Multidimensional sustainability assessment of smallholder dairy cattle farming systems post-foot and mouth disease outbreak in East Java, Indonesia: A Rapdairy approach

Dairy cattle farming is crucial for Indonesia's agribusiness and rural development, but Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) outbreaks threaten smallholder sustainability. This study developed the Rapdairy framework, a modified version of the RAPFISH (Rapid Appraisal for Fisheries) approach specifically adapted to evaluate sustainability in smallholder dairy farming systems for post-FMD recovery assessment. The research examined six sustainability dimensions - ecological, economic, social-cultural, technological, institutional, and information systems - across three Malang Regency sub-districts in East Java. Through structured interviews with 287 dairy farmers using multistage sampling and focus group discussions with six expert stakeholders, the framework evaluated 42 sustainability attributes using multidimensional scaling analysis. Results revealed varying sustainability performance: Kalipare achieved the highest index (88.84), followed by Bantur (84.93) and Gondanglegi (81.03). Leverage analysis identified critical factors, including temperature/humidity conditions (5.09), average milk production (4.97), social participation (6.61), feed technology application (14.72), local leadership roles (5.07), and marketing information systems (5.54). Lowland dairy systems face specific challenges in FMD prevention, climate adaptation, market recovery, and technological innovation. Risk assessment showed production risks as the most urgent due to disease vulnerability, followed by financial and market risks. These findings provide evidence-based recommendations for policymakers and development practitioners to enhance smallholder dairy farming sustainability and resilience in tropical developing countries facing disease outbreak challenges.