Using local resources to feed livestock

 By Pikah Kohun

Developing low-cost fee­ding systems by making effective use of local feed resources and agro-industrial byproducts to reduce feed cost for smallholder, semi-commercial and commercial livestock farmers who are the National Agricultural Research Institute’s (NARI) primary target group is an important research focus, especially for livestock researches in Lae, Morobe. 

The current research focus was jointly identified by NARI and relevant stakeholders through the process of consultation as high priority due to the continued rising cost of commercial poultry and pig feed based on imported grains and micro-ingredients. 

This research is well aligned to the NARI strategic objectives and the overall national government medium to long-term development plans.

The target innovation is on the development of improved lower cost feeding systems for smallholder, semi-commercial and commercial broiler and layer chicken, pigs and inland pond fish that emphasise maximum use of local feed resources. 

Recently released improved feed formulations and feeding options for growing broilers responded to these needs by significantly reducing the cost of feeding birds; opening up viable value addition opportunities for garden produce and agro-industrial byproducts;  creating employment opportunities for available household labour and improving the status of women; enhancing farm integration towards greater farm productivity; and improving household food security, reducing poverty and improving health of children. 

Use of mini feed mills and formulated poultry, pig and fish feed concentrates for blending with local feed ingredients to produce balanced diets through the mini feed mills have further enhanced the use of locally available feeds to boost local meat and egg and ease pressure on prices by reducing dependence on imported feed grains. 

The innovation is being piloted in the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu through a collaborative research project funded by European Union.

The major constraint to livestock production, development and expansion faced by smallholder semi-commercial and commercial farmers in PNG is the high and rising cost of commercial feeds formulated from imported ingredients such as wheat, sorghum and soybean, and feed supplements. 

The increase in global market prices of these essential feed grains has led to the high cost of commercial feeds, and in the last 10 years local feed prices have increased from 56-110 per cent. As a consequence prices of animal food products have increased and profit margins have narrowed, especially in poultry and pig production. 

The key strategy to mitigate the effects of high cost of commercial feed on domestic livestock production is to substitute imported feed grains with locally available alternatives like sweet potato, cassava, banana, taro and agro-industrial byproducts such as copra meal, palm kernel meal, rice bran and fish meal. 

In recognition of this, as well as the fact that feed costs constitute as much as 60-70 per cent of the total cost of livestock production, NARI has adopted the research strategy that focuses on developing improved and lower cost feeding systems for smallholder semi-commercial and commercial livestock production that emphasise maximum use of local feed resources.

In 2001 NARI conducted a series of provincial and district consultations and a workshop to determine the key livestock research and development issues for PNG. 

The workshop was supported by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) and involved smallholders, researchers, ex­ten­sion staff and other stakeholders, including the private sector and non-government organisations (NGOs). 

Reducing the cost of livestock feeding was identified as the highest priority. In particular, the smallholder semi-commercial and commercial poultry and pig production. 

The smallholder broiler sub-sector, for example, produces more than 6 million birds per year with a value of over K114 million, was identified as a sector where feed costs could be reduced and profitability increased if there was greater use of local feed resources.

A project on poultry feeding systems based on locally available feed resources was initially developed which received financial support from ACIAR and with the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI) as the Australian partner. PNG partners were Lae Feed Mills from the private sector and two provincial government agencies and an NGO responsible for interactions with farmers. 

Early research concentrated on broiler chickens to establish a quality assured feed testing facility to appropriate standards to enable PNG to assess feeds available for broiler production;  profile, according to feeding value, including seasonal and varietal variation, availability and cost, a selected range of feeds abundant in PNG but not well documented according to modern standards;  conduct on-station feeding trials at both PNG NARI and SARDI with broiler chickens to determine production performance on rations derived from the tested and (as necessary) other feeds; and  field-test and demonstrate on-farm in a participatory manner the use of appropriate rations determined by the testing procedures and taking into account regional availability of feeds.