Fasting, food and farming: Value chains and food taboos in Ethiopia.

The impact of food taboos-often because of religion-is understudied. In Ethiopia, religious fasting by Orthodox Christians is assumed to be an important impediment for the sustainable development of a competitive dairy sector and desired higher milk consumption, especially by children. However, evidence is limited. Relying on unique data, we shed light on three major issues. First, we observe that the average annual number of fasting days that Orthodox adults are effectively adhering to is 140, less than commonly cited averages. Using this as an estimate for extrapolation, fasting is estimated to reduce annual dairy consumption by approximately 12 percent nationally. Second, farms adapt to declining milk demand during fasting by increased processing of milk into storable products-fasting contributes to larger price swings for these products. We further note continued sales of milk by non-remote farmers and reduced production-by adjusting lactation times for dairy animals-for remote farmers. Third, fasting is mostly associated with increased milk consumption by the children of dairy farmers, seemingly because of excess milk availability during fasting periods. Our results suggest that fasting habits are not a major explanation for the observed poor performance of Ethiopia's dairy sector nor low milk consumption by children. To reduce the impact of fasting on the dairy sector in Ethiopia further, investment is called for in improved milk processing, storage, and infrastructure facilities.

Religion, Food Choices, and Demand Seasonality: Evidence from the Ethiopian Milk Market.

The impact of religious behavior on food systems in developing economies has been understated in scholarly studies. With its different Christian, Islamic, and traditional faiths, Ethiopia emerges as a suitable country to investigate the impact of religious practices on demand. The inclusion of livestock products in Ethiopian diets is extremely low, even by African standards, a phenomenon often explained by supply and marketing problems combined with low income levels. We deviate from this dominant narrative and single out the impact of religion. We show how fasting practices of Orthodox Christians, the largest religious group, affect milk intake decisions and channels through which consumed milk is sourced. Employing country-wide data collected by the Living Standards Measurement Studies, we find, as expected, that Orthodox fasting adversely affects milk consumption and decreases the share of milk sourced from own production in Orthodox households, an effect we quantify in this paper. Moreover, we observe spillover effects of Orthodox fasting on other religious groups in dominant Orthodox localities. Our findings improve understanding of the broader societal implication of religiously inspired consumption rituals and underscore the challenges resulting from religion-induced demand cycles to design policies that aim at developing the livestock sector.

Estimating the potential of beekeeping to alleviate household poverty in rural Uganda.

Robust evidence underpinning the role of beekeeping in poverty alleviation is currently lacking. This study estimated the production potential for beekeepers in Northern Uganda by quantifying current production assets (equipment and knowledge) and impact on rural income streams range of proposed interventions. Intervention scenarios evaluated the economic benefits to be derived from different hive types combined with year-round provision of a nectar source (Calliandra calothyrsus) planted at varying density. Findings show that the type and number of beehive combinations used influenced the amount of revenue streams generated by the beekeepers. Addition of 20 log hives increased incomes 10 times, 20 KTBs increased revenues 16 times and Langstroth 18 times. Adding Calliandra trees as a forage source to the baseline scenario yielded revenues up to 17.6 times higher than the baseline. Implying that good management plus the introduction of a reliable nectar source, to off-set dry season challenges (absconding), could improve beekeeping productivity in Northern Uganda. Further research is required to validate in situ the impact of modelled scenarios on both honey yield and other ecosystem service benefits.