise seed will be left inside the machine and samples will be contaminated with seed from other cultivars. At this stage of the programme it is absolutely essential that NPC ensures that strict cleaning of the inside of the machine is practised and this should be stressed to all persons involved in seed cleaning and processing. Surprisingly, the laptop computer had not yet been delivered but should be available in September. It was agreed with the Hay cst that small-(plastic) bag silage making equipment was preferable to the purchase of scythes and sickles, simple fodder boxes should replace the presses, and simple feed choppers were already available. RO to highlight this once the Hay cst’s report is available. Approximately US$7,500 and possibly more of the US$11,000 should be available from the Non-Expendable BL for small-bag silage equipment and materials. As noted previously during RO’s first report, after RO and NPC discussed the purchase of expendable equipment, it was noted that the funds for seed purchase might have been overestimated and other materials underestimated (US$14,000 was available at the start of the project). It was noted that good metal storage containers on frames above ground (in case of flooding in the storage shed) had been purchased for storing seed of the various oat cultivars.

(k) Technology Packages

While hay-making was foreseen as the main fodder conservation technique in the project design stage, with small-(plastic) bag silage as a possible secondary technology, it had become apparent that given the often wet conditions and the lack of suitable drying periods especially in August/September that a more appropriate method of fodder conservation was to chop both oats and grass and store as small-bag silage, inserting approximately 6 kg of chopped green material into a black plastic bag, expelling the air by compression and then sealing this bag inside two other bags and storing inside a wire mesh “cage” to prevent rat damage. The 6 kg of green material is the amount of green feed to be mixed with dry crop residues per buffalo per day, so this is a convenient measure; the farmer can thus easily calculate the number of bags of silage required for any number of days (corresponding to the length of lean period in a particular region). Hay making might be limited to the higher sites (above 2,00-2,500m) in September/October or even in February/March. For this reason it was agreed to advance the second mission of the Hay consultant to February/March 2004 with exact dates to be confirmed by NPC in due course (see above). Oats grown though the winter period are likely to be used as green fodder to supplement various dry crop residues and therefore hay is unlikely to be made. However, the hay-making technology and the small-bag silage technology are both being demonstrated so that the farmers have various options.

During discussions it was agreed that in order to provide the NPC with concise technical documents and also as preparation for the end-of-project workshop that each consultant should provide the project with technical documents summarizing the main findings in a number of specific areas. Thus, lead cst should provide an overall assessment of the oat cultivars introduced their performance at different locations and

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recommendations as to appropriate cultivars for different locations, with full information on sowing and harvesting dates, fertilizer needs, crop management etc. The hay consultant to prepare a technical document on hay-making utilization, and with the NPC another technical document on small-(plastic) bag silage making and use; the national consultants to prepare a technical document on cropping systems and the place and role of oats in different cropping systems. These should be reflected in TOR.

(l) Contracts

Following the May visit RO prepared and finalized a draft of the contract (LOA) for oat germplasm supply and data analysis for US$20,000 between FAO and the New Zealand Institute for Crop and Food Research, following discussions with the Lead Consultant. FAOR in Kathmandu has followed up and this has now been signed and the initial payment made.

(m) Budget and Operational Matters

Procedures appeared to be proceeding smoothly with good contact and relationships between the FAO Administrative Officer and the NPC and project accountant.

(n) Meeting with Ministry Officials

RO, Jim Suttie and NPC Dinesh Pariyat met with three NARC Directors on 15 September. These were: Dr N.P. Shrestha, Director of Administration, Mr S.P. Pandey, Director of Planning and Co-ordination, and Mr H.R. Shrestha, Director of Livestock and Fisheries.

(o) Reporting

NPC will prepare and submit to FAO a project progress report, covering progress to date, with various collected data etc.; this to be prepared by the end of September following the departure of the Hay consultant. This to be sent to FAO HQ for comment and then a copy will be made available to the Lead consultant prior to his next mission in November.

