Animal powered

Throughout the world cattle, buffalo, horses, mules and camels continue to be used by farmers in all aspects of agriculture e.g. ploughing, planting, and water and produce transportation.

From a development perspective, the use of draught animals carries economic benefits well beyond the farm gate. Animal power requires little or no foreign exchange - money invested in animal power circulates within rural areas, helping to revitalise rural economies. Pack animals and carts facilitate the marketing of produce, stimulating local trade. Animals can also provide important local "feeder" transport between farms and roads, thus complementing motorised road transport systems. Heavy horses are better at logging steep slopes than tractors and the one advantage that 'living' vehicles have over metal ones is that they are self-reproducing. Animal tractor systems such at the chicken or pig tractor can be used to prepare soils and remove grasses or persistent weeds.