Nutritional qualities of agro-industrial by-products and local supplementary feeds for dairy cattle feeding

This study assessed the nutritional qualities of major agro-industrial by-products (AIBPs) and locally available feed resources commonly used as supplementary feeds to dairy cattle in Ethiopia. A total of 58 samples belonging to five categories of supplementary feeds viz., compound dairy rations/concentrates, oilseed cakes, wheat bran, middling and grains, brewery by-products, and pulse grain by-products collected from different agro-industries located in and around Addis Ababa and local sources were included in the study. The feed samples were analyzed for chemical contents (DM, Ash, CP, NDF, ADF, Lignin, and in-vitro organic matter digestibility (IVOMD) at Holetta Agricultural Research Center Animal nutrition laboratory. Contents of the various nutritional parameters showed significant variations (pbrewery by-products>compound dairy ration>pulse grain by-products>cereal grain by-products (139.2g/kg DM). The mean NDF content varied in the order: brewery by-products (577.7g/kg DM)>pulse grain byproducts> compound dairy ration>oilseed cakes>cereal grain by-products (250.2g/kg DM). The average ADF content varied in the order: pulse grain by-products (327.8g/kg DM)>brewery by-products>oilseed cakes>compound dairy ration>cereal grain by-products (92.0g/kg DM). The average lignin content also varied in the order: oilseed cakes (79.5g/kg DM)>brewery by-products>pulse grain by-products>compound dairy ration>cereal grain by-products (20.9g/kg DM). The mean IVOMD varied in the order: cereal grain by-products (763.3g/kg DM)>compound dairy ration>oilseed cakes>brewery by-products>pulse grain by-products (537.5g/kg DM). It was generally observed that oilseed cakes and brewery byproducts had higher, while cereal grain by-products and pulse grain by-products had lower CP contents than the range (17-19%) recommended by NRC in the rations of lactating dairy cows during the early lactation stage. On the other hand, the average CP content recorded in compound dairy rations was comparable with the NRC recommendations in dairy cattle diets