(p) Meeting with FAOR

A brief meeting was held with FAOR on arrival and as all appeared to be proceeding on schedule FAOR had no special points to raise. He was looking forward to visiting another project site and it was likely that a visit to Dunche should be possible during the next visit by cst Keith Armstrong in November. NPC would follow up. Cst Jim Suttie with NPC would debrief with NARC and FAOR and present his main mission conclusions and recommendations prior to departure.

(q) Conclusions and Recommendations

The project is generally making good progress, although a wetter than usual monsoon season made June planting difficult. At Khumaltar the very wet conditions and excessive weed growth meant that the large cultivar trial could not be established. Although summer planting of oats was undertaken in the higher altitude sites to have 2 plantings per year in the short duration TCP (to collect more data) and for cv evaluation and seed multiplication at Dunche, the main reason was to see how fodder oats would fit into the cropping system and see if late summer hay making is possible; it would appear that up to 2,000m and maybe even higher to 2,500 fodder oats are best grown as a winter green fodder crop (with very limited hay making and some grain production reported) and summer growing for hay making in the period September/October/November may only be of interest at higher elevation sites such as Langtang at 3,500m, but this needs to be explored further and this is only an initial observation following discussions with the Hay consultant, farmers and NPC. Farmers at lower elevations have sufficient green feed in the summer monsoon period and excessive weediness in fodder oat crops will be a major problem. Some oat hay was made at Dhaibung and Bhorle and possibly other sites in spite of the generally damp conditions, but clearly was not a priority with the farmers that RO spoke with. Small-bag silage making may be a better option for fodder conservation. The recent breakdown in negotiations between Government and the Maoists could have implications for future project activities in isolated sites.

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Some conclusions and recommendations arising from this short visit by RO:

the major purpose of the ongoing TCP project is to evaluate new oat cultivars for fodder production at a range of elevations. Some data have already been collected but it is much too early to come to any conclusions, although clearly some of the new cvs are superior to existing oat cultivars;

fodder oats are probably best sown in the period September to November (depending on site elevation/location) for use as winter green feed; in the summer monsoon season excessive weed competition and the availability of adequate supplies of green feed from fodder trees, napier grass, grass and weeds from roadsides and bunds etc. means that farmers have little need for fodder oats and are focusing on their paddy rice crops on irrigated land and also maize on non-irrigated areas; the exception may be in areas above 2,000-2,500m where summer oats may be grown and conserved as hay for winter feeding. Further work is needed and particularly at Langtang from where reports will be available in due course for both June (summer) sown and September/October sown fodder oats and hay-making.

the Hay consultant was unable to demonstrate hay-making in his September visit due to travel restrictions and also due to the continuing wet conditions; therefore it was agreed that his second 3-week visit should take place in February/March (NPC to advise on exact dates in due course and preferably by mid-December 2003) to coincide with good drying conditions for hay-making. NPC to implement all activities and put in place all conditions necessary for his visit.

it was also agreed that forage conservation in the form of small-(plastic) bag silage should be given more emphasis in the project as this method of fodder conservation (if appropriate precautions are taken both in preparation and in protecting the bags in storage from rat damage) could be more attractive to farmers in some situations and areas.

in line with increased emphasis on small-bag silage RO fully supports the utilization of some of the equipment funds for silage making instead of hay-making, where generally local materials are available. As both are methods of forage conservation and were already in the work plan then both technically and administratively this is fully supported and in line with the project objectives.

every effort should be made to ensure that the project is provided with the laptop computer within one or two weeks of RO visit to the project;

it was noted that the seed cleaning machine provided was defective and it is strongly recommended that NPC and FAO request that the supplier provide a substitute machine and take back the delivered machine which was only test-run during the visit of the Hay consultant and RO.

because the present duration to December 2004 only allows one winter fodder oat harvest (in winter/early spring 2003/2004) it is recommended that the project be extended to April 2005 in order to have a second winter fodder oat harvest (in winter/early spring 2004/2005) for a total of two winter fodder oat harvests and to enable all data to be assembled, additional training to be undertaken and a second round of hay-making demonstrations to be carried out in 2005 (all within the existing budget).

