Traditional Feed Research Articles

Assessing the effect of improved feed trough on feed utilization by small ruminants in Northern Ghana

The feeding systems of small ruminants in Northern Ghana are characterized by waste which necessitates efficient use of the available feed resources, particularly in the dry season. To this end, the use of improved feed trough was demonstrated in three communities in Northern Ghana, namely Duko and Tibali in Northern region; Gia in Upper East region in the late dry, wet, and early dry seasons between March 2019 and February 2020. This study involved 10 farmers randomly selected in each community. The participating farmers were provided with one improved feed trough each which was then compared to the traditional feed trough. Data were collected on the quantity of feed offered, amount wasted, and time spent feeding the animals for six consecutive days in the three study sites across seasons. To document the perception of the farmers on the improved feed trough, a semi-structured questionnaire was administered. Results showed that improved feed trough reduced feed waste significantly in the study sites across seasons. For example, the percentages of waste in feeding the animals using the traditional feed trough were 35%, 22%, and 27% in Duko, Gia, and Tibali, respectively, in the late dry season compared to less than 1% with the improved feed trough during the same season. The farmers' perceptions were similar to the findings of this study which suggest that efficient feed utilization by small ruminants can be enhanced with the use of improved feed trough.

Productivity of laying hens when fed probiotic feed additive Amilocin

The possibilities of increasing the productivity of different poultry species by increasing the absorption of feed nutrients can be realized through the use of new biologically active components that are usually added to traditional feed based on live cultures of microorganisms of the normal microflora of the gastrointestinal tract. The effectiveness of different probiotic drugs varies depending on the types and strains of microorganisms that are included in their composition, the dose of the drug, the scheme of its use, age, type, physiological state and productivity of animals. The research has been carried out to study the influence of the use of the probiotic feed additive Amilocin in the diets of laying hens of the cross Hisex Brown on their productivity. The positive influence of the studied feed additive on the live weight and livability of laying hens, egg productivity, quality and quantity of eggs obtained, morphological and biochemical parameters of the blood of experimental poultry, slaughter parameters and chemical composition of the meat of experimental laying hens has been established. The optimal rate of introduction of probiotic feed additive Amilocin into the diet of laying hens has been determined (0,5 g/head/day at the beginning of egg laying during 10 days, 1,0 g/head/day at the peak of egg laying during 10 days, followed by 1 g/head/day monthly for 10 days until the end of egg laying). The economics effectiveness of using the probiotic feed additive Amilocin per 1,0 ruble of costs was 1,24– 1,35 ruble. According to the research data recommendations for the use of the probiotic feed additive Amilocin have been proposed.

Effect of dried distillers' grain with solubles as a replacer of peanut cake for sheep fed on low quality forage.

Several concerns exist on the performance and health attributes of sheep fed on complete replacements of the traditional feed ingredients with dried distillers' grain solubles (DDGS). The study intended to know the effect of DDGS on replacing the peanut cake (PNC) at 0%, 50%, 75%, and 100% in sheep fed Jowar stover-based diet. Replacing PNC with DDGS increased (P < 0.05) the final body weight and concentrate intake. The weight gain and average daily gain tended to increase (P = 0.086), whereas the feed conversion ratio tended to decrease (P = 0.092) with increased DDGS inclusion levels. The CP intake increased linearly (P < 0.01) with an increase in DDGS levels. However, the intakes of DM, OM, NDF, and ADF increased quadratically (P < 0.01) and showed a quadratic maximum at 75% replacements group. The in vitro dry matter digestibility and 24h-gas (ml) production linearly increased (P < 0.05) with increased DDGS inclusion levels, while the CH4 (% total gas) and CH4 (ml) showed a quadratic increase (P < 0.05). The metabolisable energy, ammonia nitrogen, and volatile fatty acid concentrations were higher for DDGS diets. Further, the Gompertz curve fitting of the gas production data revealed higher asymptotic volume with lower constant of integration (b) and rate of production (k) of the DDGS incubations. No significant differences were observed for any of the carcass characteristics, except for leg weight, which showed a linear increase (P < 0.05). Increased tendency was observed for EBW, loin eye area at 12th rib, and edible portion of the sheep fed DDGS groups. Further, the visceral organs and carcass composition did not show any significant differences, except for kidney weight (linear, P < 0.05). The income over feed cost (IOFC) was higher for 100% DDGS group with lower feed cost and higher income per Kg mutton. Replacing the traditional peanut cake with DDGS in the crop residue-based diets of growing lambs contributes to higher yields for producers.

