HYDROPONIC FODDER : AN ALTERNATIVE SOLUTION FOR SUSTAINABLE GREEN FODDER PRODUCTION
Compiled & Edited by Dr.Rajesh Kumar Singh,
Green fodder feeding to livestock ensures optimization of productivity. Though India is the top producer of milk in the world insufficient livestock feed, fodder is one of the constraints affecting growth, health, production and reproduction potential of livestock. Green fodder is essential to feed livestock but the reduced availability of land, lack of water and more labour requirement. It is become difficult to produce required quantity green fodder throughout the year also; the lack of quality fodder hampers the growth production and reproduction of livestock. Novel approach called Hydroponic fodder would be the best solution for the fix. In this technology green fodders produced by growing seeds without soil, and with very little water, within six-seven days the seeds are sprouted the seedlings will be up to 30-35 cm tall and provide a highly nutritious feed.
Green fodder plays major role in feed of milch animals, there by providing required nutrients for milk production and health of the dairy animals .Rapid urbanisation and mining areas has caused shrinkage of grazing and fodder producing lands. Due to non availability of quality green fodder throughout the year, milk producers are forced to utilise extra concentrates for optimum milk production. Non availability of irrigated lands for fodder production, higher labour cost, and small land holdings has left dairy farmer with many challenges for milk production in the Country. It is quite evident that with decreasing cultivable land and depleting natural resources, sustainable technology would be the key driver of the dairy industry in the years to come.
Production of the natural diet for livestock, Green Fodder, to meet the current demand has become a greatest challenge among livestock farmers. Fodder production cannot easily be increased due mainly to ever increasing human pressure on land for production of cereal grains, oil seeds and pulses. India statistically utilizes only 4.9% of gross cropped land for cultivating green fodders and facing a deficit of 35.6% green fodder, 26% of dry fodder and 41% of concentrate feed ingredients They are the natural diet for animals which improves the fat percentage of milk through rumen digestion and production of volatile fatty acids (VFAs). Further, the green leaves are enriched with beta-carotene that helps in vitamin-A synthesis and plays greater impact on animal reproduction. Green fodder constitutes 13-35% of the total input cost out of total feed cost is about 70- 75% of the total cost. Realizing the need and gap between demand and supply of the green fodder, Hydroponic fodder production technology has revolutionized the green fodder production in the 21st Century. It is a science of growing plants in nutrient broth under controlled environment conditions without soil. It can be efficiently used to take pressure off the land to grow green feed for the livestock. This green source claims an increment of 8-13% in milk production and to be the best alternative technology for dairy animals with low cost materials in places where conventional green fodder production is limited .
Following are the reasons for scarcity of green fodder-
- Rapid urbanization has caused decrease of land available for grazing and fodder cultivation.
- Fragmentation of land reduces land holdings.
- The farmer prefers to cultivate commercial and food crops.
- There is a scarcity of water for irrigation, due to water label depletion.
- Most farmers are poor and not able to fence their land which leads to free grazing cattle and wild animals enter the fields and causes menaces in the fodder field.
- Labour shortage is an acute problems in agriculture and animal husbandry allied activities.eg cultivation of green fodder, cutting, chaffing it and feeding the same to the cattle.
- In forest areas/coastal areas adequate land are not available for forage cultivation.
- In diversified climate of India, the climate is not suitable for fodder production.
HYDROPONICS TECHNOLOGY—
It is a science of growing plants in nutrients rich solutions instead of soil and can be efficiently used to take pressure off the land to grow green feed for the livestock. Plants require three things to flourish, water, nutrients, and sunlight. Hydroponics is a straight forward way of providing all these nutrients without the need of soil under controlled environment conditions to optimise the growth of plants. Technology has been tested on various crops as Maize, Sorghum , Barley , Oats for producing high quality of nutritious green fodder for dairy animals. Beside this hydroponics can be used for growing wheat grass, paddy saplings etc in seven days of time for optimum growth. Fodder obtained from hydroponics consists of grass with grains, roots, stem and leaves as compared to only stem and leaves part in conventionally grown fodder. Hydroponics can be used as an ideal green fodder substitute for livestock, fish and poultry, this technology will be taken up in a big way by the dairy and poultry farmers, especially, by those who have less land as well as scarce conditions for fodder production. It can be concluded that hydroponics is a promising source of feed for chicken and other meat animals effective in improving, Growth performance, Digestibility, Milk production, Reduces the feeding cost.
