From adoption to scale: Environmental and economic results of Heifer’s Sustainable Livestock Interventions in Olancho, Honduras

This report synthesizes the environmental and economic implications of sustainable livestock interventions promoted by Heifer in Olancho, Honduras. Using a farm typology and landscape-based approach, the analysis evaluates how interventions affect productivity, resource use, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, carbon sequestration, and the cost–benefit ratio of livestock production. Results indicate Heifer-supported practices have already delivered meaningful gains—approximately 25% higher productivity along with substantial improvements in land, water, and emissions efficiency per kilogram of product. Scaling adoption could push results much further, potentially adding around 30% more productivity and large additional efficiency gains. However, long-term sustainability will require pairing intensification with explicit soil fertility and nitrogen replenishment strategies, such as legumes, improved manure returns, targeted or organic fertilization, and soil testing.