Straw Fodder Research Articles

Secondary Agriculture towards Increasing Production and Sustainability

There is a pressing need for global agriculture to shift its focus to secondary agriculture in order to produce jobs as the world's population increases. The method of generating agricultural produce is biological in nature, making it a primary agriculture operation; but, when the raw produce is refined, it receives additional benefit, making it a secondary agriculture activity. Any farm related activity that uses the land or labor beyond the Kharif and Rabi seasons would qualify for a ‘Secondary Agriculture’ activity. India's scope for diversified agriculture is vast because of extensive arable land, multiple agro-climatic zones and a rich cafeteria of soils. However, India's reputation as a global agricultural powerhouse is ironically at odds with its farmers' low average wages. The road to higher agricultural Gross Value Added and farmers' income rests in efficient management of the post-production segment, comprising agri-logistics, processing and marketing. Agriculture generates raw materials that meet basic human requirements, and is considered as a primary economic activity. Of course, there are certain alternative agriculture activities like beekeeping, mushroom cultivation, backyard poultry, etc., which fall under the ambit of secondary agriculture. Secondary agriculture helps in using all parts of an agricultural produce, processing to enhance shelf-life, increasing total factor productivity, and generating additional jobs and income for farmers. It, thus, encompasses both food and non-food processing, and represents agro-processing. Income generation activities such as paddy straw fodder blocks, duck farming, honeybee keeping, mushroom cultivation, backyard poultry, among others, that do not compete with the time that is required for various inter-cultivation activities of primary agriculture production, qualify to be defined as a secondary agriculture. These Small-scale activities utilizes rural manpower, skills and locally available inputs efficiently. These enterprises can interact in space and/or time to achieve benefits through a synergistic resource transfer among enterprises, working closely such that waste from one part becomes a supply for another component of the system known as Integrated Farming System (IFS). Not only this but waste management is also one the important issue tackled with the help of secondary agriculture like leftover cane can be processed to produce by products of sugarcane. Thus, secondary agriculture realizes better productivity, profitability and sustainable production systems that would help to solve the fuel, feed and energy crisis, create more employment avenues, ensure regular income and encourage agriculture-oriented industry.

The Effect of Grazing Level and Ageing Time on the Physicochemical and Sensory Characteristics of Beef Meat in Organic and Conventional Production.

Simple SummaryThere is an increasing demand for meat products with high nutritional quality and produced through eco-friendly and sustainable systems, such as organic production. Therefore, in this work, it was proposed to study how the main characteristics of nutritional quality of beef are modified according to the feed management system, in terms of grazing level, and the ageing time of the meat. We found that the increase in pasture intake caused calves’ meat to present lower values of fat oxidation and, simultaneously, higher values of healthy fatty acids for humans. In the case of samples from organic farming, these showed a higher fat content and lower moisture, besides being the darkest samples and those with the lowest score regarding flavour quality in the tasting panel. Furthermore, it was proved that the increase in ageing time resulted in a general improvement of the sensory characteristics of the meat samples, especially those from the animals that had consumed more pasture. Therefore, we suggest extending the ageing period of beef since there is a clear tendency to increase the tenderness and juiciness of beef meat.This study investigated the influence of the production system (conventional vs. organic), the grass consumption level and the ageing period (7 and 14 days) on beef quality. Three groups of samples from Limousin × Avileña calves were analysed: F100, formed by animals fed 100% on forage; F74, formed by animals fed on an average amount of forage of 74%; and F35, formed by animals fed on straw fodder (35%) and concentrate (65%). The results showed that the higher the grass content, the lower the fat oxidation and the higher the n-3 content, but also the higher the SFA level, the initial Warner-Bratzler shear force (WBSF), and the more residue it leaves on chewing. As for the effect of production system, organic samples showed higher intramuscular fat content and lower moisture and MUFA content. These samples were darker and showed lower values for flavour quality. Among the organic samples, F100 had higher n-3 and CLA content and higher values for colour, hardness, odour and flavour quality. Increased ageing time may improve the sensory characteristics of the meat, especially in the case of the F100 samples. The results pointed out that F100 samples aged at least 14 days showed the best physico-chemical, nutritional and sensory characteristics.