Chemistry of Tropical Eucheumatoids: Potential for Food and Feed Applications.

The use of seaweeds as additives in animal nutrition may be a valid option to traditional feed as they represent a rich source of minerals, carbohydrates and antioxidants. The aim of this study was to analyze the chemical composition and in vitro antioxidant capacity of two tropical eucheumatoids, Kappaphycus alvarezii and Kappaphycus striatus, in Malaysian wild offshore waters. The chemical analysis was performed via inductively coupled plasma–optical emission spectroscopy for evaluating the concentration of toxic (Cd, Pb, Hg, As) and essential elements (Mn, Fe, Cu, Ni, Zn, Se); NMR spectroscopy was used for carrageenans investigation. Furthermore, the soluble and fat-soluble antioxidant capacities were determined by FRAP, DPPH and ABTS assays. The chemical analysis revealed a higher content of trace elements in K. alvarezii as compared to K. striatus, and both exhibited a high mineral content. No significant differences in metal concentrations were found between the two species. Both samples showed a mixture of prevailing κ- and t-carrageenans. Finally, the levels of soluble and fat-soluble antioxidants in K. alvarezii were significantly higher than in K. striatus. Our findings suggest that K. alvarezii could be used as a potential feed additive because of its favorable chemical and nutritional features.

Rice as an alternative feed ingredient in swine diets.

It has become important to explore alternative feed ingredients to reduce feed costs, which are burdensome for livestock production. In addition, it is desirable to find efficient and functional alternative ingredients for traditional feed ingredients in pig diets, considering the stress and sensitivity of disease of pig. Rice is produced around the world like corn that is the typical energy source in pig diets. Although the nutritional quality varies depending on the degree of milling, rice, except whole grains (paddy rice), contains more starch than corn and its structure and granule size are easier to digest than corn. In addition, the fact that rice has fewer non-starch polysaccharides (NSP) and anti-nutritional factors (ANFs) is also effective in improving digestibility and various polyphenols in rice can help modulation of immune responses, which can be beneficial to the gastrointestinal environment and health of pig. Many studies have been conducted on rice focusing on things such as degree of milling, substitution rates of corn, granule size, and processing methods. Most results have shown that rice can be partially or completely used to replace corn in pig diets without negatively affecting pig growth and production. While further research should focus on the precise biological mechanisms at play, it was confirmed that the use of rice could reduce the use of antibiotics and pig removal and protect pigs from gastrointestinal diseases including diarrhea. From this point of view, rice can be evaluated as a valuable feed ingredient for swine diets.

Experimental feed mixer performance study

The importance of rational use of waste from the processing of grapes, fruits, sugar beets and grain crops in the preparation of high-grade feed is noted. In this regard the relevance of the development of effective technical means for mixing liquid or pasty additives with traditional feed is emphasized. An experimental feed mixer with the ability to produce feed mixtures using secondary raw materials of various aggregate states has been developed. The task of the experimental work was to study its performance under various operating modes. As a result of laboratory studies, it was found that with an increase in the rotational speed of the working body from 60 to 120 min-1 the productivity of the experimental feed mixer increased from 2,0 to 3,3 t/h. With the subsequent decrease in the amplitude of oscillations of the inter-screw cavity (with a decrease in its volume) the increase in productivity slows down.

