Now We Call Our Milk ‘The Salary’

Posted on April 2, 2013 by Kim Nixon

now Faith Onyango lives with her husband, Sam, and their children in Ulafu village in Western Kenya. When they married in 2000, they couldn’t afford to buy a house so his father helped them build a small hut with a grass roof and mud walls, which they lived in from 2001 to 2009. “We were seen as such poor people,” Faith said.

Faith is caring for a large family at a young age. They have four children – Reagan, 8, Ronny, 6, Sandra, 3, and Pamela, 1, and care for Judith, 13, who was orphaned when her parents died suddenly in 2010. Fortunately, Faith joined the Osiepe Women’s Group in 2006 and later received a heifer that she named Bahati, which means lucky in Kiswahili.

Faith, Sam, Judith, Ronny and Sandra pose with Bahati, the family cow.
Photo by Russell Powell

Before she joined the women’s group, a typical meal for this family consisted of mix greens and ugali (stiff corn meal porridge). Meat was expensive and they were lucky if they could eat it once a month. Sam had to search for jobs far from home to make enough income for their family, and he would go long periods without seeing them.

Now, Sam works at home farming. He credits Heifer for the manure and the training. “Heifer taught me how to do the nine maize holes,” Sam said. This technique for planting corn requires the farmer to plant nine corn seeds in a cluster a couple of inches below the ground using a mixture of soil and manure to better capture water and help the plants grow. This allows farmers to add more fertilizer as the plants grow. “He is now self-employed,” Faith said. “He is very happy.”

Improving their crop production has not only improved their diet, but has increased their income. Before joining the project, they would sell their kale, tomatoes, chili peppers and sugar cane for roughly $2.40 per week. Now they earn $24-$36 per week.

Faith, Judith, Ronny and Sandra work in the cassava fields.
Photo by Russell Powell

They also sell extra milk for an additional $71-$83 per week. Bahati produces an average of five and a half gallons of milk a day. The family consumes between a half-gallon and a gallon of milk and sells the remaining. “We call our milk ‘the salary’,” Sam said. Faith sees that her children are now stronger with this steady supply of milk. She remembers when Ronny contracted the measles. The doctor prescribed milk and eggs three times a day to help him eat and gain back the weight he had lost. Without Bahati, it would have been impossible for him to drink enough milk.

Now, Faith and Sam send their children to a private school where she feels they are encouraged and motivated more. They have also built a new house, bought additional animals for their farm and took a family vacation to Kisumu for an agricultural festival. They enjoyed seeing farmers and livestock from across East Africa. Faith and Sam invested most of their income into their farm, buying improved breeds of chickens and pigs, animal feed and a motorcycle to transport their milk, eggs and produce to the market.

They are actively Passing on the Gift® of knowledge and animals. Faith passed on Bahati’s first calf to her neighbor Lillian Oyuga. “Because someone brought the idea of passing on, now I have benefited and more families will benefit from passing on,” she said. Sam is passing on the knowledge and training he received to other farmers in his community. Sam began to train so many farmers that he decided to go school to get his certificate in adult education.

Now Ronny and Sandra have enough milk to drink so they can grow up healthy.
Photo by Russell Powell

Faith equates nutrition with health and income with self-reliance. She and Sam are proud of what they’ve accomplished by joining this project. They can now meet their family’s needs and help others. “Heifer is doing wonderful work,” Sam said.

Join Heifer’s life-changing work now.

Empowering Vision-Impaired Entrepreneurs

Posted on March 20, 2013 by Kim Nixon

In 1998, Heifer Kenya provided 22 heifers along with training to the Set Kobor Women’s Group in Longisa – a group of 65 visually and physically impaired members. In Kenya, the blind are considered a burden to their families and are looked down upon. This group formed to restore members’ dignity and hope while helping them attain food and income security.

With further support through the East Africa Dairy Development project, the blind women and other community groups formed Sot Dairy Company Ltd., which runs a dairy hub with milk chilling facilities. The company’s board includes one chairperson from the Set Kobor Women group.

Heifer International has helped the group earn respect and enough money to care for their needs. Other organizations, like the Kenya Society for the Blind, help with their mobility.