Rice and wheat straw fodder trading in India: Possible lessons for rice and wheat improvement

Rice and wheat are globally dominant staple cereals and supply a substantial proportion of caloric intake in Low and Middle Income Countries (LMICs). Straw byproducts from these cereals form the basal diet for ruminant livestock across much of the developing world. Work with other cereals demonstrates the value placed on cereal straws and stovers by smallholder farmers indicated by their willingness to pay a quality premium. Despite this, breeding efforts have tended to disregard straw quality. Little is known about the marketing arrangements and the price dynamics for wheat and rice straws in LMICs. This study aimed to quantify volume and price of wheat and rice straw sales in Patna markets in Northern India. A survey was conducted covering 17 trading locations in Patna and Hajipur in 2008. 24 traders were surveyed with 12 trading only wheat straw, 11 trading only rice straw and 1 trading both straws. A detailed trader characterization survey was implemented to gather information on the history and structure of the business, suppliers, processing arrangements, customers and monthly trading volumes over the previous 12 months. Traders were then visited once per month for 12 months for collection of straw samples and price information. Results showed that traders had developed a series of 5 quality classes for straws based on sensory characteristics. There was reasonable agreement between trader quality class and specific sensory traits, notably “brightness”, “tastiness” and “purity” and quality classes also ranked similarly to prices for straws. Availability of straws of different qualities varied by month although straws of intermediate quality were available during most months and were the most prevalent straws in the markets surveyed. Taken across months, there was a price premium of 7 % in both rice and wheat straw for the “best” quality straw compared with “medium” quality straw. Wheat straw traded for prices around 19 % higher than rice straw on average. This price differential between wheat and rice straw was associated with higher nutritional quality. Within species, differences in nutritive value between straw quality classes were small. There were significant correlations between price and nutritional traits although these mainly related to differences between species rather than differences within species. Extrapolations from comparisons of available straw qualities in multidimensional rice and wheat improvement suggests that the value of traded rice and wheat straws could be increased by more than 60 % by promotion of superior rice and wheat dual purpose cultivars.

Genetic variation for grain yield, straw yield and straw quality traits in 132 diverse rice varieties released for different ecologies such as upland, lowland, irrigated and salinity prone areas in India

A total of 132 rice varieties released for different ecologies such as upland (25) and lowland (26), irrigated (65) and salinity (16) affected areas were investigated over two consecutive years for grain (GY) and straw (SY) yield, straw nitrogen (N), neutral (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF), acid detergent lignin (ADL), silica and in vitro organic matter digestibility (IVOMD). Highly significant (P < 0.0001) differences were found between the cultivars for GY and SY and all straw fodder quality traits. Considerable ranges were observed for GY and SY which varied by 3.4 and 7.1-fold, respectively, and straw N that varied twofold. Neutral and acid detergent fibre the two major fibre components varied by 8.8 and 6.2 percent units, respectively, and IVOMD varied by 7.4 percent units; ADL and Silica varied by 2 and 5.2 percent units respectively. Except for NDF, year had highly significant effects on yields and straw fodder quality traits. Interactions between cultivars and years were consistently significant. Broad sense heritabilities (H2) were higher for SY than for GY (H2 = 0.71 vs 0.4). Neutral and acid detergent fibre had intermediate H2 of 0.50 to 0.52 and IVOMD a moderate H2 of 0.3. Broad sense H2 for ADL and Silica were close to zero.Grain yield and SY were significantly positively associated but GY accounted for only about 31% of the variation in SY and high GYs in the range of 6000 to 6500 kg/ha could be associated with SYs ranging from about 5000 kg/ha to more than threefold that. Of all the straw quality traits, N was most strongly and inversely associated with GY, though straw N accounted for only 18% of the variation in GY and high GYs in the range of 6000 to 6500 kg/ha could be associated with straw N contents ranging from approximately 0.7 to 1.0%. Similarly, straw N was statistically strongly and inversely associated with SY, with straw N accounting for 32% of the variation in SY through high SYs ranging from approximately 12 000 to 14 000 kg/ha could be associated with straw N ranging from about 0.7 to 0.9%. Neutral detergent fiber (NDF), an estimate of the plant cell wall content, was significantly positively associated with GY, though at most levels of GYs NDF content could vary by 4 to 5 percent units and more. Similar findings apply to the relationship between NDF and SY. In vitro organic matter digestibility was poorly correlated with GY suggesting that varieties can be bred simultaneously for both. In fact, the cultivar with the highest straw IVOMD was among the 10 highest grain yielders.