Revised Terms of Reference for Consultants

Retired Expert Fodder Oat Hay ProductionSecond mission: 3 weeks (February/March 2004)Duty station: Kathmandu

Under the operational supervision of the FAOR and the technical guidance of AGPC and in close collaboration with the NPC, NARC, the consultant will:

(i) Prior to the visit, agree with the NPC and lead consultant (through e-mail) on activities that should have been undertaken, items that should be in place and the specifications of any equipment and materials that should be ordered for hay making and small-bag silage making.

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(ii) Visit various sites and, with the national consultant, in the context of local farming systems, assess the likelihood of oats being conserved as hay or silage or fed green; also assess progress on hay and small-bag silage making.(iii) At selected higher altitude sites carry out field demonstrations of making oat hay; with NPC and technical officers carrying out a demonstration programme on small-bag silage making. (iv) Carry out demonstrations with hay making equipment and discuss aspects of good hay making with project staff, technicians and key farmers.(v) Prepare an outline for a training programme for technicians and selected farmers to continue for the remainder of the project.(vi) Assess progress by the project in the preparation of a video and and hardcopy with photos of “Steps in small- bag silage making”. Provide advice and assistance as needed.(vii) Prepare a technical document with details of the project work undertaken in hay making and small-bag silage making. This will describe the various technical details and equipment of good hay making and small-bag silage making and storage.(viii) Prior to departure from duty station discuss main findings and recommendations with project authorities and FAOR. (ix) Prepare and submit to FAO within two weeks of mission completion, a detailed report presenting main findings, conclusions and recommendations. This should be in Word 6.0 and include a hard copy and diskette (or e-mail) version.

National Consultant in Oat AgronomyFirst mission: 1.5 months (1 November – 15 December)Duty Station: Kathmandu

Under the operational supervision of the FAOR and the technical guidance of AGPC and in close collaboration with the lead consultant, Retiree Expert and NPC, NARC, the consultant will:

(i) Initiate an assessment of local farming systems over the range of altitudes at which the project is evaluating oat cultivars and advise on the likely place of fodder oats within these systems.(ii) Assess the likely place of hay making and small-bag silage making (from both oats and other materials) within the various farming systems.(iii) Assemble data on costings for hay making and small-bag silage making(iv) Participate in training programmes for technicians and farmers.(v) As necessary, work with the project NPC to prepare technical and extension material and management packages on seed production aspects and programmes for testing cultivars on farmer fields.(vi) Prepare notes on indigenous hay equipment and forages conserved as hay.(vii) Prepare a technical document with details of the project study of farming systems and the likely place of fodder oats within these systems, and hay making and small-bag silage making from oats. This will describe the various farming systems at the range of altitudes covered by the project and the place of fodder oats, likely planting and harvesting dates, utilization details, conservation method etc.(viii) Before completing a report discuss main findings and recommendations with project authorities and FAOR. (ix) Prepare and submit to FAO within two weeks of mission completion, a detailed report presenting main findings, conclusions and recommendations. This should be in Word 6.0 and include a hard copy and diskette (or e-mail) version.

[Revised project Workplan – see 3 page attachment]

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Annex 2. Details of the meeting in Malaysia

THE 8TH MEETING/WORKSHOP OF THE REGIONAL WORKING GROUP ON

GRAZING AND FEED RESOURCES FOR SOUTHEAST ASIA,

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA

THEME OF MEETING/WORKSHOP

Forages and Feed Resources in Commercial Livestock Production System

DATE 22th to 28th Sept. 2003

VENUE Novotel Century Kuala Lumpur, Jalan Bukit Bintang, 55100 Kuala Lumpur, Tel: 603 2143 9898, Fax: 603 2142 1807 .

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TECHNICAL PROGRAM

Day 1, Monday (22 Sept 2003)

Arrival / Registration of Participants/Observers

Day 2, Tuesday (23 Sept 2003)

0800 Briefing on Meeting/Workshop Program

Technical Session 1 Role of Native and Improved Forages for Commercial Livestock Production

Chairman: Mr Frank Moog Rapporteur: Philippines delegate

Oral Presentation

0830 Paper 1 (An overview of native and improved forage use in commercial livestock production - Dr. Mohd. Khusahry Mohd. Yusuff & Dr. Azizan Ab. Rashid, MARDI)

