Value Chains research report Tajikistan final - Microfinance Centre

under a stable 20% per annum interest 20 than investing in livestock production. This
lack of investment has lead to the poor state of animal husbandry in Tajikistan.
For small households the current method of beef production also allows production of
some dairy products adding to rural food security while using cheap feed sources
however, this production method does not lead to successful, profitable beef production.
Fattening. The study found that a large number of farmers are using micro-credit at
30% interest rate for the purchase and fattening of cattle. Loan funds are used to
purchase alfalfa, corn and waste dairy products. The high interest rates for the purchase
of feeds keep the profitability of cattle rearing low, requiring more attention to home
grown feeds.
Typically, cattle brokers who buy and sell animals for fattening require 200 somoni profit
driving the price of cattle out of the reach of many farmers. Fattening is usually carried
out within 100 days and requires approximately 400 somoni for feed, 100 somoni for
labor plus the original 500 somoni for the purchase of the animal. Fattened cattle
usually sell for approximately 1,200 somoni leaving a 300 somoni profit potential for the
farmer.
Sales of livestock.
The sale of livestock is carried out at regional cattle markets. Slaughter houses
are the major factor in the market, setting price, with brokers purchasing cattle for the
slaughter house. Some slaughter houses also fatten their own cattle. Animals are sold
by live weight, either estimated or, in some cases, through the use of scales. The live
weight is multiplied by the estimated dressing percent (usually 50%) to arrive at a price
for meat produced. Because of poor nutrition it is rare for a higher dressing percentage
to be used.
Cattle sell done by per kg live weight. Some farmers weigh their own animals are
able to negotiate on price however; the butcher depresses price as much as possible
based on potential market earnings. If the auction trades fairly the butcher pays the
price for the animal and receives, as profit, the head, including the tongue, skin and
internal organs (lungs, hearts, livers, kidneys, spleen and fat). In the countryside, with
the absence of scales, it is difficult for farmers to receive a fair price, a situation that
could be corrected by the use of animal weight tapes as was the case in Kyrgyzstan.
The distance from markets also plays a role in rural farmers receiving less per animal.
Another feature of the value chain of beef meat is the fact that butchers
themselves purchase lean cows and fatten them, selling the carcasses through the local
market.
In the past a separate group of dealers collected cattle from remote villages and
transported them to regional markets closer to population centers. The cost of
transportation is added to the cost of beef raising prices in the southern markets.
20 Currently few Banks and MFIs offer deposit products with 20% annum.
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