Production, Preservation, and Utilization Patterns

አህፅሮትይህ የመስክ ጥናት የተካሄደው በ2008 ዓ.ም. ከኦሮሚያ ክልላዊ መንግስት በተመረጡ የሰበታና በደሌ ከተሞች እንዲሁም ከአማራ ክልላዊ መንግስት በተመረጠ የደብረ ብርሃን ከተማ ውስጥ ነበር፡፡ የጥናቱ ዓላዎች በተመረጡት ከተሞች ውስጥ የሚገኙ የቢራ ፋብሪካዎችን ወቅታዊ የተረፈ-ምርት መኖ አቅም እንዲሁም በየከተሞቹ የሚገኙ ወተት ከብት አርቢዎችን የተረፈ-ምርት መኖዎቹን አከመቻቸትና አጠቃቀም ለማወቅ ነው፡፡ በዋነኛነት በሀገራችን የሚገኙ ፋብካዎች የቢራ ገብስ ጭማቂ መኖንና እርሾን የሚያመርቱ ሲሆን በ2008 ዓ.ም. ብቻ ከ12 የተለያዩ ፋብሪካዎች 26722.8 ቶን የቢራ ገብስ ጭማቂ መኖ (በድርቆሽ ይዘት) እና 360758.1 ሄክቶ ሊትር አርሾ ማምረት ተችሏል፡፡ የመኖ አመጋገብን በተመለከተ በከተሞች መካከል የነበረው የመሰረታዊ መኖ፣ ድጎማ መኖ፣ የቢራ ገብስ ጭማቂ ተረፈ-ምርት መኖ፣ ጨው እና አጠቃላይ ጥቅል ዕለታዊ የመኖ አመጋገብ ልዩነት በጣም የጎላ ነበር፡፡ ጠቅለል ባለ መልኩ ሲታይ በሰበታ የሚገኙ ታላቢ ላሞች የመኖ ፍጆታ ከበደሌ እና ደ/ብርሃን ከተማ ከሚገኙት ላሞች ፍጆታ የላቀ መሆኑን ለማስተዋል ተችሏል፡፡ የቢራ ገብስ ጭማቂ በወተት ከብቶች የወተት ምርት፣ ጥራትና እንስሳት ጤና ላይ የሚያስከትለውን ለውጥ ለማወቅ በአርቢዎቹ ላይ በተደረገ ጥናት የተገኘ ግብረ-መልስ እዳመለከተው ከወተት ጥራት በስተቀር በከተሞቹ መካከል ምንም የጎላ የግብረ-መልስ ልዩነት እደሌለ ለመረዳት ተችሏል፡፡የቢራ ገብስ ጭማቂን ሳይበላሽ ለረዥም ጊዜ ለማቆየት በሚያስችሉ ተለምዷዊ ዘዴዎችን ለመለየት በተደረገ ጥናት በጨው መዘፍዘፍ፣ በፀሐይ ሙቀት ማረድረቅና በገፈራ መልክ ማከማቸት እንደ ቅደም-ተከተላቸው ጥቅም ላይ የዋሉ መሆናቸውን ለመለየት ተችሏል፡፡ አቅርቦትን በተመለከተ በሰበታ ከተማ የሚገኙ አርቢዎች በተነፃፃሪነት የተሻለ የቢራ ገብስ ጭማቂ ተረፈ-ምርት መኖ አቅርቦት ሲኖራቸው የአንድ ኩንታል ደረቅ ተረፈ-ምርት መኖ ዋጋ በተጠኑት ከተሞች በአማካይ 82.50 እንደሚሸጥ ለማውቅ ተችሏል፡፡ የጥናቱ ከተሞች በዓመታዊ የጥቅል ገቢና ወጪ ክፍያዎቻቸው የሚለያዩ ሲሆኑ የሰበታ ከብት አርቢ በዓመት ለአንዲት ታላቢ ዲቃላ የወተት ከብት ከሚያወጣው ወጪ አንፃር ሲታይ በጥቅሉ በበደሌና ደ/ብርሃን ከተሞች ከሚገኙ አርቢዎች የላቀ ትርፍ በዓመት ማግኘት እንደሚችል ለመረዳት ተችሏል፡፡ Abstract The study was conducted at Sebeta and Bedele towns in Oromia regional state and at Debre-Berhan town in Amhara regional state during October-January 2016/17. The objectives of the study were; to assess the current feed byproduct production potentials of the breweries, existing storage conditions and the status of brewery spent grain utilization by smallholder dairy farms in the study areas. The result showed that brewery spent grain (BSG) and Brewer’s spent yeast (BSY) are the commonly produced byproduct feeds across all beer factories in Ethiopia. There were 12 beer factories producing an estimated 26722.8 tons BSG (DM basis) and 360,758.1 hectoliter (hl) of BSY in 2016 G.C... Substantial differences (P<0.05) were observed for the estimated daily average basal, concentrate, BSG, mineral (salt) and total feed DM intakes (TDMI) among the study areas. There was no difference in the views of responding households regarding long term effects of BSG feeding on lactation and health performances of dairy cattle (P>0.05). There was however, great variations in farmers’ response towards long term effect of BSG feeding on milk compositional changes (P<0.05). Commonly used BSG preservation techniques across the surveyed areas included salting, sun drying and ensiling in that order of importance. There was variation (P<0.000) among the study areas in terms of preference to the type of preservation techniques used to elongate shelf life of stored BSG. The responding farmers in Sebeta (77.27%) and Debre Birhan (61.43%) reported to have better access to BSG compared to the dairy farms in Bedele town (P<0.05). Similarly, the price (mean ± SE) of a quintal of brewer`s grain on DM basis was 82.50 ± 0.94 birr and showed variation (P<0.02) among the surveyed areas. Annual feed cost and revenue obtained from dairy farms also showed high variation among the study areas. The finding showed that  dairy farms in Sebeta town were spending about 39% more cost for feed and  managed to earn 28365.16 and 38509.58 birr more revenue per annum than dairy  farms at Bedele and Debre Birhan. The study generally elucidated that availability, storage and proper feeding of BSG were major problems faced by dairy farmers in the study areas

