Dairy Intensification in Kenya and Young Child Nutrition

Amanda WyattSenior Research AssistantCGIAR Research Program - Agriculture for Nutrition and HealthInternational Food Policy Research Institute

AIFSC – ILRI Food Security and Nutrition Workshop

September 11, 2012Nairobi, Kenya

East Africa Dairy Development• Goal: To double the dairy incomes of

smallholder dairy farmers in the region in 10 years through improved agricultural methods and market access.

• Time period: Dec 2007—Dec 2011

• Location: Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda; EADD2 in Tanzania and Ethiopia

• Partners: Heifer International, TechnoServe, International Livestock Research Institute, African Breeders Services, World Agroforestry Center

• Funder: The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

ILRI and Emory University, June-July 2010What is the impact of dairy intensification on young child

nutrition?

Four pathways• Direct consumption

• Income

• Maternal time allocation

• Exposure to health risks

Nutritional Considerations• Household milk consumption• Consumption patterns for different

household members (children <5 yo)

• Food quantity and quality• Intra-household decision making

• IYCFP• Childcare quality

• Food safety• Synergy between disease and

nutrition

ILRI and Emory University, June - July 2010What is the impact of dairy intensification on young child nutrition?

• Three study sites in Rift Valley Province, Kenya

• Methods • 27 Focus Group Discussions• 3 groups of farmers• Male farmers, female farmers, and female farmers with young

children• 3 levels of dairy production • No milk (0 ltr), Medium (0.1-5.9 ltr) , High (6+ ltr)

• Household survey, n=94• Households identified by randomly generated GPS coordinates• Selection criteria• Resident child <5 years old• Fell into one of the dairy production categories defined

above

Results: Nutrition• Milk consumption• Household diets and diets of young

children• Infant and young child feeding

practices

Milk Consumption of Young Children*Parental report from the household survey

*Young children defined as 6-60 months

No fresh milk 0.5 cup > 1 cup0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

No milk (n=25)Mid (n=28)High (n=27)

Why is milk good for young children?Selected responses from the FGDs with female farmers.

“Without milk they won’t be healthy, their hair would get brown, the kids wouldn’t get full and their legs would be like this [indicated bowlegs].”

“We want the children to have beautiful and handsome faces, that’s why we give milk.”

“But when there is no milk the children are not healthy. Their hair turns red and big stomachs because they don’t get enough food.”

“It even helps their brains.”

• Results• Overall dietary diversity score • 5.1 ± 1.2 • 80% met min requirements

• 100% consumed dairy previous day

• No diffs between production groups

• Other Studies

• Rift Valley Province (Kenya DHS)

• 56% met minimum reqs

• Western Province (Ekesa, 2008)

• 30.6% had not consumed any dairy in previous 7 days

Child dietary diversity

Household food consumption

Staples Pulses*Veggies Fruits Meats* Milk**01234567

No milkMediumHigh

*p ≤ 0.05; **p<0.0001

Infant and Young Child Feeding Practices

• Engaging in increasing levels of dairy production was associated with lower odds of EBF.

• Mothers from the high production group were nearly 4x more likely to introduce cow’s milk before the child reached 6 months.

No milk Emerging Advanced0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Cow's milk (n=80)

Porridge (n=81)

Mashed or semi-solid foods (n=76)

Lessons Learned: Dairy Intensification• Appears to contribute to household dietary diversity • Cow’s milk is key in the diets of young children, but level of

household dairy production is not an independent contributing factor.

• Preference for cow’s milk and its availability in this population may have a negative influence on EBF.• Education and awareness should focus on age-appropriate intro of

milk and promote cow’s milk in maternal diets during pregnancy and while BF.

• Maternal time allocation needs to be explored further. • EADD is an example of a nutrition-sensitive intervention, but to maximize nutritional benefits, it should be combined with an investment in more nutrition-specific interventions.

Acknowledgements

• Int’l Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Nairobi, Kenya• Isabelle Baltenweck• Delia Grace• Jemimah Njuki• Thomas Randolph

• Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia USA• Craig Hadley (faculty, Anthropology, HDGH)• Peter Little (faculty, Anthropology, Development

Studies)• Claire Null (faculty, HDGH, Economics)• Usha Ramakrishnan (faculty, HDGH, Nutrition)• Aimee Webb-Girard (faculty, HDGH, Nutrition)• Kathryn Yount (faculty HDGH, Sociology)• Shreyas Sreenath (student, Economics)• Amanda Watkins (student, Nursing)• Anna Yearous-Algozin (student, Nursing)

• University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya• Prof. Erastus Kang’ethe

• Egerton University, Njoro, Kenya• Samwel Mbugua

• East Africa Dairy Development Project

• Global Health Institute, Emory University

• The Halle Institute, Emory University

• Program in Development Studies, Emory University

Collaborators Funding