What is hydroponics?
The word hydroponics has been derived from the Greek word ‘water working’. Hydro means water’ and ponic means ‘working’ and it is a technology of growing plants without soil, but in water or nutrient rich solution for a short duration in an environmentally controlled houses or machine.
What are the requirements for hydroponic fodder production?
Ø 45 square meter area for production of 1000 kg of green fodder daily
Ø Hydroponic machine Ø Uninterrupted power supply
Ø Clean water Ø Seeds with good germination capacity
Ø Good sanitation
Ø Two labours
Construction of Hydroponic fodder system –
Temperature and humidity are the two important parameters to produce good quality fodder. The fodder easily grows in semi-controlled environmental conditions with the temperature range of 15-32 °C and relative humidity of 80-85%. However, light also plays an important role in production, therefore light can be control through construction of small shed net or a low-cost greenhouse. Shade netting or gunny bags also used as covering material for the structure.
Construction –
Ø According to demand, size of hydroponics system can be desired. Mostly 10 ft x 10 ft shade net were used and it is better to choose near to the livestock shade for easy operation.
Ø Ventilation is to avail for easy maintenance of the temperature and humidity.
Ø Tray of about 1.5 x 3 ft with perforation is needed, must be made up of good plastic and strong enough to hold the weight of the fodder.
Ø The shed can be made up of bamboo rack, plastic rack or metal rack to hold the trays and limited to four layers.
Ø Maintain enough space between the layers with slight slope for easy drain of water .
Hydroponic fodder production process-
Good quality seeds should be used for germination. Seeds such as maize, pulses, wheat, and horse gram can be produce through hydroponic fodder system except pearl millet and sorghum seeds because these sprouted leaves harmful for livestock. In cold regions wheat and oats seed are good, while in hot regions maize where suitable for hydroponic fodder production.
Process-
Ø Add a 5-7 liters warm water in a bucket which has seeds and remove the floated seeds and other impurities.
Ø After that add 50 -100 gm salt and make it dissolved in water which will helps to minimize chance on fungus production on sprouted seed.
Ø Remain the seeds in soaked condition for around 12 hours. Then drain the water and wash with clean water.
Ø Transfer the washed seed in a gunny bag and allow them to sprout. In a cold climate, it will take more than 24 hours to germinate while in a hot climate the seed will take about 24 hours to get sprout.
Ø Wash the trays properly and check for blockages of holes.
Ø Evenly spread the transfer sprouted seeds from the gunny bags to trays and place the trays on the rack in the shade net or greenhouse.
Ø Sprinkle the water to the sprouted seeds every day. In hot weather conditions sprinkling to be done at every two hours, and in cold weather condition for every 4 hours it helps to maintain moisture.
Maintenance-
Ø Periodically clean the shed and avoid the chance of fungus and moulds development
Ø Do not disturb the sprouted seeds in the trays until the harvest because it will influence the growth of the fodder.
Ø Within a week can harvest eight kilograms of fodder from 1 kilogram of seed. Therefore, arrange the tray based on the demand. Because well planning would not disturb the system.
Feeding of Hydroponic Green Fodder –
Ø Take out fodder slabs form the tray after six to seven days and make into small pieces before feeding it to the livestock, so it will reduce the wastage
Ø Avoid remain the fodder for more than nine days in the trays because the nutrient value of fodder starts to decrease slowly and fibre start to develop.
Ø It can also be feed along with the other food.
