Global Challenges

Many of the most pressing global challenges today involve livestock. More than half a billion people in developing countries depend in whole or in part on farm animals for their livelihood. Some 821 million people are undernourished, many of them because they lack the proteins and micronutrients most readily available in animal-sourced food. The prospects of zoonotic pandemics or of human-triggered climate change are real and growing. The good news is that the livestock sector presents opportunities to address these challenges in ways that are safe, environmentally sustainable and broadly affordable. Explore the themes below about how livestock can feed and sustain today’s population and tomorrow’s in a way that is sustainable, environmentally friendly, and economically inclusive.

What we do

ILRI's research is directed to improving food and nutrition security through increased production and access to animal-source foods; stimulating economic development and poverty reduction through enhanced livestock value chains and increased productivity; improving human health through improved access to animal-source foods and a reduction in the burden of zoonotic and food-borne diseases; and managing the adaptation of livestock systems to climate change and mitigating the impact of livestock on the environment.

Why livestock matter

  • Emerging diseases

  • Global agricultural GDP

  • Number of people

Where we work
