Cash Security on Hoof (Part 1)

Just east of campus sits Njala University’s ranch—home to a small herd of N’Dama cattle. I’ve been to tropical areas before, so I though I knew what to expect…a hump on the neck, large ears, loose skin. I soon realized my predictions were completely wrong when I first saw the petite native breed. They are small, humpless, have small ears and horns that grow straight up. The typical color is fawn, however I’ve seen some brown and white and even black and white too.

The breed is slow to mature and provides little milk production, but as the only native breed to this country, they are resistant to many diseases and can handle the heat.

Traditional management
Cattle production in Sierra Leone is 99 percent extensive, or transhumance. Herds follow a cyclical, seasonal movement synchronized with rainfall to exploit feed, temperature and water sources. There are five phases to transhumant management:

(1) Rainy season: from May to August rain falls daily providing adequate water and forages for cattle. However, grasses become fibrous toward the end of the season and lack quality nutrition.
(2) Period fallowing rainy season: Crops are harvested and cattle have the opportunity to consume crop residue.
(3) Cool dry period: from December to early January.
(4) Warm, dry period: from early January-February.
(5) Period in anticipation of rain: This is the most straining phase for the cattle and herdsmen as they walk extra miles for food and water.

The Herdsmen
The Fula tribe is known for this lifestyle as they make up the majority of cattle herdsmen. Following transhumant style, they go into the bush and establish a settlement they will call home for 2-3 years. Most men will have multiple wives, and each wife is given a small circular hut to live in with her children. Each day the herds are taken out to search for grass and a water source, and each night they are held in a pen built at the settlement.

Women play a key role in herd management. Each wife is given a set of cows to milk each morning. The little milk given from the N’Damas is stored for a few days then made into cottage cheese to be consumed by the family or sold to buy food and to pay medical or school fees. It is the women who make sure all cows make it home for the night. It is also the woman’s responsibility to tell the husband when a cow needs to be sold for additional income for the family…though she doesn’t have a say in which animals are purchased to bring into the herd. The women rarely leave the settlement, except a few times to market the milk products.

Marketing
Cattle are only sold in pressing need and, like the small ruminants, they are viewed as cash security on hoof. The majority of beef consumed in Sierra Leone is imported from Guinea and Mali. Cattle are traded to butcheries and meat is then sold to consumers.

Room for change?
There is a serious and constant battle between farmers employed in shifting cultivation and the nomadic pastoralists. Both groups must continually move to secure their income. Finding solutions for the herdsmen to at least partly settle could help change livestock production in Sierra Leone for the better. Securing food and water in one place would aid in decreasing these disputes, but also increase the health and productivity of the herd. Cattle would not have to travel as far, especially during the dry season; therefore, decreasing the time it takes to reach a marketable weight...and maybe this could help lead to an increase in consumption of animal protein for the average Sierra Leonean, as the availability of quality protein remains a huge problem.

Njala University claims to own one of only two herds managed intensively, however cattle are still taken out to graze each morning from a holding pen. Land dedicated for the ranch is divided into paddocks for herd rotation. Fifteen years of neglect due to the war left the land to the growth of noxious plants. Currently some infested paddocks are being cultivated by local farmers. The cattle will graze on crop residue and hopefully nutritious grasses will fill the area. Change is a slow process, and the university, like the country, is struggling to recover from a war that destroyed nearly everything. Next to the holding pen at the Njala ranch, abandonment left a vest post, weigh scale and processing facility useless and worn down.

Even with the setbacks, the herd is moving forward. A crossbreeding program was started within the last year, and there are currently six calves on the ground out of a N’Dama-Jersey cross created via artificial insemination (AI). AI has great potential in the country to cost-effectively cross the adaptability of the N’Dama with traits they are severely lacking—milking ability and growth. Obstacles still stand in the way as there is no liquid nitrogen (used to freeze and store semen) production in the country. An American from a university brought the semen to Sierra Leone and AI’d the cows, but what semen was left spoiled when the liquid N ran out. A Njala faculty member mentioned to me he would like to see 200-300 head of cows crossed to a Jersey, but that would require 200-300 straws of semen to be donated and shipped…hopefully the cross is successful and the program can take off.

Two other key issues with intensifying cattle production is (1) securing forages (or another food source) for the dry season and (2) creating a water source. Sierra Leone has a surplus of each for a third the year, but neither are being stored for the harsh dry season. Currently, it rains every day and the grasses are lush. It is prime time to cut grass for hay and store water for livestock. If anyone has inexpensive solutions for these in a tropical climate, I would love to entertain your thoughts and suggestions. (white.julieb2@gmail.com)

Check back for Part 2…a night spent on a traditional ranch.