RATIONALE FOR SCARCITY OF GREEN FODDER –
*Rapid urbanization caused decrease of land available for grazing and fodder cultivation. *Fragmentation of land reduces land holdings.
*The farmer prefers to cultivate commercial and food crops over green fodder.
*Water scarcity as depletion of ground water label and inadequate irrigation facilities.
*Most farmers are poor and not able to fence their land which leads to free grazing cattle and wild animals enter the fields and causes menaces in the fodder field.
*Labour shortage is an acute problem in agriculture and animal husbandry allied activities such cultivation of green fodder, cutting, chaffing and feeding the same to the cattle.
*In forest fringed and coastal belt areas non-availability of land for forage cultivation.
THE HYDROPONIC FODDER
The concepts of hydroponic fodder are date back to the 1800s or earlier, from the ‘Hanging Gardens of Babylon’ era, when European dairy farmers fed sprouted grains to their cows during winter to maintain milk production and improve fertility . The word hydroponic is derived from two Greek words: ‘hydro’ meaning water and ‘ponos’ meaning labour i.e. water working. It is a viable friendly alternative technology for landless farmers for fodder production without soil. It is also called fresh fodder biscuits, sprouted fodder or sprouted grain or alfa-culture . Fodders including maize, barley, oats, sorghum, rye, alfalfa, horse gram, ragi, bajra, jowar and triticale can be produced by hydroponic technology . This fodder seems like a mat with probably a height of 20-30cm consisting of roots, seeds and plants with highly palatable, digestible and nutritious for animals.
Hydroponics is growing of cereal grains with necessary moisture, nutrient without solid growing medium. Germination is a response for the supplied moisture and nutrient and produce 20-30 cm long forage green shoot with interwoven roots within 7-10 days. Different cereal grains i.e. maize, bajra, millets, horse gram etc. can be used for fodder production with varied chemical and structural changes throughout the growing processes. Enzyme activation is found necessary for hydrolysis of nutrients to their simpler forms. Grain variety, quality, treatments like nutrient supply, pH, water quality, soaking time etc are influencing factors for the amount of sprouted and quality fodder.
REASONS FOR HYDROPONIC FODDER PRODUCTION
Conservation of water
Hydroponic system minimizes water wastage since it is applied directly to the roots and is often recycled and used several times. The research findings concluded that hydroponic system equates to only 2-5% of water used in traditional fodder production system . It has been reported that only 1.5 – 2 litre of water is enough for 1 kg hydroponic fodder production compared to 73, 85, and 160 litres of water to produce 1 kg green fodder of barley, alfalfa, and Rhodes grass under conventional field conditions respectively .This is especially important in those areas suffering from chronic water shortages or where the infrastructure for irrigation does not exist.
Precise use of Space
Hydroponic systems require much less space and makes ideal for urban dwellers with limited yard space . Using hydroponics technology, up to 1000 kg maize fodder can be produced daily from 45-50 m2 area which is equivalent to conventional fodder produced in 25 acres of cultivable land. It is also easy to start a hydroponic system indoors where number of racks with multiple tiers thereby resulting in land preservation. Practically, one square meter area can produce ample fodder for two cows per day and the milk yield was increased by 13% .
Reduces growth time
Hydroponic technology takes only 8days to develop from seed to fodder where it took at least 45 days for a conventional fodder to grow.
Fodder yield
Fodder production is accelerated by as much as 25% by bringing the nutrients directly to the plants without developing large root systems to seek out food. One kg of un-sprouted seed yields 8-10 kg green forage in 7-8 days .The hydroponics maize fodder yield on fresh basis is 5-6 times higher than that obtained in a traditional farm production and is more nutritious.