0855 Paper 2 (Towards commercialisation of mulberry foliage as high protein forage – Z.A. Jelan, UPM)

0920 Paper 3 (Use of improved forage for commercial livestock production in Thailand - Chaisang Phaikaew, Thumrongsakd Polbumroong and Ganda Nakamanee, Thailand)

1010 Refreshment BreakPoster Papers 1035 Presentation and Discussion:

Poster Paper 1 (Pasture seed production in Malaysia – A. Aminah, A.B. Idris & Khairuddin Ghazali,

MARDI & DVS)

Poster Paper 2 (Commercial pasture seed production in Thailand – Chaisang Phaikaew & Ganda

Nakamanee, Thailand)

Poster Paper 3 (Effects of legume inclusion in grass-based silages - Ridzwan Halim, UPM)

Poster Paper 4 (Improved grasses in commercial dairy production at peri-urban regions of Hanoi, Hatay and Ho Chi Minh City - Nguyen Thi Mui, Vu Minh Tien, Chung Anh Dung and Le Trong Lap)Poster Paper 5 (Forage technologies development in Lao PDR - Viengsavanh, Lao PDR) Poster 5a (Signal grass and humidicola for beef production in Busuanga island – L. Lariosa, Philippines)

1120 Rapporteur Summary/ Chairman Summation

Technical Session II Increased Utilization of Crop Residues, Agro- industrial Byproducts and Other Feed Resources

Chairman: Dr. Mohd. Khusahry Mohd. YusuffRapporteur: Dr. Azizan Ab Rashid

Oral Presentation1145 Paper 4 (Control of Chromolaena in Pastures – R.N Acasio, Philippines))1210 Paper 5 (Commercial processing of oil palm fronds feed in Malaysia - Wan Zahari

Mohamed, MARDI – Guest Speaker )

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1235 Paper 6 (Research on using urea treated rice straw for feeding dairy cattle in Vietnam - Mai

Van Sanh, National Institute of Animal Husbandry, Hanoi, Vietnam)

1300 Lunch

1400 Paper 7 (Advent in commercial silage production and utilisation in Southeast Asia –

F.Y. Chin & Idris A. Bakar, DVS)1425 Paper 8 (Strategies for stable cattle production

and market in Southeast Asia – R. Tayag, Philippines)

Poster Papers 1450 Presentation and Discussion:

Poster Paper 6 (Commercial production of agro-industrial by-products as feedingstuff in Malaysia – Dr.

Abd. Razak Alimon, UPM- Guest Paper)

Poster Paper 7 (Alternative use of crop waste to increase milk production – Ganda Nakamanee,

Thumrongsakd Polbumroong, Thailand)

Poster Paper 8 (Forage and Livestock innovation - Viengsavanh, Lao PDR)

Poster Paper 9 (SILAGER– increasing potential for commercial drum production – Ghazali,H., Chin, F.Y. & Idris, A.B., DVS)

Poster Paper 10 (Role of silage from fodder, crop residue and agro-industrial byproducts in commercial

livestock production – A.B. Idris, DVS & M. Najib Amin, MARDI)

1535 Rapporteur Summary/ Chairman Summation

1600 Refreshment Break

Technical Session III. Livestock/ Tree Crop Integration/Industrial System

Chairman: Dr. Chaisang Phaikaew, DLD, Thailand Rapporteur: Ms. Ganda Nakamanee, DLD, Thailand

Oral Presentation

1625 Paper 10 (R & D in livestock/tree crop integration – Dr. Mohd. Khusahry Mohd. Yusuff & Dr. Azizan Abd. Rashid, MARDI )

1650 Paper 11 (Processing and handling of fodder products – M. Najib Amin, MARDI) [Target Area Concentration, TAC, Program and utilisation of undergrowth forages under oil palm for

livestock grazing – Dr. S. Azizol., DVS – Guest Speaker)]Opening Ceremony and Official Dinner

2000 Welcoming Remarks by Chairman of Organizing Committee of Meeting/Workshop, Dr. Mohd. Khusahry Mohd. Yusuff, Director of Strategic Livestock Research Centre, MARDI