Photo courtesy of Heifer International

One member, Florence Chepkirui, says her lifestyle has changed dramatically. She can cook, walk about, and accomplish other household chores on her own like preparing cattle feed and milking. Florence and her husband, Michael Kones, co-own a livestock input business. She is also a model farmer, passing on her skills to fellow villagers to improve their dairy practices. Florence also started her own knitting business. She can knit up to four sweaters a day and she sells them in a small shop.

A gift to Heifer International not only provides livestock and training to lift people out of hunger and poverty, but it gives them the opportunity to pursue their dreams of starting a small business which can provide additional employment opportunities in their community.

Click here to learn about other entrepreneurs like Flora Monga in Zambia, Nazar in Armenia or Avet Grigoryan in Armenia.

Click here to donate to Heifer and empower entrepreneurs.

Double Your Impact To Multiply Income

Posted on March 13, 2013 by Kim Nixon

This month, you can double your impact with a donation for families like Maria Elsa’s in Honduras.

Maria is the President of Empresa Asociativa Maranonera del Sur (Southern Cashew Enterprise Association) – a project promoting entrepreneurial activities and providing rural women with additional income. After working on their own for 21 years, the women saw things begin to change in 2005 when 22 families received heifers from Heifer International. In 2009, they received chickens and have completed two rounds of Passing on the Gift®.

Photo by Russell Powell, courtesy of Heifer International

Seeing the positive results from these first two projects, the women wanted to try something a bit more ambitious. “We wanted something more to do to generate more income,” Maria said. From this, the Southern Cashew Enterprise Association was born. Heifer provided the materials and hired builders to construct the storage rooms and ovens for this cashew enterprise, while the community provided the labor. Heifer provided 200 cashew tree seedlings, and helped the women to market their cashews.

In 2012, a drought destroyed most of the corn harvest. The cashew business, however, along with the ability to sell eggs and milk from their livestock, provided additional income for the families in Maria’s village. Maria gets almost four gallons of milk a day; she uses one gallon for her family and sells the rest.

The family is grateful to have received the cow. Victoriano Gonzalez, Maria’s husband, said, “I never expected to see a cow in my yard and now we have four.”

Photo by Russell Powell, courtesy of Heifer International

Along with the animal gifts, project participants received a variety of trainings including marketing, gender equity, jelly production, chicken and cattle feed production and Heifer’s 12 Cornerstones for Just and Sustainable Development. Now, while the women work, their husbands have taken over more of the household chores.

“Now our husbands bring us food while we are working,” Maria said. She’s excited about the opportunity to pass on her training and her animal’s first newborn to another community member. “Passing on the Gift® is a chain that multiplies and won’t be broken. I was so happy when I received my cow. I imagined that other women would feel the same.”

For Maria and her family, the biggest improvement has been to their diet. Before becoming involved in the Heifer project, their typical meal consisted of beans and rice. They could only buy eggs twice a week. “Now we have more chickens so we don’t have to buy eggs,” she said. Milk was also hard to get, but now they have milk and can use it to make cheese.

Maria, whose children are grown, lives with two of her grandchildren. “They help feed the chickens, carry water and clean the pens,” she said. Maria and Victoriano hope their grandchildren have a better life. “I want them to continue their studies until they are professionals. They are very intelligent.”

Maria’s grandkids, Elmer and Lisbe, help take care of the animals.
Photo by Russell Powell, courtesy of Heifer International

Heifer’s past successes show that projects like this make a widespread and lasting difference. In 2008, Western Michigan University Evaluation Center conducted an independent evaluation of Heifer’s work in Honduras. It said that Heifer International in Honduras has had a significant positive impact on the communities in which it operates, empowering people at the family and community level.

Your donation this month will be matched dollar-for-dollar to support food security, better nutrition and women’s empowerment for a new project in Lempira, Honduras, thanks to a generous benefactor and international partners. To maximize this match, we need to raise at least $831,000 from generous supporters like you.

Click here to donate and help families to improve their lives.

Empowering Women to… Empower Women

Posted on March 7, 2013 by Bill Fitzgerald

Editor’s note: Empowering women is at the core of Heifer International’s model for sustainable development. In honor of International Women’s Day on March 8, this week we are sharing stories of the women with whom Heifer works, who take the gifts of livestock and education to produce extraordinary results for themselves, their families and their communities.