Chemical Composition, In vitro Digestibility and Drying Rate of Sugarcane Tops Using Different Curing Methods

አህፅሮትየሸንኮራ አገዳ ጫፍ በአገራችን በስኳር ፋብሪካዎች አከባቢና እና በአነስተኛ ሸንኮራ አገዳ አምራች ገበሬዎች ዘንድ የሚገኝ የእንስሳት መኖ ሀብት ነው፡፡ ይሁን እንጂ በሀገራችን እስካሁን የመኖ ጠቃሜታውን ለማሻሻልና በአያያዝ ጉድለት የሚመጣውን ብክነት ለመቀነስ የተካሄደ ጥናት በስፋት የለም። የዚህ ጥናት ዓላማም የርጥብ ሸንኮራ አገዳ ጫፍን ድርቆሽ በማዘጋጀት ሳይበላሽ ለረጅም ጊዜ ለማቆየት እንዲቻል ጥራቱን በተለያዩ የድርቆሽ አዘገጃጀት ዘዴዎች መፈተሽ ነው። ይህም በሳት የተቃጠለና (የተለበለበ) ያልተቃጠለ (ያልተለበለበ) የሸንኮራ አገዳ ጫፍን ሳይከረታተፍና ተከረታትፎ በፀሀይና በጥላ ሥር በማድረቅ ዘዴ የሚዘጋጀውን ድርቆሽ የንጥረ-ነገር ይዘት፣ የመፈጨት ደረጃውንና ለመድረቅ የሚፈጀውን ጊዜ ለመገምገም ነበር። የእያንዳንዱን አሰራር ዘዴ አምስት ጊዜ በመደጋገምና በተለያዩ ጊዜያት ናሙናዎች በመውሰድ አማካይ የድርቀት መጠናቸዉ 85 በመቶ ሲቃረብ በማቆም የናሙናዎች ኬየሚካለዊ ትንተና ተካሂደዋል። በተለበለቡና ባልተለበለቡ የሸንኮራ አገዳ ጫፍ መነሻ ናሙናዎች (fresh/original sugarcane tops) መካከል ያለው የመኖ ንጥረ-ነገር ይዘት ልዩነት የጎላ አልነበረም። ተከርትፈዉ በፀሀይ የደረቁት የሸንኮራ አገዳ ጫፍ ናሙናዎች ሦስት ቀናት ባልበለጠ ጊዜ የደረቁ ሲሆን፤ በአንፃሩ ያልተከረተፉት ናሙናዎች ለመድረቅ ከ45 እስከ 68 ቀናት ወስዶባቸዋል። በማድረቂያ ዘዴዎችና በሸንኮራ አገዳ ጫፍ ዓይነቶች መለየት ምክንያት በሚንራል(ash)፣ በቃጫ (NDF, ADL)፣በሟሚ ካርቦኃይድሬቶች (NFC)፣ በኃይል ሰጪ (ME)፣ በፎስፈረስ ይዘትና በተፈጭነት ደረጃ (digestibility) ልዩነት ማየት ተችሏል። የማድረቂያ ዘዴዎቹ መለያየት ከናሙናዎቹ ድርቀት(DM) እና ፕሮቲን ይዘት ዉጪ በሌሎች ንጥረ-ነገሮች ይዘቶች ላይ ልዩነት አልነበራቸዉም። በሌላ በኩል በፀሀይ የደረቀ ያልተከረተፈ-የተቃጠለ የሸንኮራ አገዳ ጫፍ ድርቆሽ የቃጫ(NDF) ይዘት አነስተኛና በፀሀይ ከደረቀው ያልተከረተፈ-ያልተቃጠለ ናሙና ልዩነት የለውም። በአንፃሩ የተከረተፉና በፀሐይ የደረቁ ናሙናዎች ሳይከረተፉ ከደረቁት ናሙናዎች በሟሚ ካርቦሀይድሬት፣ በቅባትና በሄማይሴሉለስ-ቃጫ ይዘት ከፍተኛ ሆነው በADF-ቃጫ ይዘት በእጅጉ ያነሱ ናቸዉ። በአጠቃላይ ከሸንኮራ አገዳ ጫፍ ድርቆሽ ለማዘጋጀት መከርተፍና በፀሀይ ማድረቅ የሚወስደዉን ጊዜ በእጅጉ ይቀንሳል፣ ብልሽትንና የንጥረ-ነገር ብክነትን በመቀነስ የመኖ ጠቀሜታውን ያጎላል። AbstractThis study was conducted to evaluate effects of different drying methods on chemical composition, in vitro digestibility and drying rate of sugarcane tops (SCT). Treatments were set in factorial arrangement (2 SCT types (green and burnt) x 3 drying methods (shed and sun drying of intact SCT and sun drying of chopped SCT) in a completely randomized design. Each treatment was replicated 5 times and samples were dried at a swath density of 4 kg/m2. Dry matter (DM) of samples was determined at time interval until