Abstract
African agriculture faces triple threats of climate change, population growth and inequality, necessitating agricultural research which examines sustainability holistically across social, economic, and environmental trade-offs. We examined meat quality from Botswana’s beef sector, by comparing management practices of feedlot finished beef versus free-range pasture management in three ways. First, we assessed competing but overlapping factors of environmental, economic, and social sustainability in the beef sector. Second, we used abattoir post-mortem examinations and compared 25 feedlot cattle and 22 free-range cattle across factors including: carcass dress mass (CDM), sex, carcass grade, fat color, conformation, dentition, carcass and offal postmortem decisions, and reasons for the decisions. We present a conceptual framework that portrays sustainability trade-offs between social, economic, and environmental factors, all constrained and influenced by geo- and socio-political and economic structures. Feedlot animals had a significantly higher CDM (p = 0.0001) at 237.56 kg ± 6.98 (Mean ± SEM) and higher incidences of lung, liver, and spleen condemnation rates at 72%, 40%, and 16% respectively compared to free-range cattle. Free-range CDM was 184.50kg ± 7.44 with higher (p = 0.0260) small and large tripe condemnation rate at (36%). Lastly, we examine sustainability trade-offs for feedlot and free-range cattle management through a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunity, and Threat (SWOT) analysis. With these nuanced research findings, one can envision multifaceted solutions to address cattle farming challenges in Botswana, including reducing disease burdens in feedlot cattle herds while also implementing pasture management and resiliency strategies for free-range cattle herds to improve animal nutrition and productivity.