Women are on the rise in Rwanda. The country’s constitution requires that 30% of its parliament be women, and Odette Uwamariya, governor of the Eastern Province of Rwanda says women now make up more than half the parliament. “Fifty-six point two percent,” Charles Kayumba, Heifer’s Rwanda country director, clarifies. Even better.

Photo courtesy of Heifer International.

This beautiful country, once so torn by civil war and later genocide, now knows almost no crime. Economic growth is at about 7%. Is it all due to women? Clearly, there are many factors at work here. But it’s significant that the genocide left the country 70% female. Women virtually had no choice but to step up to the work of re-building a nation.

Even with the development so evident in the capital city of Kigali, hunger and malnutrition are still the biggest problems in the provinces. Heifer has helped more than 40,000 families feed themselves and earn a living, most of them female-headed. The government of Rwanda has taken notice and started a program modeled on Heifer’s. The families who receive cows from the government are required to pass on the gift of the cow’s offspring to someone else in the community. Sound familiar? In many areas of the country, the government has turned to the experts– asking Heifer to oversee the program.

: Odette Uwamariya. Photo courtesy of Heifer International

“I want to acknowledge and recognize Heifer International for the good work they are doing here, and Dr. Kayumba for managing this program,” said Madame Uwamariya at our recent meeting in Rwamagana, the seat of the Eastern Province. Particularly among those affected by HIV, “we have seen tremendous changes after working with Heifer in terms of nutrition and income levels in the community,” Uwumariya reported.

A case in point is Nyirafaranga Liberathe, who lives in Rwinkavu Sector, Kayonza District. She is HIV positive, lost her husband during the genocide and now cares for three children and two grandchildren. When she first began taking medication for HIV in 2005, her antibody count (the bodies that fight infection) was around 96. Medication brought the number up to about 300. Since she began working with a Heifer goat project in 2010, she has been drinking goat’s milk regularly and eating more and better vegetables from her garden. Her antibody count now is at 926.

Nyirafaranga Liberathe with grandchildren. Photo courtesy of Heifer International.

The transformation Liberathe has undergone is not just physical, though. Before she began working with Heifer, she felt separated from her community, guilty even. She kept her condition to herself. She lived in fear of poverty, of having nothing. Now, she says, “I feel stronger and am accepted by the community. I have food, I’m fine.” She realizes she now has hope, and a future. “I have helped another family [through POG], I am free from debt, I feel excitement and am happy to be able to assist someone else in need.”

Just as Liberathe has undergone a transformation, so has Rwanda, helped along by strong women… and Heifer International. You can see it in the landscape, in the city, in the countryside, and especially in the eyes of the Heifer project participants. Empowering women through development may not solve all the world’s problems, but after visiting Rwanda, it’s interesting to wonder just what might happen if more women in more places were given more tools and training. Imagine the transformation…

Make a difference by starting a women’s group today.

Around the Web: Gifts, an Inspired Book, and Some Cool Cows

Posted on December 9, 2012 by Linda Meyers

Every Sunday we highlight some of the people who are funding our work creatively or helping us spread the word of our mission online. If you spot Heifer International while you’re surfing the web or know of a fun or creative fundraising effort, please share it with us here in the comments.

Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Nicholas Kristof says you can look to Heifer International for an unusual holiday gift in his recent post on the New York Times, Gifts That Change Lives.

For more unique gift ideas for the person who has everything, check out this blog post on Nanny Babysitter, 10 Alternative Gifts for the Person Who Has Everything.

Photo credit: Hartford Courant

Teresa Pelham bought a sheep (through Heifer International, of course) instead of “Large Plastic Items We Do Not Need,” and writes about it in the very entertaining Mommy Minute.

DJ Maht Wuyts will be playing music for 26.2 hours straight December 8 & 9 in this unique Mahrathon fundraiser for Heifer International. Rock on, Maht!

Moment magazine highlights our new Heifer at Hanukkah campaign with a post that starts simply: If you are still looking for an interesting Hanukkah gift this year, consider a goat.

Catholic San Francisco lists Heifer among the options in their story, A goat for Christmas? Options for non-consumerist gifts.

Photo credit: Iowa City Press-Citizen

Artist Marcia Wegman recently finished a book that includes paintings and stories inspired by a trip to Latvia to see Heifer International projects. “I hope (the book) raises an awareness about what Heifer does and what a difference they make in the lives of people in these countries,” she said. “And also shows people what a wonderful, beautiful part of the world it is.”