Analysis of Productive Qualities of Pigs When Including DKB Feed Supplement in the Diet

Improving the efficiency of pig farming requires biologically complete feeding in accordance with the age, physiological and sexual characteristics of animals based on the knowledge of composition and nutritional value. The health and productivity of animals depends on the use of protein, fat, carbohydrates and minerals, and high-quality vitamins. Traditional feed does not provide animals with a sufficient and optimal ratio of minerals and vitamins. One of the factors providing young pigs with these nutrients may be the inclusion of the DKB vitamin-mineral energy supplement in the diet. The article analyzes the influence of DKB on the productivity of young pigs. The aim of the study was to justify an increase in productivity indicators of large white pigs feeding with DKB. In order to trace the impact of DKB on the productivity of pigs, we took into account the change in their live weight. During the experiment (60 days), 54 kg of the vitamin-mineral complex worth 3300 rubles was spent on the 20 piglets of the experimental group. This entailed an increase in the total costs. The results of the study indicate a positive effect of the additive on the dynamics and growth rate of the piglets of the experimental group and on the cost of feed and nutrients, which favorably affects the profitability and economic efficiency of pork production.&#x0D; Keywords: DKB vitamin-mineral energy supplement, piglets, live weight, growth dynamics, average daily gain, feed costs, profitability, economic efficiency

Closed loop predictive control of adaptive optics systems with convolutional neural networks

ABSTRACT Predictive wavefront control is an important and rapidly developing field of adaptive optics (AO). Through the prediction of future wavefront effects, the inherent AO system servo-lag caused by the measurement, computation, and application of the wavefront correction can be significantly mitigated. This lag can impact the final delivered science image, including reduced strehl and contrast, and inhibits our ability to reliably use faint guide stars. We summarize here a novel method for training deep neural networks for predictive control based on an adversarial prior. Unlike previous methods in the literature, which have shown results based on previously generated data or for open-loop systems, we demonstrate our network’s performance simulated in closed loop. Our models are able to both reduce effects induced by servo-lag and push the faint end of reliable control with natural guide stars, improving K-band Strehl performance compared to classical methods by over 55 per cent for 16th magnitude guide stars on an 8-m telescope. We further show that LSTM based approaches may be better suited in high-contrast scenarios where servo-lag error is most pronounced, while traditional feed forward models are better suited for high noise scenarios. Finally, we discuss future strategies for implementing our system in real-time and on astronomical telescope systems.

Substitution of Soybean Meal by Shrimp Head Meal (Penaeus Monodon) in Poultry Ration for the Performance of Growing Pullets

To minimize the production cost of poultry and poultry products, it is important to formulate low cost balanced ration utilizing unconventional feed resources. Therefore, the experiment was carried out to measure the effect of substituting soybean meal (SBM) by different levels of shrimp head meal (SHM) to the ration of growing layer pullets. A control corn-soybean layer grower (pullet) diet and four different levels of SHM included diets as substitution of SBMwere fed to five groups of Hisex White pullets from 5th to 18th weeks of age. All groups of pullets fed isocaloric feeds (2765 Kcal kg-1). The control group T0 (0 % SHM+20 % SBM) received grower ration formulated with traditional feed ingredients with no substitution of SBM. The SBM contents of other treatment groups were substituted at the rate of 25 %, 50 %, 75 % and 100 % by the SHM and were adjusted as 5 % SHM+15 % SBM (T1), 10 % SHM+10 % SBM (T2), 15 % SHM+5 % SBM (T3) and 20 % SHM+0 % SBM (T4) keeping other ingredients constant as of control. Cumulative feed intake increased with the increasing level of SHM of diets. Feed cost and mortality rate decreased with the increasing level of SHM in the ration. Significantly lowest FCR at most of the age categories, highest cumulative body weight (p&lt;0.05) at 18 weeks and highest weight at maturity (p&lt;0.05) were found in treatment group fed 5 % SHM. Therefore, it can be concluded that substitution of 25 % SBM of the ration by SHM is suitable for the better performance of growing layer pullets.&#x0D; SAARC J. Agri., 18(2): 125-137 (2020)

The impact of small-scale irrigation on household food security: The case of SNNP of Ethiopia

