In vitro evaluation of different varieties of maize fodder for their methane generation potential and digestibility with goat rumen liquor.

Shalini Vaswani,Ravindra Kumar,Vinod Kumar,Debashis Roy,Muneendra Kumar

doi:10.14202/vetworld.2016.1209-1213

Abstract

Aim:To evaluate the methane generation potential and digestibility of different (normal and three high-quality protein maize [HQPM]) varieties of maize fodder with goat rumen liquor in vitro.Materials and Methods:Methane production potential and digestibility of different varieties of maize fodder were tested in in vitro gas production test. Seven varieties of maize, four normal (HTHM 5101, DHM 117, HM 5, and Shaktiman/900 M Gold), and three high-quality protein (HQPM 5, HQPM 7, and HQPM 9/Vivek) were grown in different plots under the same environmental and agro-climatic conditions. Fodders were harvested at 45-50 days of sowing, and the representative samples of fodder from different varieties of maize were collected for analysis. Dried and grinded form of these maize fodder varieties was tested for gas, methane, and digestibility using goat rumen microflora in in vitro gas syringes.Results:Gas production (ml/g dry matter [DM]) was highest for HM5 variety (97.66, whereas lowest for HQPM 9 variety (64.22). Gas production (ml/g degraded DM [DDM]) and methane (%) were statistically similar in different varieties of maize fodder. The methane production expressed as ml/g DM and ml/g DDM was significantly (p<0.05) highest for HM 5 (14.22 and 26.62) and lowest for DHM 117 variety (7.47 and 14.13). The in vitro DM digestibility (%) and in vitro organic matter digestibility (%) varied from 47.48 (HQPM 5) to 52.05 (HQPM 9) and 50.03 (HQPM 7) to 54.22 (HM 5), respectively.Conclusion:The present study concluded that DHM 117 maize variety fodder has lowest methane generation potential and incorporating it in the dietary regime of ruminants may contribute to lower methane production.

Highlights

The present study concluded that DHM 117 maize variety fodder has lowest methane generation potential and incorporating it in the dietary regime of ruminants may contribute to lower methane production
Enteric methane is normally produced during the fermentation of feeds mostly in the rumen by hydrogenotrophic methanogenic archaea, which results in the inefficient conversion of potential energy of feeds into methane that is not utilized by ruminants [1]
The representative samples of fodders were used for chemical composition and in vitro study

Summary

Introduction

Enteric methane is normally produced during the fermentation of feeds mostly in the rumen by hydrogenotrophic methanogenic archaea, which results in the inefficient conversion of potential energy of feeds into methane that is not utilized by ruminants [1]. Methane production in the rumen represents 2-12% loss of feed energy [2] decreasing the metabolizable energy content of feeds. Production of greenhouse gases from animals and their impact on climate changes are a major concern worldwide [3,4]. Methane is the second highest anthropogenic greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide, which contributes to the problems of global warming and climate change [5]. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http:// creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated

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