CENTRO DE INVESTIGACIÓN AGRÍCOLA TROPICAL

C. I. A. T.
Nuflo de Chávez 4O - Casilla 247
SANTA CRUZ-BOLIVIA

INFORME

Cooperación de la Misión Británica en Agricultura Tropical

Casilla 359 — Santa Cruz
 Yii

THE LJOAÍ OF THE

ON, CONCEPCIÓN
terson
kins
Working D^íJiímint
February
 SUMMAKT

Two v i s i t s were paid i n November and December 1980 to the

ranching^properties of the Bolivian Bavarian Foundation, i n
Concepción, to assess the present situation, and the make
suggestions as to how the ranching enterprise could be used
to finance a range of medical and educational services which
the Foundation provides for the rural poor of the área,
Although set up severa1 years ago, income from the ranches
has not, so .far, been great, and i n 1980 the social services
were heavily subsidised by the La Merced Cooperative.
A cattle census showed that weaning rates i n 1980 were 66%
and 72% respectively from the Nellore and Gir herds, and
that post-weaning mortality was low. Sales have been limited
by a policy of increasing the breeding herds, but the
properties are now f u l l y stocked, and unless money i s
invested in pasture improvement to increase carrying
capacity, many animáis w i l l have to be sold i n 1981.
A l a r g e p r o p o r t i o n (17% and 6% r e s p e c t i v e l y f o r t h e two herds)
of t h e cows were born p r i o r t o 1971» and since there are
ampie 1978 born h e i f e r s t o replace them, these o í d cows
should be culled. Further culling based upon poor f e r t i l i t y
and genetic defects, and the sale of a l l 3 year oíd males
would result i n 1981 i n the sale of 436 animáis for a gross
return of about íJb. 2,352,000, which would be more than
sufficient to finance the social programmes envisaged. In
the stable herd state which w i l l be reached i n 1985-86
annual sales at present herd performance levéis w i l l be 350
animáis valued at almost $b. 2 million at 1981 prices. This
w i l l corfortably finance the social requirements of $b. 1.5
million.
Cominents are made on general management practices ánd sales
I>olicies, and some suggestions ar"e put forward with regard
to future expansión of the enterprise should. this be
necessary due to further social welfare activities.
A brief subsidiar;/ study was made of the Slaughterhouse built
by the Foundation. It i s suggested that i t may be possible
to opérate i t on an occasional basis to improve profit margins
for the cattle producers of the Concepción área. An advisory
v i s i t by the operator of a private 3laughterhouse i n the Beni
Department i s urged.
INTRODUCTION
Concepción lies about 310 km by road to the North East of
Santa Cruz de l a Sierra. Although i t i s the capital of the
Province of Ñuflo de Chávez, i t has suffered greatly from
isolation due to the generally impassable state of the roads
in the wet season, and the d i f f i c u l t i e s of crossing the Rio
Grande. In 1979-80, the road from the Rio Grande to San
Javier and Concepción was greatly improved through the use
of Germán Aid funds, and work continúes to up-grade this
stretch to good a l l - weather standards. The river crossing
remains a serious problem not only for Concepción but for the
whole off the Eastern part of Santa Cruz.
Due largely to the transport d i f f i c u l t i e s , Concepción has
been traditionally cháracterised by high costs of goods
brought into the área, and low prices paid for i t s
agricultural produce. The economy of the área is based upon
cattle which walk out to slaughter« Returns are low, since
cattle traders pay low prices to compénsate for the loss of
condition which the animáis suffer i n the long drive to the
consumer área of Santa Cruz. The production system employed
is one of extensive ranching. Few cows are milked due to the
limited local market, although i n the future there may exist
the possibility of sending milk to the cheese plant i n San
Javier, some 70 km to the West. This w i l l depend upon
further improvements to the road to ensure continual rapid
transitability.
1.1, The Bavarian Foundation
Recognising the needs of the rural poor, the Bolivian
Bavarian Foundation (Fundación Boliviano Baviera)
started operations i n the mid 1960's i n an attempt to
improve the quality of l i f e i n the región. The
foundation^ with technical assistance from Germany,
and with financial support from both the Bavarian
State Government and the "Terre des Hommes" programme
of the ILO established a cooperative movement aimed at
providing a series of social services. Although
preferential treatment i s afforded to cooperative
members, the services are available to a l l . Current
activities include:
- a store for the sale of basic foodstuffs and
consumer articles at a reasonable price, i n order to
reduce speculation by other storekeepers i n the
área. This part of the scheme runs at a small
prof i t .
 .2.