Even though Ethiopia is endowed with natural resource, it is one of the poorest country in world. The reason for this is maluses of the natural resource and dependence on traditional and rain feed agriculture. Small scale irrigation is applied in Ethiopia more than 5 decades and in SNNP region 3 decades ago. This study was conducted in SNNP region with 60 small scale irrigation users and 343 non users. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of small scale irrigation on household on food security. To analyze the data descriptive statistics like chi2 for categorical variables and t-test continuous predictor variables was used. Propensity Score matching model was used to analyze the impact of the small scale irrigation on food security of the house hold. Based on this study application of small scale irrigation in the study area does not contribute to be food secured. This may be due to the region is getting high rainfall relative to other regions like Afar, Somali and Tigray region. The farmers does not want to west their time on irrigation activities doe to plenty of rainfall and precipitation. On the other hand, most of the farmers staple food is depend on Inset (falls banana) which does not need irrigation. Based on this study we recommend that, irrigation activities should be applied in areas by which rainfall is scarce like the regions Tigray, Afar and Somali region by which rain is scarce. Keywords : food index, Irrigation, PSM model, SNNP region DOI: 10.7176/ISDE/12-1-02 Publication date: January 31 st 2021

СРАВНИТЕЛЬНАЯ ТЕХНИКО-ЭКОНОМИЧЕСКАЯ ОЦЕНКА МАЛЫХ ВНУТРИХОЗЯЙСТВЕННЫХ КОМБИКОРМОВЫХ ПРЕДПРИЯТИЙ

On-farm compound feed production from self-produced raw materials is favorable to agricultural enterprises under present-day conditions. The authors carried out a comparative technical and economic study of the conventional and modular small-scale on-farm compound feed plants with a capacity of 2 tons per hour, designed for agricultural enterprises with an average livestock population of 6…8 thousand pigs. The proposed modular plant consists of two modules – the operative storage of raw materials and the main module of grinding and mixing. Modules with installed equipment are delivered and placed on a light foundation, connected by transport equipment and with tanks for raw materials and fi nished products. The conventional factory is a technological line housed in a hangar and used for crushing, metering, and mixing raw materials. It consists of a separator, a hammer mill, weighing equipment, a mixer, containers for raw materials and fi nished products, transport, and aspiration equipment. The technical and economic analysis has shown that the erection and operation of the on-farm modular enterprise require 41% less capital investments than a traditional compound feed plant of the same capacity. The use of a small-scale modular plant will reduce operating costs by 23.8% (from 3094 to 2358 thousand rubles), increase the specifi c economic eff ect from the compound feed production by 1.6% (from 8.64 to 8.78 thousand rubles per ton) and return on margin by 4% (from 10.2 to 10.6%), reduce the payback period by 42% (from 0.8 to 0.46 years), and increase the net present value by 3% (from 66167 to 68216 thousand rubles), as compared to a conventional enterprise. The modular on-farm plants producing loose compound feed with a productivity of up to 3 tons per hour are profi table and economically sound as they can increase production effi ciency of compound feeds for farm animals.`

Dynamics modeling and analysis of feed drive system for a frame saw machine considering time-varying load

Frame saw machine is one of machine tools that is used to process dimension stone. The velocity fluctuation of traditional feed drive system (FDS) lead to excessive wear of diamond particles. The dynamic performance of the FDS has time-varying characteristics during the processing of stone with a large material removal rate. In this paper, a novel FDS was proposed. Firstly, the dynamic modeling of FDS was set up on account of lumped parameter method (LPM). Then the speed of the new FDS was compared with that of the traditional FDS. Finally, the frequency response characteristics of the system were solved by Lagrange and state space method. Results showed that the new FDS has a faster response feed and less velocity fluctuation. The natural frequency and the amplitude of acceleration increase with decreasing load. With the time-varying load, the range of the second-order natural frequency increased by 50 Hz, which was larger than that of the first-order. The modal test verified that the first two natural frequencies of the saw blade are within the range of the natural frequencies of FDS. The proposed FDS can guide for design, reduce the wear of diamond, and improve processing quality.

Идеальная модель фракционного распределения сырья установки депарафинизации

Complex analysis of close fractions properties of hydrotreated diesel fuel and hydrocracking diesel fuel has been made to evaluate application as a feed of isodawaxing unit on platinum catalyst. The ideal model of feed fractional separation of dewaxing unit feed has been made. It is revealed that more than half of traditional feed of dewaxing units is ballast of the process, which it is required to identify and direct to marketable winter diesel fuel apart from reactor. It is revealed that the most convenient dewaxing feed is heavy part of hydrocracking diesel fuel.

