Potential of Beef Cattle Development in Sijunjung District of West Sumatra Province

Abstract

Agricultural land in Sijunjung District that has not been optimally utilized could be used for the development of beef cattle farm. The development should conform land suitability as a reference to determine beef cattle development to achieve the government's target of meat self-sufficiency in 2010. This study aims to foresee the potential of land in Sijunjung District for development of beef cattle using a combined 2006 Landsat images, LREP maps and other supporting data through, financial analysis, and the desired rearing cattle the local community. The results indicate that the potential lands for the development were about 120,063 ha or 38.35% of the existing land area, which consists of mixed garden (100,359 ha), 3,247 ha of abandoned land, 11,027 ha of paddy fields and 5,428 ha of bush. Actualy, land carrying capacity is 55,518 Animal Unit, and the potential carrying capacity is 134,722 Animal Unit. The results of the NPV analysis for all farming schemes were positive, with B/C Ratio> 1, and the IRR> outweighed the applicable interest rate. Assessment using AHP showed that the caging system was preferable (0.650) than shepherd-based farming (0.350) with a value of inconsistency about 0.05.