JAS officers engaged in the Feed Assessment Tool Survey workshop ©FAO

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is continuing its work to improve the sustainability of Jamaica's livestock sector through the project "Assessment of Locally Produced Livestock Feed Ingredients to Strengthen the Sector’s Sustainability." A key component of this project is the development of a feed formulation tool, designed to assist farmers in creating tailored feed solutions using locally sourced ingredients. The tool is targetted to farmers already engaged in the practice of mixing feed to supplement commerical feed.

To inform the development of this tool, FAO has partnered with the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS) to administer a Feed Assessment Tool Survey. This survey aims to collect essential data on available feed ingredients across the island. Recently, JAS officers from 12 parishes received training to effectively administer the survey. The training addressed various aspects of the survey process, including engaging the farming community, ensuring broad participation, and utilizing effective communication methods to facilitate survey completion.

Dr. Tanika O’Connor-Dennie, Livestock Feed Specialist, highlighted that the data gathered from the survey will be instrumental in developing the feed formulation tool. This tool will enable farmers to formulate feed on their farms, using local resources such as by-products from agro-processors. The project will collaborate with local laboratories operated by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Mining to analyze the nutrient content of the collected samples. This information will then be fed into the tool, which will generate feed formulas tailored to specific classes of animals and the available raw materials.

The project will also conduct a one-week pilot survey involving 10 farmers per parish. Feedback from this pilot will be used to refine the survey before its full implementation at the end of September. Additionally, the project includes plans to assess and upgrade local laboratories to enhance their capacity in supporting the feed formulation process.