Variations in straw fodder quality and grain–Straw relationships in a mapping population of 287 diverse spring wheat lines

A wheat association mapping population consisting of 287 diverse spring wheat lines were evaluated for three years in one location (Varanasi) and out of these for one year across three locations (Karnal, Dharwad and Varanasi) in India. Straw fodder quality traits analyzed were nitrogen (N) content, neutral (NDF) and acid (ADF) detergent fiber, acid detergent lignin (ADL), ash (ASH), in vitro organic matter digestibility (IVOMD) and metabolizable energy (ME) content. Grain yield (GY) and straw yield (SY) were also recorded. Highly significant (P < 0.0001) differences among lines were observed for all traits except for ADF and ADL in the three years trials conducted at Varanasi. However, year and location had strong (P < 0.0001) effects on all traits. Compared to line-dependent variations in GY and SY variation in straw fodder quality traits were small. Proportionally greatest variations between lines were observed for straw N where lowest and highest N varied by about 30%. Difference for NDF and ADF between lines were at most 4% units and below 3% units for IVOMD. Grain yield and straw yield were positively correlated (P < 0.0001) with GY accounting for 26% of the variation in SY. Straw N, IVOMD and ME were weakly but significantly (P < 0.05) negatively associated with GY and SY. Straw NDF and ADF were significantly (P < 0.05) positively correlated with GY but the association was again weak. Straw NDF, ADF and ADL were also weakly but significantly positively correlated with SY.Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) were applied to detect significant marker- straw fodder quality trait associations. Five genomic regions contributed for six traits (ADF, ADL, ASH, IVOMD, ME and NDF). ADF and ADL mapped in the common QTL region on chromosome 2B. Similarly, for the IVOMD and ME QTLs on chromosome 5B were associated with SNP marker, wsnp_Ku_c35090_44349517. While some associations were detected for ADF, ALD, ASH, IVOMD, ME and NDF on chromosomes 1A, 2B, 3A, 5A and 5B, the phenotypic variation explained was low to medium by individual QTL. A likely contributing factor was the comparatively small difference in straw fodder quality traits among the lines. It is interesting to note that line dependent variations in GY and SY were about two-fold. In other words, strong genotypic variations of GY and SY do exist. The lack of any similar variations in straw fodder quality traits is intriguing and requires further research.

Investigation of fifteen popular and widely grown Indian rice varieties for variations in straw fodder traits and grain-straw relationships

Fifteen 15 popular rice cultivars were investigated over two years for grain yield (GY) and straw yield (SY), harvest indices (HI), straw nitrogen content (N), neutral (NDF) and acid (ADF) detergent fiber, acid detergent lignin (ADL), Silica, in vitro organic matter digestibility (IVOMD) and metabolizable energy (ME) content. Except for ADL (P = 0.06) highly significant (P < 0.0001) differences were observed for all traits. The observed cultivar-depend variations were substantial with GY varying by 1.8-fold and SY by 2.3-fold and HI by 1.6-fold. Important straw fodder quality traits such straw N varied by 1.5-fold and the cultivar with the highest IVOMD differed from the poorest one by 6.1 percentage points. With the exceptions of N and ADL, year had a significant effect on traits. Broad sense heritability (H2) for SY and IVOMD were substantial (>0.73) and intermediate (>0.49) for GY, NDF, ADF and ME and poor (<0.17) for Silica, N and ADL.Possible trade-offs between traits were investigated. GY and SY were unrelated (P = 0.52). Nitrogen content of rice straw tended (P = 0.08) to be inversely related with GY but not with SY (P = 0.89). NDF content was unrelated to GY (P = 0.52) but was significantly (P = 0.01) positively correlated with SY. The reverse was observed for ADF, which was significantly (P = 0.02) positively correlated with GY but unrelated to SY (P = 0.48). ADL was not correlated (P = 0.79) with GY but was positively associated (P = 0.01) with SY. Silica content was also unrelated (P = 0.17) to GY but was inversely (P = 0.03) associated with SY. IVOMD and GY were inversely associated (P = 0.07) as was ME and GY (P = 0.09. IVOMD tended (P = 0.1) to also inversely related to SY but ME and SY were not related (P = 0.24). To summarize, considerable cultivars-dependent variations in food and fodder traits exist among released cultivars, though key positive straw quality traits could inversely (P < 0.10) associated with GY. Straw storage influenced straw quality, though an unexpected one since quality tended to improve. Key straw quality traits at harvest and after storage were still significantly correlated but the correlation coefficients could fall substantially below 1.

