Comment
Many problems are currently being encountered in the field of animal production in developing countries. Among them is the increasing human population, which in turn calls for an increase in food crop production and land devoted to this purpose, resulting in less available land in the future for grassland, pasture and fodder crops. Feeds, however, will long remain the major constraint for livestock development and the major component of the cost of animal production, generally above 60 to 70 percent of the total cost. Any increase in the availability of feed or a reduction of its cost will continue to have a dramatic effect on the total production and cost of animal products. On the other hand, growing foreign exchange difficulties and the debt-servicing needs of many developing countries have obliged them to cut down on feed imports, especially for monogastric animals such as pigs and poultry. There is, therefore, a great need at present for the promotion of sustainable alternative feeding systems based on cereal substitutes.
In this overall context, the fundamental objectives of the FAO Programme for Better Utilization of Local Feed Resources in Developing Countries are specifically the following:
· To increase the availability of energy and protein-rich feed resources not only at the lowest possible economic cost, but also at the lowest possible cost to the environment.· To contribute to the protection of the environment. This could be achieved, for example, by avoiding overgrazing and subsequent land degradation, by avoiding pollution through feeding cereal straws and stovers to ruminants instead of burning them, by feeding animals various agro-industrial byproducts and wastes that may otherwise create pollution and by developing integrated feeding systems that make better use of fodder trees. In the latter case, for example, animal production could be naturally enhanced by linking it with agroforestry, thereby preserving basic natural resources.
· To develop sustainable alternative feeding systems for ruminants and non-ruminants, including animal species most adapted to making better use of various feeds. These systems, based on locally available or potential feed resources, must be integrated within the existing farming systems and may include such activities as the production of rural energy: biogas from manure and producer gas from fibrous residues, for example. When equipment is necessary, preference must be given as much as possible to that made locally, using local materials and expertise.
In order to reach these objectives, various strategies may be applied. The global strategy, however, consists of matching livestock feeding systems with locally available or potential feed resources. Specifically, the programme at present is focused on increased and better use of locally or potentially available feed resources, particularly at the level of smallholders, with special emphasis on feeds produced, processed and used on-farm and on appropriate technologies affordable for small farmers. Following a rough assessment of the main feeds available, sustainable feeding systems are now being elaborated, tested and proposed to farmers. Feeding systems based on roots, tubers and bananas, sugar-cane by-products, fodder trees and animal and fish wastes are possibilities.
On the other hand, the dissemination of feed information is being improved through the use of computerized systems. For example, Tropical feeds, a book by Bo Gohl that is now available on diskette at a low cost, will be regularly updated. Computer-assisted training programmes for the dissemination of proven technologies are a priority as well. Special attention is also being given to important technical topics by means of expert consultations, training courses and workshops. The focus is also on the establishment of networks to ensure the practical application of proven technologies, such as molasses-urea blocks, straw treatment, the utilization of sugar cane and its by-products, and integrated fodder tree systems, all of which are being carried out in close cooperation with developing countries.
Within this general framework, small pilot projects have been proposed for funding to implement established appropriate technologies at farm level and, if these proposals are successful, funds will be sought for large-scale development projects from UNDP, trust funds, the World Bank, IFAD, regional banks, etc. External cooperation with international organizations (such as CATIE, CIAT and ILCA), bilateral institutions (such as EMVT, NRI and SAREC) and national research institutes or universities (Aarhus University, Denmark; INRA, France; ISRA, Senegal; MARDI, Malaysia; Norwegian Agricultural University, Norway; Rowett Institute, UK; UNE, Armidale University, Australia; and Uppsala University, Sweden, for example) is currently being pursued and intensified. New cooperation is also extended to non-governmental organizations (for example, BAIF, India; CIPAV, Colombia; DANCHURCH, Denmark; and Vétérinaires Sans Frontières, France).
The main achievements of past activities are concentrated in the area of improved and greater use of crop residues and agro-industrial by-products, as well as in strategic supplementation for animal feeding.
Various projects with the objective of better utilization of straw for ruminant feeding through ammonia treatment, using mainly urea and in some cases ammonia gas, were successfully implemented. About 30 countries have been advised and a regional network that includes six Mediterranean countries has been established.
Other projects aimed at manufacturing and utilizing multinutritional blocks made of molasses, urea or bran, for example, to supplement nitrogen-deficient ruminant diets were implemented. A new and simple technology was conceived and developed by the FAO Feed Resources Group to manufacture such blocks, making them easier to prepare at the village or even the farm level.
An innovative technology using sugar cane as the basis of integrated feeding systems for pigs, ducks and large and small ruminants associated with the production of energy from bagasse and manure has also been developed.
More recently, activities aimed at using roots, tubers, bananas and plantains for animal feeding were initiated. The use of legumes and other fodder trees as protein sources for livestock is also in the programme.
Looking into the future, most of these activities will be pursued and intensified in order to extend to more countries the benefits of the above-mentioned proven technologies and to promote their expansion, improvement and adaptation to local conditions in various tropical environments. In addition, efforts will be made to promote simple and inexpensive methods of preserving fish industry and slaughterhouse wastes, using molasses as a preservative agent.
