Milk Production in the Sylvopastoral Zone of Senegal: Variation Factors and Local Populations’ Management System

In the Sahelian region of Senegal, milk production in pastoral systems is subjected to inter- and intra-annual variations because the animal feed is almost exclusively based on natural resources. Studies conducted from a monitoring set-up in pastoralist settlements and in station, and data from Nestle Company have shown that milk production was highly related to the milk collection date, but with a low correlation with the total amount of rainfall. The relationship between total milk production and the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) was polynomial. The production peak was reached when the water content in forage was 70%. Surveys on pastoralists (men and women) belonging to different ethnic groups and living in different production subsystems (Walo, Djoloff and Ferlo) showed that the duration of lactation, number of cows and animal species were the main factors of variation of milk production. The actors in charge of milk production management differed depending on the ethnic group. Milk curdling and butter making were the two preserving methods used, and five types of gourds were used in the process. Dairy products still held a major place in farmers’ incomes and skim milk curd was the most marketed product.