Comparative assessment of food-fodder traits in a wide range of wheat germplasm for diverse biophysical target domains in South Asia

The paper compares food and straw fodder traits in wheat lines of 6 different CIMMYT wheat trials tested across 32 environments of South Asia (India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan). Experiments were conducted in the main spring wheat season with sowing time of mid-November to mid-December and harvest between March to April. Investigated and compared were grain yield (GY), straw yield (SY), straw nitrogen (N) content, neutral (NDF) and acid (ADF) detergent fiber, acid detergent lignin (ADL), and in vitro organic matter digestibility (IVOMD). Highly significant (P < 0.0001) differences were observed between cultivar types for all traits. The proportional ranges in traits between the cultivar types were high for GY and SY (>60%), considerable (45%) for HI and straw N (40%), moderate for ADL (18%), and minor for NDF, ADF, and IVOMD (<10%). Across cultivar types GY and SY were significantly positive correlated but GY accounted for only 14% of the variation in SY. Positive fodder traits such as N and IVOMD tended to be negatively associated with GY, whereas negative traits such as NDF, ADF and ADL were positively associated with GY, significantly so (P < 0.05) in the cases of ADF and ADL. Except for one case, broad sense h2 were stronger for GY than for SY. Among straw fodder quality traits, the negative fodder quality traits ADF showed the highest h2 for all quality traits, with the exception of the two drought trials.Across all cultivar types only ADF was significantly (P < 0.05) positively related to GY. No significant (P > 0.05) relationships were observed between N, ADF and IVOMD and SY. Among cultivars consistent relationships were only observed between N and GY which were significantly (P = 0.03 to 0.009) inversely correlated in five out of the six cultivar types. Within cultivars types ADF varied by at least 2.3% units in HTNM and 1st DRYT and up to 4.9% units in ESWYT. By extrapolation such cultivar-dependent differences will matter at wheat straw trading.

LEVERAGING TRADITIONAL CROPS FOR FOOD AND FEED: A CASE OF HULLESS BARLEY (HORDEUM VULGARE) LANDRACES IN ETHIOPIA

This study explored food-feed traits in genotypes of 25 indigenous Ethiopian landraces, 13 landraces introduced into Ethiopia and 5 local checks of hulless barley (Hordeum vulgare). The genotypes were evaluated for straw fodder quality traits and the traits were related to grain yield and straw yield. The genotypes were grown in Ethiopia during the 2016 cropping season using augmented design consisting of 5 complete blocks. Results of the study showed high genotypic variability in grain yield (5.1 t/ha), straw yield (7.03 t/ha) and straw content of crude protein (CP: 29.1 g/kg), neutral detergent fiber (NDF: 77 g/kg), acid detergent fiber (ADF: 41 g/kg), acid detergent lignin (ADL: 22.7 g/kg) and invitro organic matter digestibility (IVOMD: 72 g/kg). Further, cluster analysis determined 6 genotypes i.e. 243231, 241790, 219177, 243235, 241787, 241789 among Ethiopian landraces that showed food-feed traits with an average of 3.44 t/ha of grain, 5.64 t/ha of straw and 55.9 g/kg of CP. The correlation between grain yield with straw yield and nutritive value parameters was insignificant. Principle component analysis determined that either CP, NDF or IVOMD can express the nutritive value of hulless barley straw. The study highlights the natural genotypic variation in grain yield and straw traits in hulless barley that can be exploited using appropriate breeding methods to develop varieties with a combination of food traits for human food and feed traits for livestock feed. These varieties would be particularly beneficial for mixed crop-livestock systems that are predominant in developing countries.

