Feeding Systems with Legumes to Intensify Dairy Farms - cgiar

income was approximately double the minimum wage in Peru and Costa Rica,
but almost 3 times more that in Nicaragua.
The profitability on invested capital during 1997 was very low in Costa
Rica (1.37%), followed by Nicaragua (2.53%), and Peru (2.87%). The reason
why Costa Rica obtained the least profitability despite having the highest
family income and labor retribution was because the farms in Costa Rica have
a high commercial value (US$280,000/farm) due to high land values, which is
not the case for Peru or Nicaragua.
Ex-ante analysis for Costa Rica. Figure 1 shows the production cost/kg
milk for the different forage options. In Esparza (Costa Rica), the production
cost using traditional pasture (Hyparrhenia rufa) makes it necessary for
producers to supplement their milking herd during the 5-month dry season.
With an average production of 1,350 kg/lactation, milk production costs were
US$0.31/kg while the milk price received was US$0.28/kg. With the sale of
weaned calves, an equilibrium was reached with a salary similar to the
minimum wage.
Cost (US$/kg)
0.35
0.3
0.25
0.2
0.15
1350 1450 1550 1650 1750 1850 1950
Milk/lactation (kg)
Jaragua + concentrate/chicken manure
Jaragua + Cratylia + sugarcane
Figure 1. Milk production costs of different forage feeding alternatives in
Costa Rica, assuming the same herd size.
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Brachiaria + Cratylia + sugarcane
Brachiaria + Arachis + Cratylia + sugarcane