The Face of Malawi tells the story of Yohane Machira, a farmer who has a life full of optimism since he started raising goats he received from Heifer, despite his being HIV positive.

Photo credit: Abby Fortney, courtesy of vitamintalent.com

Vitamin T bought a few cows to help families send their kids to school, buy medicine and clothes, and improve their land. Read their entertaining post here.

Here’s some advice from Janet Bodnar on teaching kids to budget this season: Money Power: Kids can get financial education from holidays.

Heifer was also listed first in Forbes’ The A-List: What’s Hot for December 2012!

Heifer Zambia Family Receives Visit From Minister of Gender and Children

Posted on November 28, 2012 by Elizabeth Bintliff

Heifer Zambia participant Mrs. Elizabeth Lungu lives in a tiny brick hut in a small, remote village in the community of Baraka in Mpima District, Zambia. She shares her home with her husband and their small children. On the hot, dry day that we visited her, there was not a cloud in the bright blue sky. There was a lot of commotion when our car pulled up at her home. Women in colorful Kitenge, or sarongs, gathered curiously around the yard. Children fled to cling to their mothers’ skirts, away from the visitors. Babies on their mothers’ backs looked on skeptically.

We were accompanied on this visit by the Zambian minister of Gender and Children, Mrs. Inonge Wina, a slight but passionate woman who carries a strong vision for the future of rural women in her country. We were also accompanied by Mr. Zulu, the government extension agent responsible for providing veterinary support to to thousands of families living in this area. He knows the Lungu family well, as he knows many of the livestock-owning families in the area. He is the person they call for advice with their animals or when the animals need veterinary care.

Mrs. Inonge Wina, Zambian minister of Gender and Children, admires the Jersey dairy cow Elizabeth Lungu received from Heifer Zambia. Photo courtesy of Heifer International.

Mr. Zulu approached the cow standing in the shed nearby the family compound with great familiarity. The Jersey dairy cow, imported from South Africa, was provided to the Lungu family by Heifer International through a Heifer Zambia project in December 2011. Within the project, 90 percent of families are headed by women, so the Minister of Gender was very interested in seeing what kind of difference the livestock can make in their lives. She probed for answers: How do they afford to feed and care for the animal? What return do they get? What is the impact on their livelihoods?

Mr. Lungu pulled out the ledger attached to the cow shed door and referred to his records. The animal costs $120 to feed every month. But in return, they earn $340 a month from the sale of milk alone. For them, the economics add up to significant income, far more in a month than they both made before receiving the gift from Heifer.

For Elizabeth Lungu, the value of the animal extends far beyond its economic benefits. It has given her a tremendous sense of dignity to own something so valuable and to have been able to Pass on the Gift of its offspring to another family in the community as Heifer’s model requires. She has also seen her children become healthier as their milk consumption increased.

The Minister explained that in Zambia, property ownership laws have only recently been changed to allow women the right to own property. For example, the law requires that 30 percent of all land should be owned by women. But this is only the statutory law. Customary law – that which is administered by chiefs and other traditional leaders – has not followed suit. “It is the chiefs who are the custodians of culture, and they are not changing as quickly with the times,” Minister Wina added.

Within this Heifer Zambia project, the livestock is given to the woman and is legally in her name. This way, in the event of her husband’s death or divorce, she will not lose her entitlement or right to the animal. Although she rightfully owns the animal, the entire family receives Heifer training and shares equally the responsibilities and benefits of the livestock.

On the day we visited, a ceremony was being held in the village’s common space to celebrate the Passing on the Gift of 44 animals to new Heifer Zambia participant farmers, who also hoped to see their lives improved like the Lungus have experienced.

The Minister nodded in understanding and amazement over Heifer’s model. “This is truly how you make a difference in the lives of people.”

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The Fruit of Tolerance in Rwanda

Posted on November 16, 2012 by Elizabeth Bintliff

I’ve been very fortunate to have had the opportunity to travel extensively in my work and in my personal life. From each journey, I’ve brought back experiences that enriched me and lessons that I know will stay with me throughout my life. Last year, I visited Rwanda for the first time, and what I learned from the trip and from the people of Rwanda was a lesson in the value of tolerance and the power of forgiveness.

Photo by Geoff Oliver Bugbee, courtesy of Heifer International.