the treatment average approached the safest content (≈ 85% DM) for storage. Fresh (samples at harvesting) and dried samples were chemically analyzed. The fresh burnt SCT had slightly higher DM, ash, EE, ADL, Ca, P, IVDMD, IVOMD and ME contents, but had lower CP and NFC contents than the fresh green SCT. The chopped burnt and green SCT dried at a rate of 19.8 and 20.7% per day, respectively. Rate of drying was highest in the 1st week for all drying methods, then after decreased progressively. The lowest dehydration rate (0.92 and 0.99% per day), or longest drying time (68 and 60 days) was attained by shed dried intact green and burnt SCT, respectively. There were significant interaction effects (P<0.05) of drying methods and SCT types on ash, NDF, ADL, IVDMD, IVOMD, ME, NFC and P contents. Except for DM and CP, the drying methods had varied (P<0.0001) effect on nutrient content of SCT. The NDF content of burnt SCT was lower (P<0.05) for intact sun dried samples compared to other drying methods, but values for the green SCT did not vary (P>0.05) among the drying methods. However, ADF contents of sun- and shed dried intact SCT were not different (P>0.05), but were higher (P>0.05) than that of chopped sun-dried SCT. The sun-dried chopped SCT had higher (P<0.05) ether extract (EE) and hemicelluloses contents. However, sun-dried chopped green SCT had lower NDF and ADL than sun-dried chopped burnt SCT, but were similar (P>0.05) in DM, OM digestibility and ME contents. The NFC content was inversely related to the fiber fraction, being lower (P<0.05) for sun-dried chopped burnt SCT and shed-dried intact burnt SCT. The under shed dried intact green SCT had higher NFC content than sun dried chopped green SCT (P<0.05). In conclusion, the drying methods used in this study had variable effect on chemical composition, although lacks consistency in the trend. Chopping SCT clearly increases drying rate, shorten drying period and conserve nutrients that has been reflected in better in vitro digestibility and ME.