the provisión of a r u r a l health.-.servioe to 1 the

outlying communities. A- ífürl^r^ytóme do^Wí i s
0,. iStáffed
of basic
^medicar^upplies: í o r 'Sale/ at/ : \ .'-.',
£Q.e&j'' Míñiaal tees' are chargéd t<jr", •
^ & . t h e . h e a l t h sérvice.- is^:ñót f i n a n c i a l l y
s el^^uppbirbing.
a mechanical workshop which mainly cares for the
véchicles and machinery of the Fouiláation, ;Vi:
-büt which
als©-a;ócepts s,ome ;?outside-wprisiv ;:. '; .'
• " •'"•;•'
',.•;••• ' ••"' • .íp.^*1'.. ... ^u'
the organis'ation of résli.deri'ti^i_,poursesi^ of 10-14-. day
ation g on .•vajpioiJs) aspecfesí l i ^ oiae
i-'ráñging f-¿6ra h
dioration on, .•vajpi.oiJs) aspecfesí -'ráñging h
science, crafts ; and t>as^c agriciolttireto the .,
t r a i n i n g jof- .medical a ú x í l i a r i é s to l i y e and wprk i n
eachof.,the, outlying communities. -This progracrme i s
ñot f i n ^ n ^ í a l l y ^.elf supporting.
a ránch;Lng enterprise ijhat wés set up p r i n é i ^ a l l y to
breed both beef and dual purposé (bQef. and milk)
animáis for supply^ i n the f órfaof cheap loans to the
r\xral poor, but which now i s seen as a, of a
commerciál .yenture which Shóúld provide funds to .
aúpport the heaXth and educational< asp'écts of the
overall r u r a l development. scheme. ..' . ..'...'
- a small slaughterhouse with freezer capacity for^ 2^-
30 careases exists beside ..the...Concepción-airstrip,
but has not been used for several years.. The motors
are started periodically to prevent deterioration,
and. i t , seems capadle bf being ptat to immediate use
without the need for extensibe renovatioñ../ ..'.'• •'•••'-
In the absonce of. foreign financial süpport,1
the Foundation1s
activities are cúrrently be4.ng supported by the La Merced
Cooperative, which iri: 1980 financed an operating; déficit of
more <than $b. 800,000; (^US ¡32',00Ó>. In view of the non-profít
making nature of the La Merced cooperative, i t cannot continué
to supply such amounts of cash on an indefinite basis.
1.2. The Present Study
The Honoráry Germán-; Cónsul, hr. Hans H i l l e r , approached
'the British Tropical Agricultural Mission seeking
advice and recommendatibns specifically with regard to
the livestock enterprise óf the Foundation i n Concepción,
F u l l discuasions were held with Mr. H i l l e r , Dr.Adalberto
Terceros Bo, President of the La Merced Cooperative,
and the Bishop of Concepción, Mon. Eduardo Bose,
 .3.

following which the writers visited the properties i n

November 1980 to gain an overall impression, and again
in Dec'ember 1980 to carry out a complete cattle
census. Both visits were made i n the company of Mr.
Luis Soria M. of the La Merced Cooperative.
It was stated that the gross income of the ranching
enterprise i n 1980 was expected to be about $b, 550,000
($US 22,000). Added to the overall operating d é f i c i t
of $b.. 800,000, and allowing for a small increase i n
expenditure to realise the aim of 10-12 residential
coursea per year, the ranches would have to produce an
animal income of $b. 1,500,000 (SUS 60,000) at 1980
prices to support the desired level of Foundation
activities. This study restricta i t s e l f to the cattle
enterprise, and assumes that the other facets of the
work of the Foundation w i l l remain relatively constant.
2. EXISTING RESOURCES
The resources and f a c i l i t i e s available on the ranches as at
the end of 1980 are noted below
2.1. Land
Although formally t i t l e d under 4 ranch ñames, the land
is physically i n two parts, the f i r s t block situated
at a distance of 17 km to the east and the other about
3 km to the north of Concepción. Both blocks are
adequately supplied with water, although only a small
.proportion is fenced into paddocks.
2.1.1. Alta Vista
This property consists of 3225 ha, of which
less than 500 ha i s paddocked and sown to
pasture. The older paddocks, surrounding the
house and the spacious and well - maintained
corral are predominantly grama negra (Paspalum
notatum) but more recent paddocks are sown to
guinea grass (Panicum máximum) which appears
to thrive. The natural vegetation i s mostly
t a l l forest, which grows on relatively f e r t i l e ,
brown to black, well drained s o i l . The área
should be ideal for the establishment of high-
quality legume grass pastures such as Glycine
(Glycine wightii) associated with guinea grass.
In áreas where weeds are a problem, Brachiaria
decumbens would be a highly aggressive
introduction which should help to control them.
 The natural forest contains many légumes, and
several native,yDesmodium spp, were s'een arotind
water holes:. It. is obvious fromthe state of
the cattle,,, which spend aV ¡considerable amount
of time brówsing i n the unimproved bush, that
the native vegetation i s ,of • high nutritional
qüality o ; I f :land; i ? to;.be cleared i n the
f uttu?e ..ta. irijcrease the -carrying capacity of
théJ ranch n ttien a l l néw paddock^ ^hcmld contain
an'aréa of ; naturalvforegt to providé 'eh^lter
and to sux?plement pasturé quality i n the'dry
season. Thef ranch, .carried :Some 490 Animal
Units (AU) dtpíng 1980,';and this may be co
considered. to be cióse to i t s present capacity
without fúri;her inyestment i n pasture
establishmerit. . Improved pastures i n the área
should be capable of carrying at least 1.2 AU/
ha through the dry s.eáson, álthough the grama
negra should not be stocked at greater than
about. 0.8 AU/ha i n this c r i t i c a l .périod. In
this study".'i Ap: i s considered to be équivalent
to 400 kg íiveweighto
.-•..*••• . "• .... •.>• •• '••••••
2.1O2. San Josécito - Zapocó - El¡Tesoro -
The.se three; proper¡ties:j Of 1098, 15"16 and 82 ha
respectiyely (269^^ hai total) adjoin one
átLothero' At present the f i r s t named i s used
basically f,or the. Gir[ herd, while the.secondis
used for : c u i l animáis, prior t'o sale. ,.¡The tíiird
property i s managed as a paddock of Zapocó.
The corral at San Jpsecifo.is large and i n
good order, while a smaller unit, less well
maintained, exists at Zapocó.
Of the total área, some 600 ha are enclosed1 i n
paddocks, mainly of sown pasture of yaragua
(Hyparrhenia ,rufa)-and guiñea grass¿ althóuglil, ,
considerable áreas haye-degéneráted to grama
negra. There i s &'h'igher proportion of open
woodland and natural pasture (pampa monte and
pampa respectively) on these properties than
at Alta Vista and these áreas are dominated by
paja carona (Sporobolus p o i r e t i i ) , a native
grass.jOf low productivity and poor quality
éxcept in.^jthe young regrowth stage. In general,
• ^ p ' é ^ S f í i J t ^ ^ ^ ' l á ^ ^ é i r t i l e , and more a c i d than
áfc Altea ,-y)is£,a ríja^a4¡: álthough there exista the
possipii^tyJpfriíicréásing productivity of the
pampa monte área by the introduction of
 .5.