Most of the world associates Rwanda with the genocide of 1994 – an attrocity born from the intolerance of one people toward another. For the people of Rwanda that experience and those memories are equally distant as they are fresh. Some are reticent to recount it while others recall it as it just happened yesterday. Yet all people agree that what was critical to the collective healing that has magically happened since the genocide is the commitment to forgiveness, to acceptance, to tolerance.

On this International Day of Tolerance we commemorate the ability of the people of Rwanda – and all other people the world over who have overcome great adversity- to thrive after conflict and build inclusive societies. In Rwanda’s case, several factors contributed to this: a strong government, communities of hope and forgiving people.

A big part of building communities of hope involved giving people the tools with which to rebuild their lives and through its work, Heifer International has been privileged to be a part of that. Years ago, the government initiated a project called “Girinka” to give “One cow per family” as part of its poverty reduction goal, and Heifer was asked to be a key partner in that effort. That program laid the foundation for the work that Heifer has since done through the East Africa Dairy Development project.

During my visit to Rwanda last year, I visited families that were part of the project. On our way to the project site we passed a community where Heifer had once worked with groups of women who are rebuilding their lives after losing their family members and everything they owned in the genocide. Many of them were raped and now live with HIV or AIDS. Rape is sometimes used as a weapon of war. During the tribunals that followed the genocide some people even attested to using AIDS infections as even more harmful weapons. The Rwandan experience was an unforgettable lesson in what intolerance can breed. But these women survived, and they are rebuilding their lives through agriculture, mostly as dairy farmers with cows that Heifer provided.

Mary shows off her biogdigester. Photo courtesy of Heifer International.

Hours later we pulled into the compound of Mary, a farmer who is being assisted through Heifer’s East Africa Dairy Development Program. Mary had five dairy cows, each in a stall in the corner of her tiny yard, in which was crammed the home she shares with her husband and the 12 children she cares for: four of them hers and eight orphans she adopted from deceased family members. On the other end of the yard was a small garden and in the third corner, a biogas unit, which digests the cow dung and feeds a tank with methane gas that she piped to her kitchen for cooking and for light. Mary talked to us about her challenges and her successes. As she talked, young boys brought large piles of fresh grass to feed the cows. Making a living to support the family took a family effort.

One of Mary's sons with the family cows. Photo courtesy of Heifer International.

In the months since my visit the project has installed a chilling plant in the community, which serves as a bulking point for her and the 500 other farmers like her in her community, so that they can chill their milk until commercial enterprises come from the cities to collect it for sale. It opens up a wider market for the farmers and means their incomes can increase and their livelihoods improve.

What is also means is that families who may not ordinarily have much in common have reason to interact, to congregate, to come together to plan and build their communities and their families. These kinds of collaboration are the seeds of what Heifer calls “social capital” – social resources upon which people draw in pursuit of their livelihood objectives. These include networks and connectedness among individuals or groups of individuals; membership of more formalized groups; relationships of trust and reciprocity that facilitate reduction of transaction costs and may provide the basis for informal safety nets amongst the poor. These are the pillars of strong communities.

After the Rwandan genocide there was a war crimes tribunal set up. A period of reconciliation and justice began in late 1994, with the establishment of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) and the reintroduction of Gacaca, a traditional, ages-old village court system. In this process, people who confessed recounted what they did, sometimes even identifying the location of the bodies they had killed. Then they were sent to rehabilitation centers where they lived for a long time before they were released back into the community. The capacity of the Rwandan people to forgive, as demonstrated during this period, astounded the world.

Photo by Geoff Oliver Bugbee, courtesy of Heifer International.

In the years since the genocide the people of Rwanda have changed their national identity: new flag, new anthem, new constitution even. They have and are redefining a new society: one that is inclusive, one that is hopeful, one that is tolerant.

As horrific as the genocide was, the tribunals were also a testament to the human capacity for forgiveness. Rwanda has moved on and is marching ever forward. It is, hopefully, if we are paying attention, a lesson to the rest of the world.

This holiday season, promote tolerance by helping families improve their lives. Give a biogas stove or the gift of a heifer now.

