Emerging feed markets for ruminant production in urban and peri-urban areas of Northern Ghana.

Feed shortage in urban and peri-urban areas has triggered the emergence of feed markets in Northern Ghana. These markets were surveyed at three locations (Tamale, Bolgatanga, and Wa markets) to determine types and prices of feedstuffs sold across seasons; early dry (November-January), late dry (February-April), early wet (May-July), and main wet (August-October). Semi-structured questionnaire was used for data collection. Three samples of each feed type in the markets were bought from three different sellers per market in each season. The samples were oven dried to constant weight and price/kg DM of each feed determined. The total respondents were 169. Out of this number, 41% were feed sellers, 46% buyers, and 13% retailers. The feedstuffs found were crop residues (groundnut haulm and cowpea haulm), agro-industrial by-products (bran of maize, rice, and sorghum), fresh grasses (Rotteboellia cochinchinensis), and local browses (Ficus sp. and Pterocarpus erinaceous). Prices of feeds differed (P < 0.05) among markets and were higher in Bolgatanga than Tamale and Wa markets. Prices of cereal bran were not different (P > 0.05) in all seasons but that of crop residues were higher (P < 05) in early to late dry season than the wet season. Majority (90%) of respondents opined that the feed market will expand due to increasing number of livestock population in the peri-urban areas.

Effect of barley silage chop length and inoculation on growth performance, feeding behavior, and ruminal acidosis in finishing feedlot steers.

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of chop length and inoculation of barley silage on feeding behavior, rumen fermentation, and growth performance of finishing feedlot steers. Barley forage (22-35% DM) was chopped to a theoretical chop length (TCL) of either 1.0 (short chop; SC) or 2.0 cm (long chop; LC) and ensiled without or with an esterase-producing bacterial inoculant in a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement of treatments with TCL and inoculation as the main factors. The resultant silages were then incorporated into 4 finishing diets and fed to 80 feedlot steers (n = 20) housed in feedlot pens equipped with a GrowSafe system. Each pen consisted of 8 intact and 2 cannulated steers. Feeding behavior and ruminal pH were measured continuously using the GrowSafe system and ruminal indwelling pH probes, respectively. On average, inoculated silages had higher acetic acid concentrations and lower NDF concentrations. Increasing the TCL from 1.0 to 2.0 cm increased DMI by 0.5 kg/d (P = 0.001), but intake was unaffected ( P= 0.56) by inoculation. Feed efficiency and ADG were not affected (P ≥ 0.46) by TCL, inoculation, or TCL × inoculation interaction. Steers fed LC silage exhibited a reduced eating rate compared to those fed SC silage (8.6 vs. 9.2 kg DM/h) and consequently spent more time (77.5 vs. 70.2 min/(visit∙d)) at the feed bunk. Inoculation also reduced the area under the curve and duration of ruminal pH below 5.8, 5.5, and 5.2 for steers fed the LC diet but increased (P ≤ 0.003) these parameters for those fed the SC diet. It was concluded that incorporation of longer chopped silage into a finishing diet increased DMI, with responses of ruminal pH to inoculation differing between SC and LC silage. Increasing the TCL of barley silage from 1.0 to 2.0 cm may have no additional benefits to finishing feedlot operators as it did not improve rumen function or the growth performance of feedlot steers.

A third-generation esterase inoculant alters fermentation pattern and improves aerobic stability of barley silage and the efficiency of body weight gain of growing feedlot cattle.

This study investigated the effects of a mixed bacterial inoculant possessing ferulic acid esterase (FAE) activity on silage fermentation characteristics, aerobic stability, and growth performance of growing feedlot steers. Whole-crop barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) forage (35% DM) was chopped and ensiled without a silage inoculant (UN) or with a mixed bacterial culture containing 1.0 × 10(11) cfu/g of Lactobacillus buchneri LN4017 that produces FAE, 2.0 × 10(10) cfu/g of Lactobacillus plantarum LP7109, and 1.0 × 10(10) cfu/g of Lactobacillus casei LC3200 at a combined rate of 1.3 × 10(5) cfu/g of fresh forage (IN) in mini and Ag-Bag (Ag-Bag Int. Ltd., Warrenton, OR) silos. Silages from the mini silos were assessed for the effect of inoculation on fermentation characteristics and aerobic stability, whereas silages from Ag-Bags were used to formulate 2 barley silage-based total mixed rations (UN and IN) that were fed to growing feedlot steers for 112 d. The IN silage exhibited a homolactic fermentation during the first 7 d of ensiling as reflected by an increased (P ≤ 0.02) lactic acid concentration and an accelerated rate (P < 0.01) of pH decline. Thereafter, fermentation of IN silage became more heterolactic, resulting in greater concentrations of acetic acid (P < 0.01) and pH (P < 0.01) but less (P < 0.01) lactic acid than UN silage. Inoculation did not affect DM losses (P = 0.52) from mini silos. The IN silage remained stable during 21 d, but temperature and yeasts counts in the UN silage increased after 5 d of aerobic exposure. Growing steers fed the IN silage diet had superior (P = 0.03) feed conversion efficiency compared with those fed UN silage. Inoculation of whole-crop barley silage with a mixed culture of homolactic lactic acid-producing bacteria and FAE-producing L. buchneri at ensiling changed fermentation from a homolactic to a heterolactic form during ensiling and improved aerobic stability of the silage and efficiency of BW gain of growing feedlot steers.