Brachiaria decumbens and B. humidicola, (Section 5»1)

the potential of this área i s considerably less than
that of Alta Vista. Much of the área, even i f sown
to improved pastures would probably carry less than
.0.8 AU/ha during the c r i t i c a l dry montfrs. On well
drained soils, the best legume-grass pastures would
be Archer (Maerotylorna axillare cv. Archer)
associated with exther yaragua or guinea grass.
The ranches, carried approximátely 780 AU i n December
1980, and without investment i n improved pasture
there is very l i t t l e scope for inereasing the
pr.esent stocking pressure.
San Josecito has adequate accomodation for 15-20
students during the residencial courses which are
organised on a range of agricultura1, nutritional and
cultural topics...
2.2/ Cattle
In accordance with the original aims of the cattle
enterprise of the Foundation (Section 1.1.) there are
two main-;herds, the Gir at San Josecito and the Nellore
at -Alta Vista. There also exist at San Josecito, a few
animáis with Guzerat. blood, and others of indefinite
breeding. At San Josecito, of a herd of about 100
sucfcling cows at any giVen time, some 30-40 individuáis,
randomly selected, are milked each morning to provide
about 100 l i t r e s per dáy for sale through the store i n
the village. In 197& the daily yields were quoted at
_1.5-2.0 1/cow/day i n the dry season, rising to 3«0-3-5
l/c6W/day. i n the rains. At Alta Vista, 20-30 suckling
Nellore aremilked in-the mornings during the rains for
the production of farmhouse (criollo) cheese? also for
salé through the Foundation store i n Concepción.
2.2.1. The Nellore herd
This is a herd of high quality, many animáis
having been purchased from, or bred from cows
originating i n the former Santa Anita herd of
Dr* Carlos Roca. In December 1980 the herd
str^c;feur<9 wás as shown i n table 1.
Of the breeding cows, some 78 animáis (17% of
the cow herd) were born prior to 197% and are
therefore now over 10 years oíd, They should
be culled and replaced from the ampie number
of heifers available. Many of these oíd cows
 .6.

although of l i t t l e furtíheí use to the Foundation, who

can replace theai v/itli néifers, are s t i l l very f e r t i l e ,
and.every effort shoiiM be,, niade to.sell them as
breéd/ing. stock.ratherthañ for slaughter, as they are
:.óf excQllent type, and 'are. s t i l l capable of producing
2 or 3 more, calves each» . ••• •'•
Tablé 1. Structure of í.ttee-Neiíore herd, December 1980

Clasá .óf;-;Animáis A l t a V i s t a San Josecito TOTAL

..• Zapocó
Number AU* Number AU Number AU
B u l l s , 3 years and over 10 12 2 2 12 14
Cows, 3 years and over 316 316 141 457 457
Bulls, 2-3 years - 33 44 33
Steer'sjv 2-3,'years . . - 51 51 38
38 129
Bleifers, 2-3. yeárs
. _—- _ — — — ^ — • fj — —
81 61 97
Bulls,1-2 years
^J-

5 3 104 • 36 109 65
Heifers, 1-2 years 68 41 24 62 92 55
Bull calves, to 1 year 119 14 41
? 11 163
Heifer calves, to 1 yéar' 116 29 34 150 38
9
TOTAL v,; ." • 715 492 492 '.346 1207 838

,Á .AU = "Animal Unit" 1 '.• equivalen1j ;to.. ¡400 kg, l i v e w e i g h t

2.2O 2. ••• Tn;e G i r herd .•' ''. ~:::\' •••':-' ";'•••:

herd is' much.;.more v a r i a b l e t h a n the'Néllores,
•:.' and contains.iri^fL^/.-íanima^s .of half and. three-quarters
r, b:Gír blóod, -.The' herd bulls are. no t of outstanding
'.-..-•'.) quality and are therefore cohíributing l i t t l e t o the
^'gerietio improvement of the herd.-.The- herd structure
.'." réfs" at, December 1980 i s shown i n Table 2,' together
',.;•-,_ trjith>the animáis of Guzerat and indeterminate
bré'eding. The Gir herd is ,. ori ayerage, youjiger than
the Nellore herd, only 10 aüt' of 160' cows-being older
than 10 years.. Üf the animáis" of other bréeds, 20
out pf. 55.' !are older than 10. '"'',-?.*•
3 o POTEWTi/iL.
The offtake : from the Foundation rancheS > i
xX
in...Concepción has
nofc "been great i n tho.páQ-b^, •!,-|TóvQi thQ lósiB ,••, srowth ratos and
f e r t i l i t y of .the heíds hayé beetí'yery.. mu6h abóve average f o r
the área, since anitoals..régularly reach slaughter weights at
 .7-

