It has been estimated that in some areas of Malawi the incidence of malnutrition in children under the age of 5 may be as high as 70%. The problem is particularly severe in those children who have been weaned off breast milk. In many areas of the world milk is seen as being of special benefit to such children,. In excess of 60 million goats are currently being milked world wide but in sub-Saharan Africa the practice of milking them is uncommon. Malawi is a good example of this situation.

Estimates of the number of goats in Malawi very between 1.0m and 1.6m and yet, with the exception of a few localised sites, these goats are not milked. There does not appear to be any custom or taboo prohibiting the drinking of goats milk and in a recent survey Banda (1992) showed that goats milk was acceptable to many people and was, indeed, preferred to that of the cow or the sheep.

The aim of the project reported here was therefore to examine the potential of the indigenous Malawi goat as a milk producer, when managed under a system as similar to that practiced in the villages as possible.