Source of essential nutrients
Compared to the un-sprouted seed, the content (DM basis) of crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fibre (NDF), acid detergent fibre (ADF) and Calcium increased but organic matter and non-fibrous carbohydrates (NFC) decreased in the hydroponic green forage. Hydroponic fodder is a rich source of vitamin A, vitamin E, vitamin C, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, biotin, free folic acid, anti-oxidants like β-carotene and minerals .The biomass conversion ratio is as high as 6-7 times that of the conventional green fodder grown for 65-80 days. Besides, hydroponic fodder is a good source of bioactive enzymes, essential fatty acids, chlorophyll and minerals which directly responds fodder growth and improves the performance of livestock .
Persistent flow of green fodder
Fodder can be produced round the year irrespective of the failure of the monsoon, land availability, natural calamities and labour shortage that leads to sustainable agriculture and livestock production. This consistency perhaps ensures promising milk production and better quality of meat and other animal produce. Hydroponic fodder production is a way to substantially improve the quality of animal products.
Reduced carbon footprints
Hydroponic is more environment friendly compared to traditional agriculture in relation to use of inorganic chemicals. This condenses GHGs emissions and lessens considerable global warming . Hydroponic systems help in reducing the fuel consumption for transportation of product from distant agricultural farms and carbon emissions in turn.
Limits of pesticides, insecticides and herbicides
Traditional outdoor farming must rely on herbicides, fungicides and/or insecticides for optimum production. Hydroponic fodder is grown in a controlled environment without soil and therefore no soil borne disease resulting minimizing use of pesticides, insecticides and herbicides. The susceptibility of any infection can easily be ruled out with specific compound in hydroponically grown fodder.
Impact on animal production Hydroponic
fodders are highly digestible, palatable and relished by the animals. They are highly succulent and can intake 1-1.5% of body weight or 15-25, 0.25 – 2.0, 1.5 -2.0 and 0.1 – 0.2 kg/animal/day in large ruminants, adult pigs, small ruminants and rabbits respectively . Saidi and Abo Omar (2015) reported that hydroponic barley fodder (HBF) had no effect on feed intake, body weight change, milk yield, and milk composition but had positive effects on ewe’s health, mortality, conception rate and abortion. No adverse effect was noticed on average daily gain (ADG) and feed conversion ratio (FCR) in kids and rabbit kittens fed hydroponic horse gram or sunn hemp fodder replacing 50% of a concentrate mixture . Reddy et al. (1988) observed significant increases in the digestibility of nutrients in lactating cows fed hydroponic fodder compared to those fed Napier bajra (NB-21) green fodder. The daily milk yield was 8.0-14.0% higher in animals fed total mixed ration (TMR) containing hydroponic maize or barley fodder than those fed conventional green fodder . The hydroponic fodder tunes longer lactation period, improve fat percentage and general herd health. Besides increased milk yield, conception rate, herd health and longevity were also improved as well as reduce the cost of veterinary aids . The fast-growing poultry industry gains some benefits on hydroponic fodder i.e. faster weight gain, good quality carcass, lower feed cost per kg of weight gain and improve health and production potentials . Nutritional composition of different hydroponic fodders and their nutrient digestibility are well evident for the better livestock use and production
Major disadvantages of hydroponics
Loss in total dry matter:
A number of studies reported that sprouting resulted in 7-47% loss in DM from the original seed after sprouting for a period of 6-7 days of growth, mainly due to respiration during the sprouting process (Sneath and McIntosh, 2003; Dung et al., 2005; Fazaeli et al., 2012; Putnam et al., 2013). Seed soaking activates enzymes that convert starch stored in endosperm to a simple sugar, which produces energy and gives off carbon dioxide and water, leading to loss of DM with a shift from starch in the seed to fiber and pectin in the roots and green shoots.
Availability of nutrients:
Sneath and McIntosh (2003) showed that sprouted barley fodder was 3.4 times more expensive per kg of DM than the original barley grains. Similarly ME (cents/MJ), CP ($/kg DM) and FCR (feed cost/kg live weight gain) were 3.7, 2.2 and 2.5 times costlier using hydroponic fodders than the original grains, respectively (Sneath and McIntosh, 2003), confirming the earlier report of Appleman (1962) who found that hydroponic oat and barley grass may be 2.1 and 3.8 times costlier than rolled oats and barley in terms of food energy. Decades of research and farmer experience indicate that the costs associated with hydroponic fodder production are 2 to 5 times those of the original grain (Tranel, 2013).