3 years of age, and i n 1980 the weaning rate overall can be

estimated at 66% for the Nellore and 72% for the Gir herds.
Alta Vista produced a weaning rate of 71% compared with 58%
for San Josecito - Zapocó, although this last figure i s
lowered by the presence of many oíd cows destined for
culling. Obviously the lack of offtake has been due to the
fact that herd numbers have been building up rapidly, and
there have been ño sales of heifers or c u l i cows.
The properties have now reached the stage where either more
land must be'/cleared for pasture improyement, or else the
herds must be stabilised at their present level of grazing
pressure to nrevent over-grazingo I t can be shown that even
at the•low prices paid for slaughter stock i n Concepción,
the ranches can support the present cash requirements of the
Foundation activities ($b. 1.5 million). In the future, i f
i t becomes necessary to increase the Foundation budget,
thought can be given to seeking finance for pasture
establishment. This would be particularly apt at Alta Vista,
where there i s great potential to increase stock numbers
through clearing and sowing improved pasture species.
Table 2, Structure of the Gir herd and animáis of other
breeds, December 1980 - San Josecito - Zapocó
Class of Animal Gir • Others TOTAL
Number AU Number AU Number AU .
Bulls, 3 years and 8 10 _, 8 10
over
Steers, 3 years and 1 1 - - 1 1
over
Cows, .3 years and 160 160 55 55 215 215
: ;
over " -. '
Bulls, 2-3 years 22 17 _ — ' 22 17
Steers, 2-3 years 34 26 3 3 37 29
Heifers, 2-3 years 64- 48 9 7 73 55
Bull, 1-2 years 63 38 4 2 67 40
Heifers, 1-2 years 60 36 4 2 64 38
Bull calves, to 1 63 16 5 1 68 17
year 17
Heifer calves, to 57 14 10 3 67
1 year
TOTAL 532 366 90 73 622 439
 .8.

3.1. -.-Stabilisation of the Herd ^ X

! ;
.,>•;.•:•• .- • <'"• ••"••'• • •' , • . -. -. ••'- i-i • : . • •v
•As may be seen:-from Tables 1 and S., there exist large-
numbers vpf young animals, p a r t i c u l a r l y of the Nellpre
bree.df "., Both properties carry a large proportion of
old cows, and i t would therefore be highly desirable,
to replace: a l l those born before 197.1 with 1978 born
heifers. Further c u l l i n g can be based on animals of
- undesirable type(©.g. those which lack pigmentation),
indeterminate breed and pobr f e r t i l i t y . j ; .Some.,of the
1978! heifers w i l l riot become pregnant when exposed to
the b u l l , and these animals should also be culled.
A l l males ;of 1978 b i r t h should be sold during 1981,
either ,as steers for slaughter or as breeding b u l l s .
The'vherd bulls should be sold and replaced by non-
related animals to prevent in-toreeding. These sales
are summarised i n Table 3, .while a detailed l i s t of
animals, recommended for c u l l i n g has been sent to Hie
.Foundation. ; .• ,;
Table 3 •» Summary of animals to ! be "sold during 1981
Class of il-himal : Number' Unit Total
• r
• .- -~ "• Value, Value
• •• • , ttb. Sb.
A l l cows born before 1971,
mature fema-1-es of undesirable
type and indeterminate
breeding, and those of low
fertility 218 5,000 1,090,000
Steers of 1978 birth 89 -5,500 489,500
Bulls of 1978 birth 66 8,000 528,000
I n f e r t i l e heifers of 1978 b i r t h 20 5,000 100,000
Young animales (males and
females, 1979-1980 born)
indeterminate breed 23 1,500 34,500
Herd b u l l s , Nellore and Gir ,20 5,500 110,000
TOTAL 436 2,352,000

The existing herd bulls have been in service on the ranches

for at least 2 or .Ijears, and so- should be replaced to
prevent an.increase in consanguinity. Ten Gir and 20
Fellore bulls should: be .purchased for the 625 cows and
brooding heifers that w i l l be on the ranches, and i t i s
estimated that the price w i l l be $b. 25,000 each. The net
return from the sale of stock in 1981 w i l l then be
(2,352,OOO~75O,OOO) =ftb.1,602,000.
 .9.

I t i s strongly recommended that the surplus above the

projected requirements of the Foundation ($b. 102,000)
should "be invested i n the renovation of existing fencing.
In addition to the sales outlined above, animala w i l l have
to be transferred from the Nellore herd i n Alta Vista i n
crdor to maintain the stocking rate at an acceptable l e v e l .
A l l of the 1979 bulls (-5) and(once they are wearied^ the 1980
born b u l l calves (117), should be moved t o j o i n the other
Ne.116r.es i n San Josecito - Zapoco.
I f 70% weaning rate (survival to 1 year) and 2% post-
weaning; annual mortality i s assumed for A l t a V i s t a , and due
to the poorer quality pastures, the San Josecito - Zapoc6
block i s assumed to give 60% and 3% respectively for these
parameters, animal numbers at the end of 1981 w i l l be as
shown i n Table 4.
Table 4, Projections of the cattle populations, December
1981
Class of Animal Alta Vista San Josecito - Zapoc6'
Nellore Nel-loce.- - ..GiiL-: - Total -
j_ Numbers AU Numbers AU Numbers AU Numbers AU
Bulls• 14 17 6 7 10 12 16 19
Cows 309 . 309 124 124 192 192 316 316
Males 2-3 year _ _ • • 106 80 61 46 167 126
Heifers 2-3 years 67 50 24 18 58 4-4 82 62
Males 1-2 years 160 96 61 37 221 133
Heifers 1-2 years 114 68 33 20 55 33 88 53
Male, calves to 108 27 43 11 ,, 15
58 101 26
1 year • -.: •. . •'. ". ..
Heifer calves to 108 27 43 11 57 '14 100 26
1 year
TOTAL 720 498 537 367 55^ 393 1091 760

During 1982, total sales would be 162 males', of 3 years,

either as bulls or as slaughter steers, and 130 cull cows
and heifers.| At the prices quoted for the 1981 sales, this
would realise about ®b. 1,74-0,000 depending upon the
proportion of males sold as bulls for reproductive purposes.
It i s assumed that the Foundation w i l l want to continue to
breed both Nellore and Gir animals on San Josecito-Zapoc6,
although the balance between the two"breeds w i l l depend upon
relative prices and demand for bulls. The Nellore herd at
Alta Vista w i l l multiply faster than the animals at San
 .10.

