亚开行-迈向蒙古的可持续饲料管理（英）

ADB BRIEFSNO. 342JUNE 2025ISBN 978-92-9277-327-4 (print)ISBN 978-92-9277-328-1 (PDF) ISSN 2071-7202 (print)ISSN 2218-2675 (PDF)Publication Stock No. BRF250211-2DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.22617/BRF250211-2Toward Sustainable Fodder Management in MongoliaKEY POINTS• Mongolia’s steppe grassland ecosystem has experienced significant degradation over the past few decades because of overgrazing, climate change, mining, and other anthropogenic activities.• Livestock is a cornerstone of Mongolia’s economy and food security. Hence, modernization of the livestock sector is an important strategy in improving the country’s resilience, diversifying its economy, creating trade opportunities, and protecting ecosystems. • A key element of the livestock modernization strategy is the development of the fodder industry. This will help improve the productivity and competitiveness of Mongolia’s livestock sector and reduce the pressure on natural grasslands.• Mongolia’s fodder industry holds substantial potential for growth and modernization, through the establishment of agricultural economic development zones, increased financial investment, strengthened supply chain and market development, support to traditional herder communities, and a focus on long-term sustainability.Xueliang CaiSenior Water Resources Specialist Asian Development Bank (ADB)David G. PhelpsConsultant, ADBDebra RasmussenConsultant, ADBBACKGROUND More than 70% of Mongolia’s steppe grassland ecosystem has degraded over the past few decades because of overgrazing, climate change, mining, and other anthropogenic activities.1 Overgrazing and climate change are the main drivers of grassland degradation. The country’s 64.7 million livestock (as of the end of 2023), mostly fed on the natural landscape via traditional methods of grazing, place immense pressure on the fragile ecosystem. Climate change, manifested in increasing temperatures, reduced precipitation, and changing weather patterns, is causing more frequent and severe droughts and floods. Extreme events such as dzuds—a natural phenomenon of heavy snowfall, extreme cold, or a combination of the two—frequently cause mass starvation and death of livestock. This phenomenon significantly impacts nomadic herder communities by threatening their livelihoods and increasing their vulnerability to climate-related stressors. Over the past decades, temperature extremes and anomalies have become more common, with direct impacts on the productivity of pastures (Map 1).Mongolia’s livestock sector falls under a “user” and “keeper” system as opposed to a “producer” and “breeder” system. Herders consider livestock a “bank deposit” and focus on total animal numbers versus productivity. Livestock numbers in Mongolia rose from 25.9 million heads in the 1990s to a peak of 70.9 million heads in 2019, of which 70.3 million heads (99.2%) are reared by herders based on traditional extensive animal husbandry systems dependent on natural pastures, hay, and other types of fodder