HEALTH HAZARDS ON INFECTED HYDROPONIC FODDER
Hydroponic fodder heavily infested with Aspergillus clavatus should not be fed to dairy/beef cattle. Animals may develop posterior ataxia, knuckling of fetlocks, dragging of hind legs, high stepping in the hind limbs, stiff gait, tremors, progressive paresis, hypersensitivity, recumbency, clonic convulsions, decreased milk yield and possibly death.
LAND FOR HYDROPONIC TECHNOLOGY
Hydroponic technology is used in harsh climates such as deserts, areas with poor soil or in urban areas where high land costs have driven out traditional agriculture. It is probably best-suited to semi-arid, arid, and drought prone regions of the world, suffering from chronic water shortages or in areas where irrigation, fencing and land preparation resources are limited. Green fodder production by this technology is a boon for farmers from mining and coastal belt whose soil is rocky and infertile. Destruction of fodder by stray cattle’s and wild animals, higher cost of labour for cultivation practices and poor participation of educated unemployed youths for fodder farming are the thrust area to assume hydroponic fodder production.
METHOD OF HYDROPONIC FODDER PRODUCTION
Seed storage, preparation and washing:
In the hydroponic fodder production system, the seed cost contributes 85-90% of the total cost of production . It comprises procuring clean, sound, intact, untreated, viable seeds/grains of high quality . Seeds are dried directly under sun light one day prior to seed washing. Seeds are washed thoroughly for 5 minutes with tap water till all dirt and poor-quality seeds are removed. The seeds of various fodders are soaked in stimulant solution (0.1-1.5% sodium hypochlorite or 1-2% hydrogen peroxide solution for a period of 20, 12, 10, 6 and 15 hours for maize, jowar, barley, wheat and bajra respectively.
Seed cleaning
The seeds should be cleaned in 0.1-1.5% bleach solution (sodium hypochlorite) or 1-2% hydrogen peroxide solution for 30-60 minutes . The cleaning solution is drained off and seeds are then washed in tap water
Seed soaking
The seeds are soaked in fresh aerated water for different periods: 4 h , 8 h , 12-16 h or overnight, 24 h depending on the hardness of the seed coat. Temperature of the water or solution used for soaking also affects the germination rate. The optimum temperature at soaking is 23ºC.
Germination of seed
After soaking, the seeds are spread at up to one cm depth in plastic or light weight metallic trays with holes to facilitate drainage of the waste water/nutrient solution, which can be collected in a tank and recycled. The seed rate (quantity of seeds loaded per unit surface area) which varies with the type of seeds also affects the yield of the fodder. The recommended seeding rate for production of hydroponic barley, wheat or sorghum fodder is 4-6 kg/ m2 and for maize 6.4-7.6 kg/m2.
Loading seeds in trays and racking
A specially constructed frame made of GI pipes or angle bars is erected to hold plastic trays measuring 18” x 32.5” x 2” in which 1-1.25 kg of seed can be placed to produce about 5.5-7.5 kg of green fodder. Other standard size of trays such as 41” x 41” x 7”, 53” x 53” x 7”, 29”x 53” x 7” are also available in the market. The seed trays are clean, washed with cleaning solution & are free from any dust / dirt etc. After germination of seeds, trays are transferred and put them in the sprout section (lower section where the height between two rows is around 5 inches). Finally, trays should be distributed evenly on both sides of the alley.
