POSSIBILITIES OF NON-CONVENTIONAL FEED RESOURCES FOR LIVESTOCK FEEDING IN INDIA
Sachin Tripura1, Mitek Tarang2, Yora Reena1
1Ph.D. scholar, Division of Animal Nutrition, ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal, Haryana
2Ph.D. scholar,Division of Animal Genetics and Breeding, ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izzatnagar, Uttar Pradesh
Introduction:
Agriculture and animal husbandry are two key components interwoven with the complex fabric of diverse culture, religious beliefs and economic values of the rural community.The efficient use of these components is essential for improving the socio-economic status of rural households.India is basically an agricultural country and about 70 per cent of its people live invillages. Their livelihood is dependent mainly on agriculture and animal husbandry. The shortage of feed resources for livestock and poultry feeding in India has led the majority of research in the field of animal nutrition to explore the potential to overcome this nutritional crisis.A possible and perhaps most viable proposal could be the inclusion of non-conventional feed resources (NCFR) in livestock rations with appropriate and complete feed technology that can make the most efficient use of these feed sources.Non-conventional feed resources (NCFR) are generallydefined as “Shrub fodder, tree fodder, and agro-industrialby products which have not been utilizedtraditionally and/or commercially in livestock feeding. A number of feed resourceshave been included in the category of NCFR and theirnumbers are increasing. Even though many resourcesof NCFR are available, the farmer perceptions onNCFR vary from country to country and region to region. Sometimes, it is also difficult to distinguishtraditional feeds and NCFR. Therefore, identificationof available NCFR is necessary to exploit theirpotential in order to bring changes in livestock feedimprovement programs for enhancing livelihood of thepeople.
Importance of non-conventional fodder resources:
- India has the largest population of livestock (535.82 million) in the world, but their productivity is comparatively low.
- The key reasons for low livestock productivity are: unavailability or fluctuating year round feed supply of good quality feed, continuous hiking in the prices of commercial feeds, over reliance on low quality feed stuffs and low genetic potential of the animals.
- Currently India faces net deficit of 35.6% green fodder, 10.95% dry crop residues and 44% concentrate feed ingredients for meeting the mounting feed requirements.
- Also there is increased human population and their increasing demands for the animal products.
- All these circumstances necessitate the identification and exploitation of NCFR for feeding millions of animals and safeguarding their food as well as nutritional security.
- For sustainable development of livestock sector, it is pertinent to look into all possibilities to overcome feed shortages.
- The inclusion NCFR could be a most viable option for bridging the gap between supply and demand for animal feeds.
Salient features of NCFR:
- Low economic value
- Alternative source to ensure feed insurance during lean periods g., Tree foliage
- Noncompetitive in terms of human consumption
- Excellent source of fermentable nutrients
- Conservator of biodiversity
- Enhances the environmental resilience of farming system
- Compatible with existing farming system
- End products of various production processes and consumption g., Agro-industrial by products.
Sources of NCFR:
NCFR in Agro-forestry system: Agroforestry includes both trees and agricultural production on same piece of land. It is not only as a way of increasing the timber, energy, feed and food productions but also contributing to environment conservation. Trees are an important component of agroforestry system, and considered as best alternative feed source because they can easily grow, require minimum efforts, maintain soil fertility and are excellent source of nutrients.
Browse Foliage: Fodder trees and shrubs have high potential values as sources of feed for domestic livestock and wildlife. Fodder trees have long been considered as an alternative source to ensure feed insurance to farmer during pronounced dry periods. Commercial feed concentrates available for supplementation are uneconomical to be used in livestock feeding due to regular increase in their prices. The leaves of fodder trees contain high level of proteins (10 to 30% of dry matter) and can replace the concentrates without any adverse effects on animal health.
NCFR from field and plantation crops:
From rice: Important agro-based industries byproducts from rice are: rice straw and rice husks (15-17%), broken rice (4-5%) and rice bran (6-10%). Rice husks are of low nutritional value and act as a valuable source of roughages for ruminants. Rice husks can be milled into a fine powder and used as diluents of other high energy feed stuff. Rice bran, an oil rich byproduct of rice, is considered as a good source of energy. It also contains a considerable amount of protein (up to 15%), with a well-balanced amino acid profile compares favorably with other cereal bran. Rice bran also contains considerable amounts of vitamins B, E and anti-oxidants that are essential for better animal health.