Joyful Journeys,

Julie

Materials like these are commonly used to build fence.

The herd moving to graze for the day.

The worn-down scales.

The herd in the holding pen prior to grazing.

A mature N'Dama female.

Njala University ranch facilities.

The N'Dama-Jersey progeny.

Would you like rice with that?

Sierra Leoneans would say if you haven’t had rice, you haven’t eaten. This rings true and nearly every dish is served with rice, with the welcomed exceptions of potatoes or cassava. Food has been a real adventure in both content and establishing when my next meal will be.

Potato leaf and cassava leaf sauces are very common in the southern region. Leaves are generally boiled in bright orange palm oil along with numerous spices, peppers and typically fish. Once I got past the look, I have generally enjoyed the flavor—thankfully, because I don’t have an option. Other dishes include gren gren, chicken and fish “soup” and occasionally pork, almost always served with rice. Pineapple is almost always available and I am seeing more bananas too. Fresh fruit is a reprieve from the constant heavy meals.

I have heard many Sierra Leoneans mention that it is difficult to live at Njala. In addition to no clean water source, food can be difficult to come by…especially after 2pm. There is a small market in nearby village, where cassava and potato leaves, spices, rice and fish are always available. Sometimes a woman or child will walk around with raw goat meat or pork for sale—balancing the platter of individually sacked meat on their head. A store next to the market sells dry milk in small packets, luncheon meat, rice and a few other goods. There is no consistent supply of eggs, though the university has a laying facility—this merits another blog post.

The few restaurants here do not always have food for sale. More than once have Lexi and I attempted the establishments to encounter a sign that said “no food or bread.”

Since the “kitchen” facilities are quite different, and I have never encountered many of the ingredients before coming to Sierra Leone, I don’t cook…though I am slowly learning. Kr. Koroma is has secured at least one meal a day for Lexi and I, though we never know when it will appear on the dinning room table, or who it will come from. We are quite resourceful though—I brought lots of snacks, and we also buy bread and spread Laughing Cow cheese, one of the few items we can purchase from the store. Lexi found some honey and we discovered groundnut paste…something close to peanut butter.

The hospitality here never allows us to go “hungry.” I hate to use that word now to describe that small sensation in my stomach because hunger is a serious issue in this country. Balance diets or 3 meals a day are not the norm…even for college students. Everyone here, however, makes sure we are well taken care of.

Thank the Lord, I haven’t been sick from food yet. Within the first few days I got over wondering whose hands prepared my food and if they were clean, and if the food that is room temperature safe to eat. I am just thankful to have food in a country that struggles so hard to feed itself.

Though it has been an adventure, I know I am becoming acclimated when dinnertime comes around and I find myself craving an African dish.

Joyful Journeys,

Julie

PS: I plan to consume coffee, ice cream, a hearty American breakfast food, fresh vegetables and a tall glass of cold milk each day for a month when I get back.

Coffee and cocoa are major exports in Sierra Leone, but with no processing plants available, they must import the final product. Lexi and I have come to enjoy hot cocoa in the tropics.

Beef and fried bananas. YUMMY!

Cassava leaves and rice. This is a local favorite, but there have only been a few time I can say I really enjoyed this dish.

Sippin on coconut milk. I didn't really care for it.

Jesse cooked up this amazing dish. Sweet potatoes and pork. These potatoes are a favorite.

Just kidding!

One of my favorite (and most spicy) meals! Rice with chicken sauce.

One of my breakfast favorites. A lady comes around to sell this rice soup by the spoonful. We add bread, sugar and powdered milk. This is more common (and better tasting) in the north, but I don't complain one bit the mornings she is selling.

Palm wine and the jug it was purchased in...for only 50 cents. It was a little bitter, but I enjoyed it!

Fufu, which is ground cassava paste, and gren gren sauce. This, I was informed, is better when eaten with your hands.

Grapefruit given to me by a farmer.

Cassava (boiled) is second to rice as a staple. This dish was served with beans.

It's the end of the mango season, but I was able to secure a few from the end of the harvest.

This lady is roasting groundnuts, or what we know as peanuts.

Spaghetti with fish.

A very typical meal. Rice with potato leaf sauce. Just pour this spicy stuff over the rice and you got a lunch!

