Feed supply system for livestock

 

 

Feed supply system for livestock

Feed is an important input for milk  production and constitutes 50-70% of its total cost . While milk production in India is increasing fast , the qualitative and quantitative insufficiency of feed and fodder resources  impede  livestock industry  in India significantly. Meeting the demands  for quality forages to livestock feeding is a gigantic and challenging task. Frequent exposure to drought or dry spells of 4-5 months in a year with virtually no green forage for grazing leads to more dependence on crop residues ,Argo-industrial By products and Non- conventional Feed Resources  for feeding of ruminant livestock. However the cost of processing these feeds  limits their use in the field.  A balanced diet will keep an animal healthy and productive. Instead of buying expensive concentrate  feeds, there are a variety of leguminous plants rich in protein which can be grown in the farm

          Constraints in Green Fodder production 

• Low Fodder production  per unit cultivation  area

• Reduced area under fodder crops

• Uncontrolled grazing of dairy animals

• Diminishing Pasture area and it’s  quality

• Deteriorating Forest grazing facility

Constraints in feeding of Concentrate Feeds 

• High cost

• Fluctuating cost and availability of Raw materials

• Majority of formulations lack Bureau  of Indian Standards approval

Strategies to make-up insufficiencies of Fodder  resources 

1. Increasing forage production per unit area. 

2. Identifying  and evolving  improved fodder varieties for Irrigated and Rain-fed conditions.

3.  Arranging timely supply of quality seeds. 

4. Encouraging forage production in mixed crop-livestock framing systems. 

5. Improving the  existing grazing lands 

6. Putting to good use of waste lands denuded, degraded marginal and sub marginal lands for  fodder production.

7.  Efficient utilisation of locally available resources like crop residues, Agro-industrial By products. 

8. Putting in use the tested New Technologies to improve the feed efficiency.

   Increasing forage production per unit area 

Farmers who cultivate fodder crops very often do not get full biomass production per unit area for a variety of reasons .They do not follow the cultivation and Management practices specified for each of the fodder crops. It results in low Animal holding capacity per unit area.
Identifying  and evolving  improved fodder varieties

The ICAR and other Research Institutions at National level release new and improved varieties of Fodder crops suitable for different regions of the country. In addition the state Agricultural Universities also release new and improved varieties of Fodder crops specifically for different regions of the state. In addition the state Agricultural Universities also.

 

Arranging timely supply of quality seed

Dairy farmers are primarily sufferers with deficit of certified fodder seeds of high yielding improved varieties / hybrids,

If at all available they are not available in time. This is true particularly for Rain fed fodder crops.

The seed germination is another problem.

seed replacement rate in fodder crops is less than 20 percent. Higher seed replacement rate is directly co-related with higher yield.

Fodder seed production is highly un-organized. Large Public sector seed companies are focusing on production of food crop seeds, while organized private sector seed companies are focusing on high value low volume crop like vegetables, hybrids & GM crops. Few organized private companies are involved in production of Sorghum sudan grass hybrid only.

Encouraging forage production in mixed crop-livestock framing systems

Mixed farming is a type of agriculture which involves both crops and livestock. The main character of this system is that farms produce both crops and livestock and the two enterprises are interwoven and integrated .Grass cultivation is the important component of this system occupying at least 20% of the farm area.

Improving the existing grazing lands

More than 80 per cent of the grasslands in India are in ‘poor’ and in degraded condition . Most of the grasslands in arid and semi-arid areas contains local grasses which are not only hardy, but have low yield potential, low protein content and less palatable . Their production potential is less than 2.0 tones of Dry fodder per Hectare which can not hold even one medium producing cow. They provide moderate grazing during flush season only. If these grazing lands are improved by replacing the Natural grass with Cenchrus ciliaris and Stylosanthes the quality of Grass land in terms of Biomass and Nutrient make-up and holding capacity increases. The quality can further be increased by converting them in to multi-tier Silvipastoral system.

Efficient utilization of locally available resources like crop residues, agro-industrial by products

The low producing cows in India are managed mainly by Grazing and feeding Agricultural crop residues. But these materials are very poor in palatability, nutrient make-up and digestibility. They are not efficiently utilised by animals in view of fibrous nature and poor nutritional quality. To improve their utilisation efficiency Techniques like Physical, Chemical, Physico-chemical and Biological treatments have been developed and put in use.

About the Author

Prof Dr M Murugan-  Consultant, Animal Nutrition, Animeta AgriTech (YourFarm ).

Former Dean, Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Chennai. Animal Nutrition Specialist with 35+ years of experience in the field of Teaching, Research and Technology transfer to farming communities. His field of Research is Fodder production with special emphasis to Agroforestry systems and the class of livestock is small ruminant. Dr. M.Murugan has published 43 Research papers in both National and International Journals. He has also published 45 Popular articles ,authored 5 books and 2 manuals. His research articles are cited in several text books. He is the member of several Professional bodies like Indian Poultry Science Association Dairy Technology Society of India , Animal Nutrition Society of India and Tamil Nadu Veterinary Council.