Effect of partial replacing of wheat by sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L.) fruit residues in broiler diets on performance and skin pigmentation.

Background:Improving poultry products is a constant research topic as the poultry industry aims to provide healthy products to consumers at economic prices and achieve financial profits for breeders. Therefore, recent research has resorted to finding cheap natural sources as alternatives to traditional feed and antibiotics. Aim:The experiment was conducted to study the effects of sea buckthorn fruit residues meal on broilers‘ performance and skin pigmentation. Method:A total of 700 broiler chicks (ROSS 308) were allotted into two groups, and each group comprises 350 birds divided into 10 replicants, 35 birds to each replicant. The experimental group was fed diets where 15% of the wheat was replaced by sea buckthorn residues meal. The control group was fed diets without any color additive. Feed and water were provided ad-libitum. Results:The sea buckthorn fruit residues contained 21% crude protein and metabolisable energy calculated was 9.88 MJ/kg. The live body weight was significantly lower than the experimental group (p < 0.05) on days 14 and 28. The feed conversion ratio was significantly poorer in the experimental group compared with the control group on days 35 of age (p < 0.05). The mortality was higher in the experimental group than in the control group. The DSM Broiler Fan assessed skin color. The skin of the broilers was significantly more yellowish in the experimental group than the control group (103.08 vs. 102.38 scales). The pigmentation of the skin was higher in males than females. Conclusion:The use of sea buckthorn residues in poultry feeding negatively affected the overall performance rate. Mightily, its use in diets depends mainly on the price of feed ingredients. Thus, improving the skin color and biological value of broiler meat can determine its usefulness in broiler feed.

Environmental amelioration in biofloc based rearing system of white leg shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) in West Bengal, India

The potential of biofloc media in in-situ environmental amelioration mediated through the removal of nitrogenous metabolites, reduce the dominance of disease-causing Vibrio to beneficial Bacillus community and reduction of costly commercial feed was investigated in white leg shellfish (Litopenaeus vannamei) farming. Three treatments viz. biofloc without neem + commercial feed (B), biofloc with neem +commercial feed (NB), only commercial feed without biofloc (F)and, one control (C) withno biofloc and no feed in triplicate was applied with a stocking density of 60 PL-20 m−3 in outdoor earthen ponds (1000 m3). Two biofloc media (C:N = 15–10:1) with and without neem leave extract were applied with reduction of feed supplement from 50% to 100%. The significant difference was observed in final body weight (33.82 ± 0.18 g) in neem based biofloc media than the other tested shrimp with the survival percentage above 87%. Superiority of biofloc based rearing system over the traditional feed based one was established as live weight gain was 28.48–137% more with a reduction of feed conversion ratio by 7.60% to 8.18% in the former. Moreover, feed cost was reduced both in B (8.1%) and NB (8.77%) compared to conventional feed −based culture system (F). The nutrient profile of floc and shrimp also improved as higher protein content was recorded in floc (18.65–19.63%) and shrimp (24.58–26.29%). The development of biofloc within the culture system resulted in cumulative increase of Bacillus population with concomitant decrease of luminous Vibrio population. The findings of the study strongly indicated that biofloc technology could be a potential tool of ecosystem approach towards in-situ environmental amelioration in shrimp farming ponds with substantial reduction of cost towards feed, aqua chemicals used for disease and environmental health management and other operational cost like water exchange.

Effect of the supplementation of olive leaves and olive cake on growth performance and bone mineralisation of broiler chickens

Effect of the supplementation of olive leaves and olive cake on growth performance and bone mineralisation of broiler chickens

SOC Estimation Based on Time Series Neural Network and Its Performance Evaluation

Aimed at the disadvantage of state of charge (SOC) estimation by using traditional feed forward neural network, a new method proposed to soleve the problem. The time series neural network is introduced to estimate the SOC. The experiments results show that the time series neural can estimate the SOC more accurate. In addition, the different structures and the key parameter are discussed to achieve the best performance.