Evaluation of vetch species and their accessions for agronomic performance and Nutritive value in the Central Highlands of Ethiopia

Twenty accessions of five vetch species were evaluated for agronomic and nutritional attributes at Holetta and Ginchi in the central highlands of Ethiopia during 2009 main cropping season. The experiment was conducted in randomized complete block design with three replications. Most measured parameters revealed significant

Effects of Spacing of Elephant Grass and Vetch Intercropping on Agronomic Performance and Herbage Yield of Elephant Grass

AbstractAn experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of different spacing ofelephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum) and vetch (Vicia dasycarpa and Viciavillossa) intercropping on plant height, leaf to stem ratio, tillering, stand count, andsubsequent dry matter yield (DMY) of elephant grass. The forages for fieldexperiment were evaluated during the main cropping season of 2016 and 2017 atHoletta and Debre Zeit Agricultural Research Centers in the central highlands ofEthiopia. The treatments consisting of three vetch intercropping (pure stand elephantgrass, elephant grass intercropped with V. dasycarpa and V. villosa) and fourspacing of elephant grass S1(75*75), S2(100*50), S3(125*25) and S4(50*50 cm).The treatment combinations were planted on 13.5m2 plots using a randomizedcomplete block design with three replications. Most measured traits revealedsignificant (P<0.05) differences between the treatments, years and locations. Vetchintercropping resulted 70.0 and 8.5% yield advantage over pure stand elephantgrass at Holetta and Debre Zeit, respectively. When combined over locations andyears, average annual DMY was 9.47, 12.16, and 12.01 t/ ha for elephant grassplanted in pure stand, intercropped with V. dasycarpa and V. villosa respectively.In the combined analysis, herbage DM produced 12.96, 11.02, 10.55, and 10.32 t/hawhen planted at spacing of S4, S3, S2, and S1, respectively. S4 had 17.6, 22.8 and25.6% higher DMY advantage when compared with S3, S2 and S1, respectively. Inconclusion, vetch intercropping (at a seed rate of 25 kg/ha) three weeks afterelephant grass establishment at inter and intra row spacing of 50 cm substantiallyimprove annual DM yields of elephant grass. Hence, it could be advisable to beadopted by farmers who grow elephant grass in pure stands as livestock feed

Chemical Composition, in situ Degradability and in vitro Gas Production of Tagasaste (Chamaecytisus palmensis) Forage Harvested at Different Stages

The leguminous tree tagasaste is highly productive in the Ethiopian highlands. However, its nutritional value, as affected by the different agronomic practices is not fully understood under the tropical highland conditions. This study investigated the quality profile of tagasaste forage harvested at different re-growth stages by measuring the chemical composition, in situ degradability and in vitro gas production. Tagasaste re-growths after one year of establishment was harvested and the re-growths starting from the main rainy season (July) was harvested at 4, 6, 8 and 10 months. The harvested forages were fractionated into leaves and edible branches. Chemical composition, in situ degradability using rumen fistulated steers and in vitro gas production using rumen fluid from rumen fistulated dry cows were evaluated. The average crude protein (CP) content of tagasaste in the leaves ranged between 189 and 242 g kg-1 dry matter (DM) was not significantly affected by harvesting stage regrowth. The neutral detergent fibre, acid detergent fibre, acid detergent lignin and ether extract contents of tagasaste increased with length of re-growth. The amino acid profile of tagasaste protein showed high contents of the essential amino acids leucine and lysine but lower contents of methionine and histidine. Tagasaste grown under Ethiopian highland conditions was found deficient in phosphorus, sulphur, and sodium, but had adequate amounts of calcium, potassium, zinc and iron. The average in situ potential and effective degradability of leaves were 795 and 518 g kg-1 DM respectively and was lowest at the 10 months harvesting stage. The in vitro gas production declined with length of re-growth. Gas production was higher for leaves followed by branches with mean value of 43.7 and 39.1 ml 200-1 mg DM at 24 h respectively. The high CP content, degradability and in vitro gas production of tagasaste forage reveals its high potential to be used as a protein supplement for ruminants. The studied quality parameters should be further verified using animal performance

Effects of Additive Type and Ensiling Periods on Fermentation Characteristics of Green Maize Stover