Shifting trays and harvesting
The germinated seeds are irrigated with fresh tap water or nutrient enriched solution . The trays should never be exposed to direct sunlight, strong wind and heavy rain. During the growing period, the seeds are kept moist by drip or spray irrigation but are not saturated. Shift trays to the next level daily so that it moves one step ahead in the growth cycle. Take the last tray out from every row and put it back on the front side of the same row. If left side tray shows more growth, rotate the tray to the right and vice-versa. On 9th day, the fodder mat is harvested from the tray and feeds to the livestock. The trays are washed with cleaning solution before reuse it for the next cycle.
NUTRIENT SOLUTION FOR HYDROPONIC PRODUCTION
A nutrient solution for hydroponic systems is an aqueous solution containing mainly inorganic ions which play vital physiological role to complete plant life cycle . Currently, 17 elements i.e. carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus, copper, potassium, calcium, magnesium, sulphur, zinc, manganese, molybdenum, boron, chlorine and iron, nickel are considered essential for most plants . Other elements i.e. sodium, silicon, vanadium, selenium, cobalt, aluminum and iodine are also considered beneficial as they stimulate the growth or can compensate the toxic effects of other elements or may replace essential nutrients in a less specific role .The nutrient composition determines essential pH, electrical conductivity and osmotic potential of the solution.
ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS FOR HYDROPONIC SYSTEM
The environmental factors are important for optimization of the hydroponic fodder growth and production. The standard level of environmental cues such as temperature (19 to 22ºC), humidity (average 60%), light intensity (2000 lux), length (12-16 h and aeration for 3 minutes at every 2 h interval should be maintained . The electricity requirement for the production of hydroponic fodder is much lower than for traditional fodder production. The final stage of harvesting for barley seed sprouts is 6th day of sowing when it reserves the highest nutrient and biomass yield. Besides, amongst all the hydroponic fodders i.e. sprouted barley, oats, rye, triticale and wheat the sprouted barley has the highest forage quality.
PRECAUTIONS FOR HYDROPONIC TECHNIQUES-
*Seed treated with pesticides and fungicides should not be used for cultivation.
*The water should be replaced at every 3 days to reduce microbial contamination.
*In order to reduce contamination and fungal growth cleanliness, washing and cleaning should be performed as prescribed. Fungicides should best be avoided as any residue may adversely affect health of animals.
*White maize seed better as compared to yellow maize for hydroponic fodder production.
*The seeds should be procured from certified organization and to be used for cultivation.
*The green shed net is important for aeration and lighting to prevent yellowing of the leave because green shade net allows sufficient light and maintain favourable temperature and humidity for optimum photosynthesis which results better yield of hydroponic fodder.
NUTRITIVE VALUE OF HYDROPONIC FODDERS
Hydroponic fodder from cereal grains deviate in their nutrient content . Once the starch content decreases, both organic matter and dry matter content are decreased. Sprouting catabolises starch in to soluble sugar during biochemical processing of the plants. However, ether extract of hydroponic fodder increases due to increment of structural lipids and chlorophyll as the plant grows. There is also increment in concentration with sprouting. Development of structural carbohydrates increases the concentration of crude fibre (CF), neutral detergent fibre (NDF), acid detergent fibres (ADF) and linoleic acid but decreases nitrogen free extract (NFE). Sprouting process increases total ash content associated with decrement of organic matter. Root growth which increases the mineral uptake increases the mineral content of the sprout from day four and evidently more as nutrient solution is used than water .The nutrient quality of hydroponic fodder is superior over common non-leguminous fodders in terms of crude protein (CP), organic matter, ether extract (EE) and NFE.
However, the energy uptake during respiration of the plant, the gross energy (GE), metabolisable energy (ME) and total digestible nutrient (TDN) content decreases . A number of studies reported that sprouting resulted in 7- 47% loss in dry matter (DM) from the original seed in the period of 6-7 days mainly due to respiration during the sprouting process . Seed soaking activates enzymes that convert starch stored in endosperm to a simple sugar which produces energy and gives off carbon dioxide and water leading to loss of DM with a shift from starch in the seed to fibre and pectin in the roots and green shoots. The sprouts are the most enzyme rich plants and maintain highest level from germination to seven days age. They are rich with antioxidants especially â-carotene . In terms of palatability, there is no wastage of nutrients as the shoots and roots both are consumed together. Dairy animals can be fed 25 kg/day based on the physiological status with low concentrate and roughage.