Ethnobotany Study of Traditional Feed and Medicine for Cows and Goats Cattles in Bawean Island

Bawean Island is a small island located in the Java Sea, about 80 miles or 120 kilometers north of the city of Gresik, East Java. Bawean Island consists of 2 sub-districts, namely the Sangkapura sub-district and the Tambak sub-district. Bawean Island has many rice fields, hills, and forests that can meet the needs of cattles and goats. The use of plants as feed and traditional medicine for cattles and goats by breeder on Bawean Island is included in the ethnobotany study. This research aims to know the knowledge of people in utilizing plants as feed and traditional medicine, especially for cattles and goats. This type of research is descriptive-exploratory. Sampling uses Purposive Sampling and Snowball Sampling techniques with open-ended and semi-structured interview types. Based on the results of this study, inventoried 21 species of plants used as feed for cattles, 19 species of plants used as feed for goats, as well as inventoried 33 species of plants used as a traditional medicine for cattles and goats.

ASAS-NANP SYMPOSIUM: RUMINANT/NONRUMINANT FEED COMPOSITION: Challenges and opportunities associated with creating large feed composition tables.

Traditional feed composition tables have been a useful tool in the field of animal nutrition throughout the last 70 yr. The objective of this paper is to discuss the challenges and opportunities associated with creating large feed ingredient composition tables. This manuscript will focus on three topics discussed during the National Animal Nutrition Program (NANP) Symposium in ruminant and nonruminant nutrition carried out at the American Society of Animal Science Annual Meeting in Austin, TX, on July 11, 2019, namely: 1) Using large datasets in feed composition tables and the importance of standard deviation in nutrient composition as well as different methods to obtain accurate standard deviation values, 2) Discussing the importance of fiber in animal nutrition and the evaluation of different methods to estimate fiber content of feeds, and 3) Description of novel feed sources, such as insects, algae, and single-cell protein, and challenges associated with the inclusion of such feeds in feed composition tables. Development of feed composition tables presents important challenges. For instance, large datasets provided by different sources tend to have errors and misclassifications. In addition, data are in different file formats, data structures, and feed classifications. Managing such large databases requires computers with high processing power and software that are also able to run automated procedures to consolidate files, to screen out outlying observations, and to detect misclassified records. Complex algorithms are necessary to identify misclassified samples and outliers aimed to obtain accurate nutrient composition values. Fiber is an important nutrient for both monogastrics and ruminants. Currently, there are several methods available to estimate the fiber content of feeds. However, many of them do not estimate fiber accurately. Total dietary fiber should be used as the standard method to estimate fiber concentrations in feeds. Finally, novel feed sources are a viable option to replace traditional feed sources from a nutritional perspective, but the large variation in nutrient composition among batches makes it difficult to provide reliable nutrient information to be tabulated. Further communication and cooperation among different stakeholders in the animal industry are required to produce reliable data on the nutrient composition to be published in feed composition tables.

Comparison of Rumen Microbiota and Serum Biochemical Indices in White Cashmere Goats Fed Ensiled or Sun-Dried Mulberry Leaves.

Mulberry leaves, which have high nutritional value, have not been fully utilized. Few research systems have indicated whether mulberry leaves can replace traditional feed ingredients in goats. In this study, we investigated the effects of feeding white cashmere goats ensiled (Group E) or sun-dried mulberry leaves (Group S) on changes in ruminal microbial communities, rumen fermentation parameters and serum biochemical indices. The control group (Group C) received a typical total mixed ration (TMR). 16S rRNA gene sequencing revealed 209 genera belonging to 19 bacterial phyla dominated by Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes. Only the relative abundances of Erysipelotrichaceae_UCG-009 were significantly different among the three groups (p < 0.05). Physiological and biochemical findings revealed that only the serum leptin concentrations were significantly decreased when mulberry leaves were added to the diets (p < 0.05). Correlation analysis revealed that Ruminococcus_2 were significantly positively correlated with the butyrate concentration. These findings suggested that supplementation with mulberry leaves only induced minor changes in the abovementioned indicators, implying that the rumen fermentation status was still stable after adding mulberry leaves to the diets.