Josecito due to the better quality pasture, and i f demand

for Gir bulls (Is\:npt-igEeat'', the* Nellore1 side, of the San
Josecito exercise could be rapidly iricreeTsed at the expense
of the Gir herd.
From Table 4, i t may be calculated that sales in.1983 and
1984 w i l l , be .approximately as follows:, ••'•... •'',',
1983 sales:: 208 males of 3 years •pj.us::i6'4i cull'cows and
heifers, valued at about Sb. 2O2 million (1981
, prices)
1934 sales: 191 males of 3 years plus 180 cull cows and
" h e i f e r s , valued at ;about $b. 2.1 million (1981
prices) " '"••
Thirty new herd bulls should be- bought i n 1984 to replace
the 1981 purchases:'\ at a net cost of about $b. 0-6 million
i f a policy of replacing 10 bulls per. year is not adopted,
and financial provision,must be made for this.
4. .'THE STABLE.
The herd situations should be stabilised by 1985r86 unless
investments are made-in pasture improvement. It i s thought
that best use could be made of Alta Vista; ;by treating i t as
a breeding farm. After weaning, a l l male progeny should be
transferred to Sari Josecito - Zapoc6 for growing, on.
4o1. Alta Vista
With f e r t i l i t y and mortality rates as quoted above
(Section 3«1°) the stabilised herd structure would be
as follows:
Stock - ...._. .-. - .Number ' AU
Bulls "~ '* * ,'• .14 : 'i7 -•
Cows 295 295
Calves to 1 year 206 ..>• 52- :-. =
Heifers 1-2 years; 101 . : 61 •- f
Heifers 2-3 years, :, 99 74 •: .
:
Total 715 • ;. 499"
Annual offtake., would then consist of 9^ c u l l cows, and
heifers together, with'• ^03,-,weaned male calves for •' •v
transfer to '^an Josecito. ',,,,:; ,,;• ,v.:-r••'••'< '
 .11.

4o2„ San Josecito - Zapoco

This area has a t o t a l carrying capacity of 780 AU.
Once the s t a b i l i s e d s i t u a t i o n i s reached, i t w i l l
annually . receive from A l t a V i s t a , 103 male calves of
about 9 months of age for growing on, and f o r sale
either as b u l l s or steers. I f a l l males are sold at
3 years, these animals w i l l represent the following
animal units:
Age Number AU
to 1 year (for 3 months only) 103. 10
1-2 years' 100 60
2-3 years 97 73
Total 300 143 ,
Annual sales from this part of the enterprise are 95
bulls and steers of 3 years. The property then has
the capacity to carry breeding stock and followers to
comprise a t o t a l of 637 AU, either as Gir, Nellore,
or both breeds«
Assuming f e r t i l i t y and mortality figures quoted above
(Section 3.1.) for this property, the herd structure
would be as follows:
Stock Number AU
Bulls 16 19
Cows 320 320
Calves to 1 year 192 48
Males and Females 1-2 years 186 112
Males and Females 2-3 years 180 135
894- 634
Annual o f f t a k e of t h i s herd would then be 87 steers
and b u l l s , together w i t h 77 h e i f e r s and c u l l cows.
4o3o S t a b i l i s e d F i n a n c i a l Returns
Once the herds become s t a b i l i s e d i n 1985-86, the
f i n a n c i a l returns may be c a l c u l a t e d as f o l l o w s . The
value of the animals s o l d has been kept d e l i b e r a t e l y
low t o a l l o w a measure of s e c u r i t y .
 .12.

Alba Vista
91 Nellore c u l l cows and heifers
at #b* 5000' ' - $b. .'455,000
San JoSGcito-2iapbc6 ..V
%>: k l l o r e bulls and steers, ex Alta Vista at ' •
$b. 6.500-: • • •:•• &b. 617,5 '0
87 Nellore and Gir bulls and- steers at
Ub.6000- - •••'• -r.n-v. ~.i.•-.-• ttb. . 522,000
77 Nellore and Gir c u l l coxirs and heifers
at Ub. 5000 .... ,.., Sb. 385,000
Total 350 animals per year $b.1.979,500
Stated Foundation cash requirement flb.1.500,000
Margin $"b. 479,500
Less the annual purchase of 10
replacement bulls at ftb. 25000 $b. 250,000
;
• : •: r^i,- ••-.-..!:o,;:o-o . •.>.:•! S\orplus ;; ' ';.. ; $b. 229,500

4,4. Herd F e r t i l i t y
.--»;: The cattle census realised by CORDECRUZ i n 1978j which
-••• unfortunately i s not yet available ±n published form,
suggests that the average weaning percentage of herds
i n the Precambrian Shield area of Santa.Crv i s below
40%. As noted above (Section 3) the main herds of the
Foundation have weaning percentages of 66% for the
Nellores and.72% for the Gir, and therefore the
f e r t i l i t y i s greatly above average for the area. I t
is thought that the replacement of old cows by
heifers, and a systematic culling based upon f e r t i l i t y
records could with careful management, increase the
weaning percentage even further, perhaps to 75-80%. I t
should be emphasized, however, that great care must be
: taken to ensure that the currently good herd
-reproductive performance is ; hot allowed to f a l l back
towards the average for the area, since this would
jeopardise the financial .security of-the whole r u r a l "
development project. I t may be calculated that i n the
stable situation, a f a l l i n weaning percentage of 10%
over the whole herd would eliminate the surplus of
'.; $b. 229,500 shown i n Section '4.3.• Similarly an
increase to 5%" mortality1'per year after weaning would
also eliminate the surplus. The success of the whole
enterprise depends upon the maintenance of the current
low levels of mortality and high general herd
fertility.
 .13.
4 o5« General Considerations
4.5.1. Timing of sales: Wherever possible, animals
should be sold i n the second half of the wet
season, i n order to ro duce to a minimum the
numbers carried through the c r i t i c a l dry
period,
4oSo2. Sales policy for bulls: I t may be worth
considering the sale of bulls f o r
reproductive purposes at 2 years of age instead
of the 3 years used i n the above calculations.
Although they would then command a lower price
(about $bo 6500 compared with ftb. 8000 as 3
year olds), their early sale would lower the
grazing pressure, and allow more cows to be
carried. This i n turn would increase the
number of calves born, and consequently the
numbers offered for sale. I f , for example,
100 of the annual male calf crop were to be
sold as bulls at 2 years of age, this would
permit the carrying of an additional 40 cows
and their followers at San Josecito, and these
cows would produce a further 24 calves. The
revenue lost by s e l l i n g the bulls at 2 year3
(100 x ftb. 1,500 = ttbo 150)000) would be
almost replaced by the sale of the 23
surviving calves once they reached 2 or 3
years, and management of the breeding herd^,
would be simplified by minimising the number
of sexually active males on the property.

