FEED NUTRIENTS & FORAGES

Forage composition & Nutrient needs

What kind & how much of feed do ruminants need?

Ruminants need mainly grass to eat at least 15% of their bodyweight in fresh forage each day or about
3% of bodyweight in dry matter

Ruminants need both quantity (energy) and quality (protein) in their diets to grow well.

Issues & concerns that affects forage availability & quality

 Yield gaps
 Nutrient gaps
 Technology gaps
 Innovation gaps
 Research for development gaps
 Human behavior concerns
Yield gaps
“Bakit kulang”
 Preference of using native forages vs improved forages
 Grazing system vs. cut & carry
 Seasonal shortage vs pasture with irrigation system
 Use of improved forage species/varieties without using appropriate technologies
 Inefficient use and poor utilization of available crop residues
 Inability to plant/establish forage production areas

Nutrient gaps
”Bakit mababa ang kalidad”
 Preference of using crop residues over improved forages -low level of available nutrients, thus
needs high level of supplementation to meet the requirements
 Unaware of the compromise between yield and quality -best harvest interval
 Use of unbalanced ration vs balanced ration
 Unaware of the quality of forages and nutrient requirements of the dairy animals

Technology gaps
“Bakit di ko alam”
 Academe developed feed technologies are not always available for farmers' use
 Lack of access to available forages & feed technologies
 Lack of suitable machines (eg. Forage chopper and harvester) for feed conservation

Innovation gaps
 Lack of forage nurseries and seed banks, maybe one per region
 Need to improve delivery/transfer of feed technologies to farmers
 Lack or limited volume of commercially available roughages - to fill the feed shortages due to
season & for farms with limited land for pasture production

Research for development gaps

 No research facility currently working on forage breeding, selection, evaluation and testing
 Conduct climate-smart feed & forage technologies suitable for dairy farmers
 Identification of research priorities should be done in consultation with the dairy farmers

Human behavior concerns

 Sometimes, lack of forecast - year round feed supply & animal condition -calving, stage of
lactation, etc.
 Sometimes, lack of business skills and strategies/information
 Sometimes, lack of KSA (knowledge, skills and attitude)
Components of Ideal Dairy Feeds
What are your main forages?

Yield and Nutrient Contents of Some Improved Forage Grasses

Nutrient of Some Legumes

Guinea grass has more leaves than Napier

Guinea and Para grass have comparable protein and energy values

Ruzi and Signal grass have comparable quality and yield

What are the important characteristics of forages for animal production?

Important characteristics of planted forages for animal production are:

1. Digestibility which varies with...

- plant part (leaves>stem)
- age (young leaves > old leaves)
- species

2. Nutritive value (especially protein) which varies with...

- age (young leaves > old leaves; old legumes > old grasses)
- plant part (leaves > stem)
- forage type (legumes > grass)

3. Palatability which varies with...

- species
- plant part (leaves > stem)
- age (young leaves > old leaves)

As forages get older, their feeding quality generally declines because of:
- an increase in proportion of stem
- a decrease in digestibility (more fiber)
- a decrease in protein content young
What other countries are doing?
• In Thailand: Napier, corn & cassava silages, rice straw are commercially available

• In Kenya: Napier, Grass Hay are commercially available; and Forage research center

 In the Philippines: Commercialization of forage is starting…

• Demonstrate that dairying is a profitable enterprise in terms of land utilization, thru:
- Forage improvement & management
- Record keeping of dairy enterprise
- Animal Health
• Coverage – Northern Mindanao (Bukidnon, Misamis Or.) and CALABARZON (Rizal, Batangas, Quezon)

Recommended Species
References:
• Nutrition and feeding management in dairy cattle, Practical manual for small scale dairy farmers in
Vietnam, Second Edition, Hanoi 2009
• Buffalo Production Handbook, PCC
• PCAARRD Forage Manual
• Internet for forage facts on nutritive values and yields
• Personal communication/interviews with experts
• Some pictures are downloaded from the Internet
• CD of Philippines-New Zealand Dairy Project