Debates about the relationship between livestock and climate change have become dominated by concerns over the carbon and methane emissions of the cattle industry. These concerns are of course valid and need to be part of climate change discussions. But they do not tell the whole story.

For 33-year-old mother-of-seven and poultry farmer Helena Kindole in Chanya village in Tanzania, one of the main barriers to growing her chicken business is a lack of access to health services. But not for herself or her family – for her animals.

Product development is only the first step in improving livestock health in the world’s lower and middle-income countries. There needs to be an enabling policy and regulatory environment that encourages animal health companies to register, distribute and sell their products in new countries.

GALVmed partnered with SEBI-L to develop a model for practical use for our market development programmes. The model is used to estimate the economic impact of the initiatives on small-scale producers.

Like in other sectors, businesses in animal health also have as their objective efficient delivery of their products, often for a profit to ensure sustainability. While achievable, it is a however a challenge or a barrier in markets comprised predominantly of small-scale livestock producers (SSPs).