Gotta love pineapple season in Sierra Leone. Lucky for me I'm in the "pineapple belt." Cheap, delicious pineapple.

Spaghetti with luncheon meat.

Rice with goat meat. Unfortunately Lexi found a piece with hair still attached.

Homemade ginger beer that the animal science secretary makes. Numerous students each day stop to purchase a liter for Le1,000 (25 cents).

Fried fish with a yummy onion sauce.

Fried eggs and bread for breakfast. More tasty than they look.

One of my first African meals: checked rice (rice with green stuff) and fish sauce.

Delicious sweet bread from The Arc.

Meat pies from The Arc.

This is an orange that was green on the outside...however it was sweet! Strangely, we were told told to eat the orange like this...squeezing it into our mouth.

Monkey Stew?

Friday, June 10

It started with a phone call just after lunch.
“Hi Julie, I’m going to a village do you want to come?” was all I could pick out through the accent.
“YES!” I replied to Jesse, the young animal science lecturer who has been charged as my primary guide to Njala’s animal science department.
“I will pick you up.” (click)

After going through the usual routine of applying sunscreen and bug spray, filling up the Nalgene bottle, grabbing my notebook and camera, Jesse arrived on his motorbike. We stopped by his house to pick up a helmet for me and a heavy jacket for him “for the cool air and dust.” Still not knowing the details of where we were going and why, (though I assumed it was for a farm tour) I knew it was out of the usual community as this was the first time a helmet was required “for safety.”

The little I could gather from the conversation in between the bumps and wind through my helmet was “typical village” and “bush meat.” With a little further inquiry, Jesse informed me that we were going to a village that is accessible by motorbike and sometimes vehicle, though with many villages like this one the only avenue is by foot.
We started on our way going on the same bumpy road in the direction of Mano. We stopped at the same roadside village where Emkay and I purchased mangos, but Jesse had a friend on the other side where he purchased a pineapple for me earlier that week. Jesse informed him we would be back through to buy some more. The little old man was quite excited.

On the main road were the typical potholes, but a little further past Mano we encountered a few low places completely covered in water. Twice Jesse asked me to walk around while he rode the motorbike across because he was uncertain of the depth. After nearly 45 minutes on the main road, we turned left onto a side road for a while and then right onto an even more desolate path. Over two small makeshift bridges of 2x10s and logs and up a hill we finally arrived at our destinations…well, almost. We were met by a few children and young girls (most without tops…but remember that is OK here). The bike was left by a small hut next to a slash and burn rice field and piles of cut lumber.

The kids led the way to the village. I often caught their eyes on my white skin and their smiles of excitement to have visitors. We walked on a narrow path through the bush, which is the closest thing to a jungle I have ever seen. Upon coming to a low stream, they wanted us to cross. I was willing in my sandals, but Jesse insisted they find us a bridge. So, we crossed over three small logs.

Up a hill and not much further was a clearing…and there it sat—Gambia, a little village tucked away peacefully in the bush. I followed Jesse into the village. We met a few people, and I was able to greet, ask for names and give my own using Mende…which made each person young and old laugh in delight. Soon, I was sitting on a “traditional bench” of bamboo and couldn’t understand the chatter around me as Jesse left with a few men. When he returned we were heading to leave, but were stopped by another curious group. A sweet woman called me her friend and posed for a photo.

We spent only 15 or 20 minutes and after saying “malo weh” (goodbye) we were on our way out—this time will a larger following, plus a man with a yellow sack with a few blood stains on his head. Upon reaching the bike the man with the sack exposed its contents dumping a MONKEY and a SMALL ANTELOPE! Hello, bush meat—and this is what we came for. Jesse secured the goods on the back of the bike in a sack, more goodbyes and we were off to Njala. He informed me that guns were outlawed after the war, which shot down my hopes of doing a little hunting myself.

We stopped by the old man’s home along the way to pick up the pineapples and mango. I was silly for thinking we’ll just grab one or two…but this is Africa…home to people who love to give. Jesse purchased at least 6 or 7, placed them in a bag for me to handle. PLUS a small sack of mangos. So, there we were on the motorbike with 7 miles left to travel: mangos, Jesse, pineapples, me, bush meat. Praise the Lord we made it back safely.

Jesse said he would bring bush meat soup and sweet potatoes over for breakfast the next morning. DELICISOUS. One of the best meals thus far.

He mentioned we may get to pick up bush meat again…I think I will hold him to his word.

Joyful Journeys,

Julie