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Remarks by Mr Frank Moog, Regional Coordinator for FAO Regional Working Group on Grazing and Feed Resources for Southeast Asia

Remarks by Dr Stephen Reynolds, Senior Official, AGPC, FAO Rome

Opening Address by the Director General of MARDI, Y. Bhg. Datuk Dr. Saharan bin Hj. Anang [presented by Deputy DG Dr Ahmad Zamzam]

Day 3, Wednesday (24 Sept 2003)

Technical Session III (continued). Livestock/ Tree Crop Integration/Industrial System

Oral Presentation

0830 Paper 12 (Status of cattle/coconut Integration in the Philippines – F.A. Moog)0855 Paper 13 (Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) as animal feed – M. Najib Amin, M. Sukri Idris

and Wan Zahari M., MARDI)

Poster Papers

0920 Presentation and Discussion:

Poster Paper 11 ( Deer and village chicken integration under oil palm – Malaysian Palm Oil Board – Guest paper )

Poster Paper 12 – (Commercial silawrapped silage production by small farmer in Perak – Pn. Zarrah)

Poster Paper 13 (Performance of Brakmas cattle under oil palm – Hassan Wahab, MARDI)

Poster Paper 14 ( Growth of native and improved forages under orchard crops - M. Najib Amin & Hassan Wahab, MARDI )

Poster Paper 15 – Role of Asystasia intrusa as high proteinous forage feed in cattle/ oil palm integration (Suparjo Nordin b Mokhtar, MARDI)

1000 Refreshment Break

1025 Rapporteur Summary/ Chairman Summation

Technical Session IV Feedlotting and Dairying

Chairman: Dr. Nguyen Thi Mui, Vietnam Rapporteur: Mr. M. Najib Amin

Oral Presentation

1050 Paper 14 (Experience of RM Livestock in large-scale commercial feedlotting – Rosli Mai, RM Livestock, Guest Speaker)

1115 Paper 15 (Processing and handling of fodder products – M. Najib Amin and Wan Zahari M. MARDI)

1140 Paper 16 (Fattening of cattle with oil palm by-products - M. Sukri Idris, MARDI- Guest Speaker)

1205 Paper 17 (Commercial dairying experience of Chok Chai Farm - Mr. Choak Bulakul, Thailand)

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1230 Paper 18 (Oil palm frond, OPF, based feed for dairy production – Dr. Abu Bakar Chik, MARDI – Guest Speaker)

1255 Lunch 1400 Paper 19 (Viability of small-scale beef feedlotting enterprise based on oil palm frond silage

feeding – Azizan Abd. Rashid, MARDI)1425 Paper 20 (Verification technology of dairy male calf feedlotting in SakonNakorn Province,

Thailand - Thumrongsakd Polbumroong, Chirawat Khemsawat, Thawat Chitbantao and Chaisang Phaikaew)

Poster Papers

1425 Presentation of Poster Papers and Discussion:

Poster Paper 16 (Effects of improved nutrition and management system toward better milk production and fertility in a commercial dairy herd in Malaysia – Ng. I.H., Rohani, K & Ahmad Fauzi M- Guest paper)Poster Paper 17 (Analysis of effectiveness of dairy cow production in Southern part of Vietnam – Dinh Cong Tien, Nguyen Quoc Dat and Nguyen Thi Mui)

Poster Paper 18 (Commercial goat milk production and use of forage feed – Experience of Fraser Alpine Dairy Farm– Mr. K. K. Ku, Lei Heng Farming Sdn. Bhd. – Guest paper)Poster Paper 19 (Strip grazing: an alternative management tool - J. Montemayor)Poster Paper 20 (Pasture preferences of Timor deer – A Hassan Wahab, A.N. Sauhal, M. Mohd Nazri & A.A. Khaidzir, MARDIPoster Paper 21 (Forage and feedstuff quality prediction using near-infrared spectroscopy - Dr. Abu Bakar Chik, and M. Najib Amin, MARDI Guest paper)

1455 Rapporteur summary; Chairman Summation

Technical Session V. Quality and Safety/ Environmental Concerns from Feed in Commercial Livestock Production)