4.5.3. Herd Bulls

No herd b u l l should be i n service for more
than 3'years* because after this period, there
is a danger that i t w i l l serve i t s own
daughters, thereby increasing the level of
inbreeding i n the herd. I f separate Nellore
hards are maintained at Alta Vista and San
Josecito - Zapoco, and i f unrelated bulls are
purchased, there exists the opportunity to
interchange bulls between the two properties,
thereby increasing the service,life of the
best Nellore bulls from 3 to 6 years, with a
consequent saving i n purchases.

5. FUTURE DEVELOPMENT
Although the stated financial needs of the Foundation can be
adequately covered with the existing herds and the presently
available pastures, i t may be considered desirable i n the
future to establish more pasture to increase the "'annual "animal
sales of the ibaniches.. : Pasture species suitable for; sowing £n
each area are. hot'ed" i n Sections :2.1fc-1«• arid7~2.T.2.-;•; '7;,
There are three- main alternatives for'pasture development.
5.1. Brachiaria i n the Open Woodland
..(;• "' I f the- open woodland (pampa monte) area" were'to be
burned at the end of the dry season,1 Brachiaria
decumbens or B.. humidicola could be sown between the
trees after a single, pass with a disc plough. The
grasses may also establish after a burn i f sown at
stations ((al punzon) without land preparation. Costs
per hectare xvould be approximately as follows at 1981
prices .-. i '•• . •:,
Burn. .(iabour costs)--'-. . $b. 100
\Disc strips between the trees $b. 600
Seed, 4 kg/ha at b. 200 $b. 800
Hand seeding ,-4 main days/ha Sb. 400
!
- V * : " : i|r>: ',-. Total • $b.1.900 per ha.

to sow about 70% of each hectare so,treated. Within

2-3 years, the sown pasture'should spread to cover the
whole area. The; natural pasture at present supports
about 0.2 AU/ha, and the improved pasture could be
expected to support about 0.7 AU/ma-on a year round
bnsis. E&ch additional AU of grazing pressure: would
then require an additional 2 ha of sown pasture, at a
cost of about $b. 3.800. This kind of pasture . ,..
improvement would.have l i t t l e effect on individual
animal performance, since the quality of Brachiaria i n
the dry season i s npt of a standard to support high
levels of animal production.
5»2. Legume Grass, Pastures on Cleared Forest Soils,':;
The clearing of high forest, particularly on-the more
f e r t i l e Alta Vista property, although expensive, could
have a great effect on the carrying ;capacity of the
ranch. • There are numerous ways•to clear forest, for
example by hand, by a single tractor,-by teams of
caperpillar tractors operating with a heavy chain, etc.
and each has i t s own cost structure. I t should be n
noted that labour costs i n Bolivia are presently
increasing faster than mechanisation costs, which makes
hand clearing progressively less attractive. , I f i t i s
assumed that mechanical^ clearing can be done f
'un :.ii •;• ior- •• ;•.- •• :• •• • .: ; ,•:,-. , •: ..
 .15.

modest fee of $b. 5000/ha, the cost of pasture

establishment v a i l be approximated at 1981 prices by
the following:- -
Mechanical land clearing $b. 5000
Rome plogh $b. 1000
Disc harrow '$b. 500
Seed, 8 kg at 8b. 200 8b. 1600 -
Sowing (mechanical) $b. 300
Cultivation -Cmechanical) 8b. 300
"" ^ $b. 8700 per ha.

The high, forest, at present, contributes quality to

the diet'6f : the animals due to i t s legume content, but
i t s carrying capacity i s very low, probably less than
0»1 AU/ha.; The sown legume-grass pastures should
carry 1.5 AU/ha on a year round basis. The cost of
pasture, establishment i s therefore about $b. 6000 per
JLU, but i n addition to increasing the carrying
capacity of the property, the high quality of these:
pastures, i f used for weaner animals should allow
slaughter of steers and bulling of heifers at 30
months of age instead of the present 3 years. The
faster off - take of steers would i n turn increase the
proportion of cows i n the herd, the number of calves
born per year,'and ultimately the number of animals
sold.