Heifer International at the World Dairy Summit 2012

Posted on November 7, 2012 by Maegan Clark

This week, Heifer CEO and President, Pierre Ferrari was asked to speak at the International Dairy Federation’s World Dairy Summit in Cape Town, South Africa. The World Dairy Summit brings together individuals and organizations around the globe that are involved in working in the dairy sector. This year’s theme, “A World in One Country,” reflects the diversity seen in South Africa’s farming systems, climates, markets and cultures. The conference is devoted to the dairy industry in emerging countries, with a focus on how the socioeconomic benefits of the business on smallholder famers.

By 2030, it’s estimated that the global demand for food will be up by 30 percent as the population continues to rise. As the food security need will increase, it’s important that Heifer continues to work within communities to provide them the tools they need to lift themselves out of hunger and poverty: training and livestock.

Photo by Dero Sanford, courtesy of Heifer International

In order to address these concerns, the summit topics focus on: developing innovative ideas for the dairy sector; the health benefits of consuming dairy; and how to create a holistic, sustainable approach to dairying that protects the environment. By learning how other organizations are working with dairy cooperatives, Heifer’s East Africa Dairy Development (EADD) program can learn to further improve sustainability in the dairy value chain. Heifer’s work with EADD brings smallholder farmers in communities together into cooperatives to better position them to sell their surplus milk. Through Heifer’s work, smallholder farmers receive more training to strengthen their businesses and earn more income to provide for their families.

As Heifer’s CEO and President takes part in the 2012 World Dairy Summit, our message is simple: Heifer’s farmers are not just providing milk in a growing dairy industry, they’re creating sustainable livelihoods and strengthening their communities.

Heifer Restores Hope for a Seaside Community in Georgia

Posted on August 29, 2012 by Erin Snow

The Lamparadze family drinks fresh milk every morning

By Maka Kapanadze, Heifer Georgia Volunteer

Georgia is blessed with a wonderful location, a remarkable natural setting and hospitable people. The Black Sea borders the country on the west, providing the region with a relatively mild and humid climate throughout the year. Buknari is a seaside community in Kobuleti municipality, and during the Soviet period Buknari was considered a favorite resort spot for Russian tourists. Residents of Buknari lived a happy life. While the majority of their income came from tourism, they raised citrus and tea plants to earn additional money. As the Soviet Union collapsed, so did Buknari’s lucrative tourist industry. In 2006, an import ban on Georgian agricultural products ultimately broke all financial links between Russia and Georgia. Without its main trading partner, the happy life of the people of Buknari ended. A high rate of inflation on Georgia’s currency, the GEL, reflects Russia’s economic embargo. Prices on daily consumption products have increased dramatically. Faced with limited choices, Buknari residents either had to start farming livestock or starve.

Oleg Lamparadze grew up in a big, welcoming and friendly family, where mutual respect and understanding ruled. He now has a wife, Juliet, and two children, 11-year-old Sofio and 8-year-old Mikheil. They live in Buknari with Oleg’s mother Eter, brother Vazha and sister Izo. They once ran their own small family farm and got by just fine; however, over the last seven years, it has become more difficult to survive. It was so hard that older family members often went to bed hungry because their crops produced just enough to feed the children. Oleg took on seasonal construction work that paid very little. Eter’s small pension provided the only other source of income. They didn’t make enough money to purchase much-needed medicine. “Someone may think that if you are not lazy, you will always survive in the village,” Oleg said, ”because compared to town, there are more options: different agricultural activities, fruit-growing, animal and poultry farming, small gardening. But believe me, we have not slept for nights. Our labor was very hard and unbearable, but it was difficult to fight with empty hands. When I say empty hands, I mean a lack of any resources that might be helpful for agricultural activities. I wanted to start animal farming, but had no sufficient money to buy a cow or even a goat. My family was like a squirrel in the cage. I felt that we needed a small push to move from a dead spot. God heard my prayers and I got the biggest push from Heifer International.”

In the fall of 2009, Oleg’s family was selected to join a Heifer project in their community.

Lamazo produces more than 80 liters of milk each week

They received a pregnant heifer and training for successful livestock keeping. “My family had some experience in livestock keeping, but after the trainings we received from Heifer, we significantly improved our knowledge on animal keeping, breeding and feeding,” Juliet said. “We are happy to have a very competent project veterinarian, Nugzar Khimshiashvili, who is a famous veterinary doctor in the region. His trainings in animal health issues and proper feeding are positively reflected by our cow’s productivity. We yield more than 80 liters of milk per week, which is a maximum for the local breed cows. We have enough milk for family consumption and surplus for marketing. Mostly we make cheese and yogurt for sale. Our family budget has greatly improved. Recently, we started vegetable growing and using animal manure for soil fertilization to improve our harvest. Our kids also are actively involved in farming activities. Sofio looks after the cow and Mikheil takes care of the calf.”