A note on variation in grain and straw fodder quality traits in 437 cultivars of rice from the varietal groups of aromatic, hybrids, Indica, new planting types and released varieties in the Philippines

Four hundred and thirty-seven different cultivars (59 Aromatics, 53 Hybrids, 172 Indica, 92 New Planting Types and 61 Varieties) were analyzed for grain yield (GY), straw nitrogen (N) content, neutral (NDF) and acid (ADF) detergent fiber, acid detergent lignin (ADL), silica, in vitro organic matter digestibility (IVOMD) and metabolizable energy (ME) and for relationships between GY and these straw fodder quality traits. Highly significant (P < 0.0001) differences between the groups were observed for all traits with hybrid having the highest GY and also the highest mean straw N, IVOMD and ME. With the exception of NDF and ADL in Aromatics highly significant (P = 0.002 to 0.0001) differences were found for all traits among the cultivars in the different groups. Variations in GY and straw fodder quality traits were greater within cultivar groups than among cultivar types. The variations in straw quality traits between cultivars were of livestock nutritional significance. For example, key straw quality traits such as IVOMD varied between cultivars by at least 6.9% units in New Planting Types and up to 12.0% units in Varieties. Cultivar differences in straw quality can be exploited without detriment to GY since inverse relationships were largely absent. Weak overall inverse associations between GY and straw fodder quality traits, that is inverse relationships between straw N, IVOMD and ME and positive relationship between NDF, AD, ADL and silica and GY, were due to two obvious outliers with very low GY.

Opportunities for wheat cultivars with superior straw quality traits targeting the semi-arid tropics

Fifty wheat lines targeting semi-arid locations in India and Bangladesh were investigated for grain and straw yield and straw fodder quality traits for two consecutive years at two locations in India and one in Bangladesh. Fodder traits investigated were nitrogen (N), neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), acid detergent lignin (ADL), in vitro organic matter digestibility (IVOMD), and metabolizable energy content (ME). Highly significant (P < 0.0001) differences among lines were observed for all the traits, but location and year generally had greater effects than line. There were no significant relationships between straw yield and straw fodder quality traits. However, inverse associations (P = 0.17) were observed between straw N and grain yield and between straw ADF and straw yield. Variations among fodder quality within a location were slightly higher than when averaged across locations. For example, ADF, a trait significantly inversely correlated with price differences in wheat straw trading, ranged from 49 to 50.8% across locations whereas it ranged from 44.8 to 47.8% and from 47.2 to 49.6% at the two India sites and from 53.9 to 55.9% at the Bangladesh site. Moderate broad sense (h2) heritabilities were observed for ADF (h2 = 0.31) and ADL (h2 = 0.34), whereas h2 for other fodder traits were very low. Extrapolation of mean differences among lines in straw fodder quality traits across locations and years suggests that the best lines could meet the highest quality criteria observed in wheat straw trading with price premiums of 10–17% depending on whether the trading occurred in a rural or an urban area, respectively.

