Feedlot finishing has the potential to stabilize beef supply and increase the quality of marketed beef products. The cost of running such feedlots using local feed resources is not widely documented to support investment. The purpose of this study was to examine the financial advantages of running an alternative feedlot that uses locally available feed resources such as Prosopis juliflora, Balanites aegyptiaca pods, and Acacia tortilis pods found in the Arid and Semi-arid Lands (ASALs) of Kenya. Data for this study were obtained from a controlled experiment conducted at the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO), Beef Research Institute where 27 beef steers of Zebu, Boran, and Sahiwal crosses were fed on rations formulated with selected local feed resources obtained from Isiolo and Kajiado counties of Kenya. For 90 days, the animal weights were captured weekly, and the costs were recorded daily. Additional market data on costs were obtained from selected key informants in the beef value chain in the Counties of Isiolo and Kajiado. The viability of investing in a feedlot was evaluated using cost-benefit analysis, break-even analysis, and sensitivity analysis. The results showed that overall animal weight gain varied with the type of breed. The improved Boran (Animal 8F51) gained the highest weight followed by Sahiwal (9F65) in the experiment while Zebu gained the lowest. The findings showed that it is financially viable to operate a feedlot using locally available feed resources only if the targeted markets are value-added with better beef prices. Furthermore, sensitivity analysis showed that adjusting prices upwards by KES +6.00 in Isiolo and KES + 58.00 in Kajiado could make beef farmers who have adopted feedlot systems to achieve break-even. In conclusion, for the viability of feedlots that use local feed resources, there is a need to consistently source for value-added markets for better pricing and profitability. Policy-makers therefore need to critically evaluate and promote farmers’ access to these value-added markets.

Veronica Metto