Lamazo's milk keeps the children strong and healthy

“When we received a heifer, I was almost 8-years-old,” Sofio said. “When the cow entered our yard I was impatiently waiting for her beside the gate. She was walking so beautifully that I decided to call her Lamazo, which means Beauty.” Sofio’s mother used to saved her grandmother’s pension to buy milk. Now, thanks to Heifer, Sofio and her brother Mikheil drink fresh milk every morning. Lamazo’s milk keeps them strong and healthy. They have already passed on the gift of a heifer to the family of Sofio’s best friend, and Lamazo has already given birth to another calf, which the family will keep. Oleg renovated their old shed into a more comfortable one for Lamazo and her calf.

“We know that Heifer helps indigent people throughout the world and we are happy to be among those lucky families,” said Oleg. “We want to thank Heifer International’s generous donors and those kind people in the USA and all over the world. Special thanks to Heifer Georgia’s caring staff for their diligent and devoted attitude to us and our lives!”

Despite poverty, Buknari people never lost their pride, and with Heifer’s help, hope for the future has returned to them. Indeed, there are still many families in need in Georgia. Oleg’s family is a good example of how Heifer transforms families’ lives, giving them a light of hope for improvement and a better future.

U.S. Drought Hurting Small Farmers, Too

Posted on August 14, 2012 by Brooke Edwards

The United States continues to suffer worst drought in half a century. Most of the media coverage tells of horrible corn and soybean yields and the rising food costs we’ll be seeing in grocery stores next year.

Often left out of the conversation, however, are the small farmers who grow for local markets, particularly those who can’t afford crop insurance or who raise livestock (which doesn’t have the same safeguards as staple crops). Despite being typically diverse in what they grow (generally a good strategy for mitigating disasters like weather or pests), the lack of rainfall and incredibly high temperatures are taking a serious toll.

One of these farmers is a personal friend of mine. In fact, we first met as volunteers at Heifer Ranch. Katie Short of Farm Girl Natural Foods raises pigs, cattle and chickens. She was recently interviewed by a Central Arkansas newspaper, Sync Weekly, about how the drought has affected her operations. She said:

Spring rains usually give us enough grass; it’s called stockpiling, and it piles up in pasture enough to get through hot dry months. But we did not get that spring rain, so we did not get the spring grass. So that’s been the number one concern — is there enough forage to feed our animals, primarily the cows? We supplement the chickens and pigs with grains, and they’re eating more grain than they would otherwise. With the cattle, we’ve had to make some hard decisions, and we’ve started to cull the herd to preserve grass we have.

And:

Think of the range in this drought; much of the grain fed to chickens and pigs is grown in the grain belt in the Midwest, and they’ve been impacted. I’ve seen some forecast of grain prices, and that’s terrifying. It affects the decisions we make in the long-term of our operation in terms of animals we can support sustainably.

One of Farm Girl's cows. Photo by Adelia Kittrell.

Small livestock farmers like Short are being slammed in all directions as a result of the drought. Lack of rainfall dries out pastures; it’s too expensive to irrigate the fields; they can’t afford the supplemental feed the animals need in the short-term; they’ll end up selling their products sooner and at lower prices; the livestock feed costs for next season will be even higher, as this year’s grain harvests will be so bad; and there is little to no external assistance available (while President Obama’s announcement that the U.S. government would purchase $170 million in meat from farmers and ranchers, it is unclear what the qualifications for receiving this assistance will be) .

This isn’t happening only in Arkansas (though can I say we’re looking particularly bad on the map above?). And it’s not just small livestock farmers. So what can we do about it? Well, this is a great example of when buying locally really can make a difference. Go to your farmer’s market or nearest produce stand. Buy the ugly tomatoes, the smaller-than-desirable ears of corn, the cuts of meat you usually pass over. Meet the farmers, get to know their stories. Ask them how they’re coping with the weather. Offer your sympathy, and buy some of their products.

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