5.3. Leguminous Protein Reserves

Particularly on San Josecito-Zapoc6, i t may be useful
to consider the establishment, on areas of cleared
forest soils,, of perennial legumes, especially Archer,
and on the best soils, Glycine, sown pure as a protein
reserve to complement the quality of existing grass
pastures during the dry season. These areas would have
a cost of establishment similar to that noted above for
grass-legume pastures,, They would be u t i l i s e d only i n
the c r i t i c a l . 4-5 months of the dry season, resulting
i n faster growth of young animals grazing them, and
consequent sales at 30 months instead of the present 3
years. This would allow an increase i n numbers of
cows carried, as noted above (Section 5«2e)o One
hectare of legume reserve should be sown to compliment
5 ha of sown grass pasture, or 15-20 ha ~f pampa monte.
The legume would have to be fenced to protect i t from
grasing during the rains, and the fence opened to allow
free access during the dry season. Legume reserves
could be used i n conjunction with Brachiaria. sown in,
the pampa monte (Section 5«1») to complement the
relatively low dryr-season quality of the grass.
 .16.

THE CQITCEPCIOlf SLAUGHTERHOUSE

In 1968-69, the JFundacion Boliviario-Baviera installed a

slaughterhouse i n Conpepcion beside the a i r s t r i p . I t was
used u n t i l 1975, during which period meat was exported by-
air direct to Chil,e. The aircraft carried goods for the
Foundation's store from Santa Cruz to Concepci6n, meat from
there to Chile, and presumably other cargo from the^e back
to Santa Cruz. Exportation was terminated i n 1975 when
Chile refused to accept the produce due to the rioK of foot-
and-mouth disease. At the same time the road from Santa
Cruz to Concepcion was improved, and i t became economically
advantageous to provision the store by road transport. The
local meat prices could not support the price of a i r
freight, and the slaughterhouse was closed down. I t has
not operated regularly since that time. Several attempts
to s e l l the installation (for example to the Cattlemen's
Federation, and to an Argentinian group with ranching
interests i n Concepcion) have f a i l e d .
The slaughterhouse includes a k i l l i n g floor, skinning and
citting,areas, c h i l l i n g room with capacity of 5000 kg, store
rooms and bathroom for staff ... I t has generators,
compressors, balances', an independent water supply and much
basic equipment, mostly.in good order.; -An overhead r a i l
system carries carcases' from the k i l l i n g floor through to
the c h i l l i n g room, over scales and direct to the aircraft
loading -point. A 200 ha holding paddock for livestock leads
into a corral and weighbridge up to the k i l l i n g floor. I t
has been estimated that the area within 50 km of Concepcion
could produce up to 1'2,000 slaughter animals per year, which
would be sufficient to f u l l y u t i l i s e the f a c i l i t i e s of the
plant«
In 1979f Ing. Medar.do Solares ^rias of Santa Cruz was
commissioned by CORDECRUZ. to prepare an inventory of the
existing f a c i l i t i e s , and requirements and recommendations
regarding the reiniciation of slaughtering operations. In
hia report, presented i n various.parts between September and
November 1979, Ing. Solares proposes the following:
Phase 1. To set the slaughterhouse i n operation $b. 13^,065
This was to include general cleaning, replastering of walls
and repairs to insect proofing where necessary, replacement
and improvement of the existing systems, for drainage of
blood and washing water, tjhe installation of one new
l i f t i n g block to speed up'the bleeding operation, a new
slaughtering crush, revision, repairs and purchase of spare
parts for the diesel generator and the, refrigeration plant,
 .17.

the purchase and installation of a new pump to move water

from the well to the overhead tanks and the purchase of
slaguhtering equipment which included a pump for washing
carcases, Hoses, trolleys, skinning knives, detergent and
protective clothing for staff.
Phase 2. Improvement of f a c i l i t i e s , $t>. 387,531
This phase was to.instal a new water tower and overhead
tanks of 8,000 Incapacity to replace the present 2,250 1
tjmks, renewal of the reticulation system to the
slaughterhouse and corral, roofing over the k i l l i n g area,
rearrangement of the overhead r a i l system, the installation
of an electrrc hoist for l i f t i n g carcases, the construction
of an area to handle o f f a l , and a freezing chamber together
with a new refrigeration unit suitable for storing 9>5OO kg
of o f f a l , and the replacement of the existing drainage
system from the bathrooms.
Phase 3= Installation of f u l l o f f a l - handling f a c i l i t i e s ,
$bo 870,972
The construction of a new wing of 132,5 square meters, and
the .purchase of a steam - generator, autoclave, grease tank,
blood pump and drier, bone-mill and sundries for the
installation of this equipment to allow f u l l u t i l i s a t i o n of
blood, bone and fat i s suggested for this phase.
Phase 4, Installation of a Retail Outlet i n Santa Cruz
-although not costed i n the report, i t i s suggested that the
establishment of a r e t a i l outlet for direct sales of animal
products from the slaughterhouse should be carefully studied.
The agency should be equipped with a cold store and
butchering equipment.
A summary of these recommendations was sent to the Commite
Pro Intereses de la Chiquitania i n February 1980, but i n
•view of the magnitude of the investment required, i t would
seem that no further action has been taken.
It i s clear that the report commissioned by CORDECRUZ
considered the possibility of the plant operating on a
permanent, f u l l - time basis, with a permanent staff of
workers and professional supervisors. I f a more modest
scheme were envisaged, i n which the plant were to operate
on an "as and when necessary" basis, much of the expenditure
detailed i n the report would-be unnecessary. Many small,
private slaughterhouses operate i n tho Beni Department for
the air transport of meat direct to the c i t i e s of the
l i t i p i a n o . I f jjermission were obtained from the l o c a l
 .18.