Variations in food-fodder traits of bread wheat cultivars released for the Ethiopian highlands

Twenty-five bread wheat varieties, developed for and released in the Ethiopian highlands, were investigated for grain (GY) and straw (SY) yields and straw fodder quality traits across two locations (Debre Zeit and Kulumsa) during 2016. Five varieties were selected for further investigation in 2017 at four locations representing a broader range of agroecologies. Straw fodder quality traits investigated were nitrogen (N), neutral detergent (NDF) and acid detergent fiber (ADF), acid detergent lignin (ADL), in vitro organic matter digestibility (IVOMD), and metabolizable energy (ME). In 2016, significant varietal differences (P < 0.001) were observed across locations for GY and SY, with GY ranging from 3.5 to 5.4 t ha−1 (x̄ = 4.3 ± 0.24 t ha−1) and SY ranging from 6.6 to 14.6 t ha−1 (x̄ = 8.5 ± 0.20 t ha−1). Varietal differences across locations were observed for NDF (74.6–78.0%; P < 0.01), ADF (48.5–52.3%, P < 0.001), and ADL (5.9–6.7%, P < 0.0001). The location effect was significant (P < 0001) for GY and SY and all straw fodder quality traits, with significant variety by location interaction for GY. The GY and SY in Kulumsa were 2.5 and 1.7-fold higher than the GY and SY in Debre Zeit, respectively. Straw quality traits were superior (P < 0.05) in Debre Zeit compared to Kulumsa, but differences in quality were proportionally smaller than the differences in the yields. Within Debre Zeit, significant varietal differences were found for GY (P < 0.0001) and ADL (P < 0.01), and a trend was observed for SY (P = 0.06). Within Kulumsa, significant varietal differences were found for GY (P < 0.0001), SY (P < 0.0001), and cell wall constituents (P < 0.05). A trend was observed for N content (P = 0.07). There was a weak positive relationship between GY and SY (r = 0.35, P = 0.08) across the locations. Grain yield was inversely related to N content of the straw (r = −0.45, P = 0.02), but the relationship with the other fodder quality traits was not significant. No significant relationship was found between SY and fodder quality traits. In 2017, the five varieties differed significantly (P < 0.01) both in yield and fodder quality traits with the exception of ME (P = 0.59). There was also significant (P < 0.01) variety by location interaction for N, and cell wall constituents, in addition to GY. Overall, GY and SY differences among bread wheat varieties were more substantial than differences in straw fodder traits and a fair amount of elasticity exists between yields and straw quality traits that can be exploited.

Comprehensive Utilization Technology of Rural Straws

In recent years, rural straw have been generated on the increase, accompanied by growing pollution, so utilization technology of rural straw was put forward, such as straw fermentation, straw manuring method, straw bio-reactor, straw fodder, straw-feeding edible fungus, producing protein, straw power generation, producing green building materials and for the weaving industry, etc, and do the analysis and comparison of its advantages and disadvantages of economic benefits, technology, provide guarantee to the application of utilization technology of rural straws.

Effect of long-term un-treated domestic wastewater re-use on soil quality, wheat grain and straw yields and attributes of fodder quality

In 2006 a comprehensive sampling program was undertaken in two pre-selected peri-urban villages in Faisalabad, Pakistan to evaluate the soil and agronomic impacts of long-term (25–30 years) untreated wastewater re-use on wheat grain and straw yields and attributes of wheat straw fodder quality. Soil SAR, ESP, RSC and ECe were 63%, 37%, 31%, and 50% higher under wastewater (WW) as compared with canal water (CW) irrigated plots. Further, 2.7 and 6.65 fold increases in soil NO 3 − + NO 2 − - N and Olsen-P were observed in WW as compared with CW irrigated plots. However, no significant differences in grain yield, wheat straw biomass, or fodder quality attributes were observed between WW and CW irrigated plots. In addition, for both CW and WW irrigated plots wheat straw, Cd and Pb concentrations were orders of magnitude below the EC Maximum permissible levels for Pb and Cd in feed materials and thus pose no threat to the fodder-livestock food chain. Further, elevated soil N associated with WW irrigated plots has a significant (p < 0.01) positive influence on fodder quality by increasing the N content. Factorial ANOVA with covariance indicates that effective management of the elevated soil ECe in WW irrigated plots would increase grain yield and wheat straw biomass by 853 kg ha−1 (19.5%) and 819 kg ha−1 (18.6%) respectively as compared with CW irrigated plots. In Faisalabad, if managed appropriately to address emerging salinity issues the contribution of wastewater irrigation to the achievement of MDGs 1 and 7 could be significant if adverse impacts remain as marginal as found in this study.