Chairman: Dr. Viengsavanh, Lao PDRRapporteur: En. Idris Abu Bakar

Oral Presentation

1520 Paper 21 (Feed safety concern and the role of the Malaysian Animal Feed Act for feed quality and safety assurance – F. Y. Chin)

1545 Paper 22 (Feed manipulation for animal waste pollution control – Dr. J.B.Liang, UPM & Dr. Ong, H. Keng, MARDI – Guest Speakers)

Poster Paper

1635 Presentation & Discussion: Poster Paper 22 (GMP and HACCP principles in feed quality and safety assurance for feed processing – F. Y. Chin)

1640 Rapporteur summary; Chairman Summation1655 Refreshment Break1715 Trip to Putrajaya -Federal Government Administrative Complex/ PM’s Residence/Wetland

Sanctuary

Day 4, Thursday (25 Sept 2003)

Field visits in the states of Negri Sembilan & Melaka:Morning: Felda beef cattle–oil palm integration, Serting, Negri Sembilan Lunch in Kota Melaka

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Afternoon: Dairy farm in Melaka, managed by a Dairy Cooperative.Dinner & Overnight in Kluang.

Day 5, Friday (26 Sept 2003)

Field visits in the state of Johor:Morning:

RML beef cattle feedlot at Padang Hijau, Johor MARDI Research Station, Kluang, Johor

Lunch at MARDI Lakeside.Afternoon:

Institut Haiwan , Kluang, Johor Return to Kuala Lumpur

Day 6, Saturday (27 Sept 2003)

Business Meeting and ClosingChairman : Frank Moog, FAO RWG Regional CoordinatorRapporteur: Dr Hassan

0830 Proposal of Country Projects, including Discussion on New TCP project 1030 Refreshment Break 1100 Business Meeting & Winding Up Discussion1300 Closing Ceremony & FAO Farewell Lunch

Press Conference Remarks by Chairman of Organizing Committee of Meeting/Workshop, Dr.

Mohd. Khusahry Mohd. Yusuff, Director of Strategic Livestock Research Centre, MARDI [given by Deputy Director (Corporate Communication), Mr Rozhan Dardak]

Remarks by Mr Frank Moog, Regional Coordinator for FAO Regional Working Group on Grazing and Feed Resources for Southeast Asia

Closing Speech by Dr. Stephen Reynolds, Senior Official, AGPC, FAO Rome1400 Afternoon & Evening Free

Departure some participants (and RO)

DAY 7, SUNDAY (28 Sept 2003)

Departure of Participants

Meeting ParticipantsDr. Mohd. Khusahry Mohd. Yusuff (Malaysia)Ms Aminah Abdullah, NC (Malaysia)Dr Hassan Wahab (Malaysia)Dr Chin Fook Yuen (Malaysia)Dr M. Najib Amin (Malaysia)Dr Azizan Ab. Rashid (Malaysia)Dr Wan Zahari M. (Malaysia)Prof. Z.A. Jelan (Malaysia)Dr A. Bakar Idris (Malaysia)Dr R.A. Halim (Malaysia)Dr Abd Razak Alimon (Malaysia)Mr H. Ghazali (Malaysia)Dr A.M.H. Helmi (Malaysia)Dr M. Sukri Idria (Malaysia)Dr Abu Bakar Chik (Malaysia)Mr I.H. Ng (Malaysia)Mr M. Mohd Nazri (Malaysia)

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Ms Faridah Salam (Malaysia)Mr K. Rohani (Malaysia)Mr M. Ahmad Fauzi (Malaysia)Mr Bounthong Duangphanit (Laos)Mr Viengsavanh Phimphachanhvongsod NPC (Laos)Dr F.A. Moog, RC (Philippines)Ms Remedios N. Acasio NC (Philippines)Mr Larry Lariosa (Philippines)Mr R. Tayag (Philippines)Dr (Ms) Chaisang Phaikew, NC (Thailand)Ms Ganda Nakamanee (Thailand)Mr Choke Bulakul (Thailand)Dr (Ms) Nguyen Thi Mui, NC (Vietnam)Dr Mai Van Sanh (Vietnam)Dr. Steve Reynolds (FAO HQ)