authorities i n Santa Cruz, preferably to s e l l : meat direct to

.,.. r e t a i l , outlets, 'a similar scheme could be started i n
.-,:.' Concerxcioniusing the present f a c i l i t i e s . A group of cattle
. .suffieient:rto f i l l an aircraft.'cargo hold' c6uld be gathered
. ;. i n the holding paddock. The aircraft could be despatched
from Santa Cruz to arrive i n Concepcion i n the late"
afternoon. I t could perhaps carry relatively high - value
or perishable goods for sale through the Foundation store, i n
order to share the transport costs. During the night after
the arrival of the plane, the;cattle could be slaughtered by
casual v/orkers, and the halved: carcases could be held on the
overhead r a i l near the loading * point' to cool. The
... slaughterers could load the:aircraft i n the very early
morning for .take - off a t - f i r s t l i g h t . The meat could then
. ... r,each the r e t a i l outlets,in Santa Cr-uz by 0.8.00 i n the
'.,,..morning. / •.•.'• ••'• . ;" ..-;f . : ;-;•••
If i t were not for the problems of crossing the Rio Grande
a refrigerated lorry could prove to be a cheaper alternative
than an aircraft for transport of the meat.
If the uso of road or air transport were employed, the
cool-room of the slaughterhouse would not be reqiired, and
the refrigeration unit could be sold to pay for any needed
renovation ^ •particularly to the blood'and water drainage
systems.. The present caretaker of the plant could'be
responsible for washing down and cleaning on the day of the
aircraft arrival, and again following the slaughtering. I f
butchers and assistants from Concepcion were employed on a
casual basis, i t i s l i k e l y that they would have their own
protective clothing, skinning knives, etc. They may also
remove considerable amounts of the offal which would
., jotherwise remain unused, and i n the absence of a local pig
:. enterprise, may eventually constitute a polution and health
hazard.
It i s strongly recommended that one of the slaughterhouse
operators from the Beni be asked to v i s i t the Concepcion
plant i n order to comment on the recommencement of
slaughtering operations on a casual basis, and the minimum
investment necessary for this end. A member of the Bauer
family would be a suitable choice, particularly since Peter
Bauer is already familiar with the Concepcion area, and the
workings of the Foundation.
The f e a s i b i l i t y of this scheme depends upon several factors,
m
foremost amongst them being the cost of transport. The
maximum cost which can be carried by the ; slaughtering
enterprise is-the difference i n value between an animal sold
to a dealer i n Concepcion and,the value of that animal i n
the meat wholesale market of Santa Cruz, less Municipal
taxes etc, i n the city. It has been suggested that a good
steer i s wo'rth some $ 2000 more i n the Santa Cruz
slaughterhouse than i n Concepcione I f an aircraft can
carry 30 carcases, the maximum cost for slaughtering,
transport and taxes would then be $ 60,000 per load. I f
total costs, including maintenance of the plant could be
kept down to below that figure, the profit margin for the
producers of the cattle would be increased.
It i s strongly urged that the La Merced cooperative
investigate the f e a s i b i l i t y of arranging for the occasional
use of the slaughterhouse i n the manner suggested, and that
they also consider the possibility of using their f a c i l i t i e s
i n Santa Cruz to r e t a i l at least a proportion, and to
distribute the rest of the produce to other r e t a i l outlets
in the city. In this way, i f approved by the Municipal
Authorities, vertical integration would eliminate the
intermediaries, and considerably increase the profit
margins for the producers of the Concepcion region, and
thereby provide a necessary economic stimulus to the area
in generalo
Some of the larger, or groups of cooperating smaller
producers arrange for their own staff to move cattle from
Concepcion at least as far as the Rio Grande, where the
animals are often held to regain lost condition before being
moved, by road transport to the Santa Cruz slaughterhouse.
For them, the cost of transport i s related to weight loss
arid mortality on the drive, and the time spent i n recovery.
These aspects should be measured i n order to calculate this
alternative cost of moving the produce from Concepcion to
Santa Cruz.
 EL CENTRO DE INVESTIGACION AGRICOLA TROPICAL
(CIAT), fue creado mediante Dccreto Supremo No. 12251 del 14 de fe-
brero de ) .975. Sus objetivos son de lomentar la investigation agrope-
cuaria, desarrollar con fundamentos tecnicos, cientificos y economicos el desa-
rrollo integral, impulsar y vitalizar la extension y velar por la conservation de
los rccursos naturales renovables para beneficio del Dcpartamento de Santa
Cruz. El C I A T esta regido por un Dircctorio formado por el Ministerio de
A A . CC. y Agropecuarios, Corporacion Regional de Dcsarrollo de Santa
Cruz, Universidad Boliviana "Gabriel Rene Moreno" -Facultad de Agro-
nomia Tropical, Camara Agropecuaria del Oriente Camara de Industria
y Comcrcio de Santa Cruz.
Recibe la asistencia tecnica de los gobicrnos de: Gran Bretana (MB),
Estados Unidos (C1D), Suiza (COTESU) y China Nacionalista.
Los prograinas de investigacion estan relacionados con los principa-
les cultivos del area y algodon; proteccion de cultivos, control de malcza,
pastos tropicales, ganaderia, suclos, economia agricola y extension agricola.

La ayuda Britanica es dada para prornover el Bienestar de la gente,

especialmente el de la gente pobre de los paiscs sub-dcsarrollados. Esta
ayuda esta administrada por la administracion de Dcsarrollo de Ultramar
del Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores de Londres, el cual esta formado
por un numero de Departamentos Tccnicos c Institutos que prcstan sus
servicios especializados en todos los campos de desarrollo.
La ayuda agricola es dada como Una cooperacion tecnica (el presta-
mo de expertos britanicos), como una ayuda financicra al Gobicrno y tani-
bien como contribucioncs a las organizaciones de las Naciones Unidas y a
Centros Internacionales de Investigacion Agricolas establecidos en varias
partes del rhundo.
Gran Bretana tiene todas las posibilidades para proveer asistencia
tecnica por su larga trayectoria de experiencias y servicios dedicados ob-
tcnidos en sus anteriores Servicios Civiles en las colonias de Africa, Asia
y el Caribe.