From sugarcane: Bagasse refers to the remaining residue after the juice extraction from sugarcane. Presently bagasse is used mainly as a fuel in sugar factories. The bulky and fibrous nature of the by-product renders it a suitable feed for ruminants especially dairy cows. Mainly two varieties are available such as fine bagasse and coarse bagasse.
From banana: There are two by-products from banana cultivation that are potentially valuable feeds; these are banana rejects or wastes and banana stems. Reject bananas have also been used as a fermentation substrate for the production of single cell protein. Banana stems are also by-products of banana cultivation which are usually discarded and allowed to rot. The stem is a valuable source of minerals which are concentrated in the pith of the stem.
From maize: The residues obtained from maize are of three categories: (a) the stalk, (b) the husks, skins and trimmings and (c) the cobs. The grain is recovered from the cob by de-husking the ear. The stalk which is usually referred to as stover is obtained during harvesting of maize. This portion along with the husk, skin and trimmings are usually fed to ruminants. The harder portions are used for making silage or compost.
From cassava: The waste products obtainable from cassava roots are the peels which are usually discarded during the manufacture of cassava chips used for the feeding of livestock especially ruminants, the other waste product obtained from the root is cassava pulp which is produced during the manufacture of cassava flour. This can be used as a replacement to ragi flour in the diets of layers.
From coconut: Coconut meal, a byproduct of coconut or skin of the coconut is obtained after pressing or extracting oil. It is a highly digestible supplement with moderately high protein and energy values.
NCFR from other sources:
From aquatic plants: Aquatic plants also have potential to be used as feed source due to high protein content and low lignin content. Few examples include immature aquatic fern, Duckweed, Azolla etc.
From cactus: Spineless cactus (Opuntiaficus-indica) also has the potential as alternative sourceof fodder in arid and semi-arid regions particularly ofcentral parts of India. The plants retain high watercontent (up to 95 %) and could reduce the waterrequirements in animalsraised under harsh environments. The pads of cacti are the rich source ofsoluble carbohydrates, calcium, potassium and vitaminA.
From agro-industrial byproducts: This includes molasses, brewer’s dried grains, palm oil cake, winery mash and so on. However, they are not fully utilized for feeding purposes due to difficulties in handling, storage and lack of efficient ways for their integration in feeding regimes.
Constraints to the uses of non-conventional feed resources:
A number of factors are associated with the limited use of non-conventional feed resources. These are:
- Production is usually scattered and in some cases, the quality produced is low especially for use in processing of feed
- The availability in terms of time, location, seasonality and storage
- Sometimes cost of collection can be unusually high, for example, rubber seeds
- Processing of NCFR is usually difficult and can be problematic in certain cases
- Lack of managerial and technical skills in the utilization of such feeds in situ
- The uncertainty about the marketability of the end products
- Low nutritive value and high moisture content
- Presence of anti-nutritional factors
- Lipid peroxidation (rancidity of high fat products)
- High toxicity due to fungal and bacterial growth
- High cost of handling and transportation
- Meager information on nutritive value and their efficient integration in livestock feeding
Future directions:
For inclusion of NCFR in livestock feeding, the suggested future directions are:
- Assessment of availability, nutritive value and utilization of NCFR in the country
- On-farm trials for assessing the potential of NCFR for commercial production
- Integration of NCFR in existing farming system
- Use of biotechnological approaches for producing high quality NCFR
Conclusion:
To achieve the goal of improved livestock productivity in the country, sufficient quantity of nutritive fodder has to be provided. Every year considerable amount of NCFR like crop residues and other agro-industrial byproducts is produced. However, many factors can account for their limited use, including low nutritional value, handling difficulty and long term use. Therefore, sufficient efforts must be made to increase the number of alternative sources of feed and improve their nutritional value. The involvement of farmers could provide an avenue for discussion of the appropriateness of the different technologies, enabling researchers to change, modify or refine their technology to respond appropriately to practical conditions.