Plant analysis report of hydroponic fodder (maize) on dry matter basis (Ramteke et al. 2019).-
Nutrients – Composition
Moisture – 89%
Nitrogen 4.6%
Calcium 0.167%
Protein 29.87%
Magnesium 0.246%
Sodium 0.117%
Potassium 2.22%
Phosphorus 0.91%
Manganese 53 mg/kg
Copper 28 mg/kg
Zinc 56 mg/kg
Iron 235 mg/kg
Table 2. Nutritional composition of different hydroponic fodders on dry matter basis for livestock use (TANUVAS 2015).
Sl No Hydroponic fodder Moisture (%) CP CF EE TA NFE
1 Maize 76.75 10.55 5.51 4.62 1.80 77.52
HYDROPONIC FEED ON LIVESTOCK PRODUCTIVITY
Milk production Studies on improvement of milk production through hydroponic fodder feeding shows improvement than animals fed cereal grains, hay or silage. Hydroponic fodder increase milk yield by 10.07% (Reddy et al. 1988), 12.5% (Anonymous 2012) and 13.73% (Naik et al. 2013) due to feeding of hydroponic fodders to lactating cows. Canadian dairy farmers reported that feeding of hydroponic fodder increases feed intake of their cows and improve milk yield by 3.6 kg per day over the lactation period. The feedback from the farmers of the Satara district of Maharashtra revealed increase in the milk yield by 0.5 – 2.5 litres per animal per day and net profit by INR 45-70/- per animal per day due to feeding of hydroponics fodder to their dairy animals (Bakshi et al. 2017). The principal component analysis (PCA) revealed that dietary hydroponic supplementation increases milk fat percentage and pH with superior quality of milk .
Meat production
Hydroponic fodder improves the body weight gain of lambs which may be realized due to presence of high bioactive enzymes and ingredients that improve livestock performances . Moreover, the increase in body eight also reflects microbial activity in rumen and enhanced nutrient digestibility. In beef cattle, average increase of 200 g is achieved through feeding of hydroponic fodder than maize. Similarly, 8% improvement in body weight gain is reported in birds and other animals . Better body weight gain was recorded in cross breed calves (Rajkumar et al. 2017), Awassi lambs (Atta 2016) and goat (Kide et al. 2015a) fed hydroponic maize and barley fodder respectively.
Source of feed for meat animals
Hydroponic fodder may be must suited to meat animals (horses, rabbits, pigs, and poultry) who would benefit more from the changes in the feed due to sprouting (e.g. less starch, more sugars) as compared to ruminants (sheep, goats, and cows) that are less efficient at digesting high quality feed. It is good source of feeds to rabbits and mature chickens; to feed them on the form of mash and pellets makes from maize germ, whole maize, soya beans, canola, sunflower and coccodiostat, among others, in the morning and evening. Chicks, on the other hand, are fed on commercial mash for seven weeks before they are weaned on the homemade feeds. Indigenous chicken can be fed on hydroponic fodder as three quarters of their daily feed requirement while layers and broilers (exotic) can be fed on hydroponic fodder as a third of their meal. The farmer also uses hydroponics to plant strawberries, tomatoes and lettuce. It needs less labour to cultivate hydroponics fodder for animals. If farmer can fed chicken on hydroponic fodder exclusively. First of all, 2kg of seed produces 10kg of fodder in just 7 to 8 days. If each chicken eats 150g of fodder, that would mean we could feed up to 66 chickens. 7 day old fodder is just a bit too tough to be digested by poultry. This is because the fibre content is so high and poultry have a real problem digesting this fodder. Thus it is best to feed your chicken with 4 day old fodder. If fodder fed after 7 days, the farmer fed to chicken with any dry commercial feed in flour form is good. Usually mix it up at a ratio of 100g of hydroponic fodder to 30g of commercial feed. The chicken has responded well to this, with a faster weight gain, larger eggs and certainly no constipation. All this with the added advantage of reducing the feeding cost.