AbstractThis study was conducted to investigate optimum ensiling period and type of additive formaking quality silage from green maize stover (GMS). Green maize stover from which the earwas removed for consumption/selling was used for the study. The stover was chopped into 1 to3cm long to facilitate compaction and consolidation. Treatments were arranged in a 3*4factorial setup with three ensiling periods and four silage treatment types; without additive(control), 1% EM (effective micro-organisms), 1% FJLB (Fermentative Juice of Lactic acidBacteria), and 3% molasses on fresh weight basis. The experiment was laid out in a completelyrandomized design in which except the control group, each of the three groups were treatedand ensiled with the respective additives for 4, 6, and 8weeks each with five replications.Physical quality, chemical composition, and in vitro organic matter digestibility of the silageswere analyzed. The result depicted that GMS silage made with inclusion of 3% molasses andensiled for six weeks period showed relatively reduced NDF and ADF contents. On the otherhand, GMS silage which was treated with 3% molasses and incubated for six weeks resulted inrelatively high in-vitro organic matter digestibility(54.47%), metabolizable energy (8.72MJ/kgDM), and crude protein content (5.9 %). The measured physical characteristics in terms ofcolor, smell, texture and mold coverage, pH and temperature of GMS ensiled using 3%molasses for six weeks were also within the recommended range for quality silage. Therefore,3% molasses as an additive on fresh weight basis with fermentation period of 6 weekscombination could be used for making quality silage from GMS

Milk yield and quality of crossbred dairy cows fed with different levels of vetch (Vicia dasycarpa) hay and concentrate on a basal diet of fresh cut napier grass (Penissetium purpureum)

This study was conducted to examine the effect of different levels of vetch hay (Vicia dasycarpa) supplementation on feed intake, milk yield and milk composition of 50:50 Boran-Freisian crossbred dairy cows fed a basal diet of napier grass (Penissetium purpureum). Five crossbred dairy cows at an early stage of lactation with average milk yield of 6 – 8 liters/cow/day and body weight of 390 ±15 kg (mean±STD) were arranged in a 5*5 latin square design. In the first 4 treatments, napier grass was fed ad libitum as basal diet, while in T5 (the control diet) native hay was the basal diet. In treatment 1, 2 and 3 vetch hay was supplemented at 20% (2.4 kg), 30% (3.6 kg) and 40% (4.8 kg) replacement of the total daily DM intake, respectively. In T4 and T5 concentrate mix (55% wheat bran, 43% noug seed cake (Gizotia abysinica) and 2% salt) was supplemented at the rate of 0.5 kg per liter of milk produced. Total dry matter intake differed among treatments in the order of T4>T3=T5>T2>T1. Milk yield was greater for concentrate supplemented treatments compared with the vetch supplemented ones, and was similar (P>0.05) among the different level of vetch supplemented groups. Milk fat and protein were not affected (P>0.05) by treatments. In general this study indicated that optimum milk production (8.81 liter/cow/day) can be obtained with the use of napier grass supplemented with 2.4 kg/cow/day vetch hay dry matter

Development of a multi-metric index based on macroinvertebrates for wetland ecosystem health assessment in predominantly agricultural landscapes, Upper Blue Nile basin, northwestern Ethiopia

Developing multi-metric indices (MMIs) as a tool for inland water ecosystem assessment has attracted the attention of the global scientific community. The number of studies, which developed macroinvertebrate-based multi-metric indices for wetlands, however, was very limited. Thus, more work is needed to refine and implement it depending on the ecological contexts of wetlands. On top of this, we developed multi-metric indices based on macroinvertebrate assemblages that could be used for the ecological health assessment of wetlands that are impacted by agricultural activities in North-western Ethiopia. About 20 sampling sites were established in four wetlands along the disturbance gradient to take water and macroinvertebrates samples. The reference sites, which were least disturbed by human intervention, were established for the construction of multi-metric indices. Six core metrics were selected for the development of the final multi-metric indices from fifty-six potential metrics of macroinvertebrate assemblages after passing through sensitivity and statistical tests. The findings demonstrated all reference sites had good or high ecological conditions. On the contrary, the ecological statuses of nearly 70% of the impaired sites were found to be in bad to poor conditions. A significant distinction between reference and impaired sites suggested our index ability to identify the gradient variation in the ecological condition of wetlands. A strong negative relationship of the multi-metric indices model with most of the physicochemical variables and all human disturbance factors also suggested the appropriateness of the developed index in informing the ecological status of wetlands. Thus, we believe that our multi-metric indices could be a useful biomonitoring tool for the assessment and monitoring of wetland ecological conditions in predominantly agricultural landscapes in the Upper Blue Nile basin and beyond