Overall performance
Hydroponics fodder has more potential health benefits. Sprouts are the most enzyme rich food on the planet and the period of peak enzyme activity lies between germination and 7-8 days of age. They are rich source of natural anti-oxidants i.e. â-carotene, vitamin – C, E and related trace minerals like selenium and Zn. Feeding of the sprouted grains improve the animals’ productivity by developing a stronger immune system due to neutralization of the acidic condition by supplementation of alkaline digestive enzymes through sprouted grains. Sprouted grains are good sources of pigments containing chlorophyll, xanthophylls, grass juice and protein sparing factors which improves the production and reproductive performance of the livestock . Besides this, helping in the elimination of the anti-nutritional factors such as phytic acid, oxalic acid and other toxicants of the fodder.
ECONOMICS OF HYDROPONICS
Traditional fodder production requires a major investment for the purchase of land in addition to the investment of agricultural machinery, equipment, infrastructure for harvesting including handling, transportation and conservation of fodder. It also requires labour, fuel, lubricants, fertilizers, insecticides, pesticides and weedicides. On the other hand, hydroponic fodder production requires only seed and water as production inputs with modest labour inputs. Further, it minimizes post-harvest losses without requirement of fuel. Likewise, this novel technology takes only 7-8 days to converts seeds into fodder compared to fodder production by traditional system. Obviously, the initial investment for this hi-tech sophisticated technology is much higher and is highly vulnerable to mold growth which needs further investment to control this unwanted growth. According to Reddy et al. (1988) and Naik et al. (2014), the feed cost/kg milk was higher when animals were fed maize fodder produced from a hi-tech hydroponic system mostly due to higher cost of hi-tech hydroponic fodder production (Rs 4.0 – 4.50/kg). However, farmers of the Satara district of Maharashtra found that the cost of milk production of hydroponic fodder was reduced remarkably to Rs. 2.0 – 3.50 per kg (Naik et al. 2013) in a low-cost shade net system with home grown or locally purchased seeds. Accordingly, when fodder was produced in low cost hydroponic system, the feed cost/kg milk was reduced by 25-30% and net profit was improved.
LOW COST SHED-NET SYSTEM
Hydroponic fodder production is one of the low-cost technologies to increase green fodder production by vertical farming which requires less land, water as well as manpower. A low-cost hydroponic fodder unit may be designed in an area of 100 ft2 with metal sheet as roofing material with shade net on all the sides to produce hydroponic fodder. The unit consists of a four-tier system with iron angles for holding 48 plastic trays, each of dimension 60×40×8 cm and holding capacity of 1.25 kg maize seed. Fodders were cultivated in plastic trays for 9–10 days and irrigated manually with tap water six times a day.
Precautions for hydroponic techniques –
- Seed treated with pesticides and fungicides should not be used for cultivation.
- The water should be replaced at every 3 days to reduce microbial contamination.
- In order to avoid fungal growth, cleanliness, washing and cleaning should be needed to reduce contamination and fungal growth. Fungicides treatment is needed while necessary but should best be avoided as any residue may adversely affect health of animals.
- White maize seed better as compared to yellow maize for hydroponic fodder production.
- The quality seeds should be used for fodder cultivation.
- The green shed net is important for proper aeration and lighting to prevent yellowing of the leaves.
Hydroponics fodder is nutritious, palatable and digestible and can be grown in low cost techniques with locally home grown grains. Against impeding climate change and less availability land hydroponics fodder production is an effective alternative technology for sustainable livestock production in different agroclimatic regions of India.
Reference-On Request
