Inventory of livestock feeds in Malawi

J.T. Munthali and B.H. Dzowela

Ministry of Agriculture, Department of Agricultural Research
Chitedze Research Station, P.O. Box 158, Lilongwe, Malawi

Introduction
Grazing resources
Planted forage and fodder crops
Crop residues
Concentrate feeds
Utilization of feed resources
Conclusion
References

Introduction

The livestock industry of Malawi comprises a large traditional sector and only a small but important commercial sector. For example, about 96% of the nation's cattle are in the traditional sector (MOA 1969). The cattle population is about one million and growing at 5% per annum (DAHI 1982). The offtake rate from the traditional sector is estimated at 9%, but the total marketed offtake passing through the rural markets and the Cold Storage Company (CSC) is estimated at 25%. The populations of goats and sheep are 630,000 and 157,000, respectively, and the growth rates are 1.5% for goats and negligible for sheep (MOA 1982). The offtakes are estimated at 40% and 19% for goats and sheep, respectively. Pigs, poultry and fish are also important sources of animal protein in the nation.

The annual per capital consumption of meat is 3.2 kg. This low figure is a result of low livestock numbers combined with low productivity per animal. The major constraint to the livestock industry in Malawi is poor animal husbandry, the chief component being feeding. The traditional sector is plagued with multiple social and economic constraints to both crop and animal production. In order to improve livestock production from this sector, significant extension efforts towards better grazing management and utilization of crop residues need to be emphasized.

This paper is intended to give information about the feed resources available to livestock producers in the country and, where possible, the expected levels of animal production if these feeds were given.

Grazing resources

Malawi's ruminant carrying capacity has been estimated as ranging from 877,000 to 1,279,000 livestock units (LU)* (Booker Agriculture International Limited 1983). Table 1 shows the carrying capacity for cattle alone.

* 1 LU is equivalent to 340 kg live weight

Table 1. National carrying capacity from grazing for cattle

a Average 5 head per LU
^b Average 1.3 head per LU
Source: Booker Agriculture International Limited 1983

Using the Lower estimate, there is a deficit in carrying capacity of 18,302 head. This deficit might be reflected in the observed low productivity of traditional livestock. Improvements in the carrying capacity of ruminants might come from planted forage and fodder crops, improved utilization of crop residues and increased use of supplements/concentrates.

Planted forage and fodder crops

Although the technology for pasture production is available in Malawi, its adoption by the traditional sector is poor. The technology is presently adopted by the commercial sector, which uses Rhodes grass in tobacco rotations, and some smallholder dairy producers. Pasture improvement in the traditional sector is difficult because (1) grazing is by customary right with everybody having free access to the grazing areas; (2) improved pastures are expensive to establish, maintenance requires regular fertilizer applications and fencing might be necessary to control grazing; and (3) the average holding in Malawi is small and does not allow the farmer to establish a significant area of pasture on his own land unless it can provide him with a greater return than that from crap production. Dairying might justify pasture establishment in the traditional sector but not beef production.

The available technology for pasture production is described in the Pasture Handbook of Malawi. A summary of the dry-matter yields, crude-protein values and organic-matter digestibility of prominent pastures in the nation is given in Tables 2, 3 and 4.

Table 2. Dry-matter production of some selected forages in Malawi

Source: MOA 1983

Table 3. Crude-protein contents of natural grasslands and improved forage species in Malawi

Source: MOA 1983

The crude-protein content of young and improved grasses is higher than that of unimproved forages (Table 3) and that of legumes is even higher. Therefore the inclusion of legumes in grass pastures would improve the overall nitrogen content of hays. The digestibility of improved grasses is also much higher than that of unimproved grasses (Table 4).

Table 4. Digestibility of some natural grassland species and improved forage species

Source: MOA 1983

Dry-matter production, crude protein and organic-matter digestibility are all higher for improved pastures than for natural pastures. Thus, an increase in the establishment of improved pastures alone would be expected to more than double the present ruminant carrying capacity (based on dry-matter production in Table 2). Gold Coast Napier grass and Ntchisi Panic grass are particularly high yielding (Table 2) and could be better utilized under the cut-and-carry systems of livestock production. Since these forages are capable of high yields, a farmer could plant them near his homestead thereby avoiding the need for fencing whilst restricting the use of the forage to his own animals.

Crop residues

Estimates of crop-residue production are given in Table 5 and the available total digestible nutrients (TDN) are shown in Table 6. Crop residues provide valuable grazing from April to August. From September to November ruminants thrive on scanty supplies of crop residues, overgrazed river basins, browse, and coarse standing hays. Rampant bush fires reduce the quantity of standing hays even more. The available TDN from crop residues could support an additional 861,137 LU per year (Table 6). Since crop residues are available only during the dry season, their utilization is restricted to that season. Therefore they would be best utilized for maintaining stock during the dry season and not to support extra stock. The utilization of crop residues might be enhanced by improving their intake and feeding value through some convenient means of treatment.

Table 5. Basic statistics on production of crop residues and crop by-products

a. Based on kernel-to-residue ratios of 2:1 for maize, sorghum and bulrush millet, and 1:1 for rice, wheat and groundnuts.

^b. Based on kernel-to-bran/cake-yield ratios of 3.1:1 for maize, 10:1 for rice, 4:1 for wheat, 2:1 for groundnuts, and 3.3:1 for cotton seed.

^c. Based on paddy rice-to-husk ratio of 4:1.

^d. Pulses purchased by Agricultural Development and Marketing Corporation.

Concentrate feeds

The Grain and Milling Company was established in 1971 to provide balanced feedstuffs from local raw materials, and to reduce imports of animal feeds. The volume of animal feeds produced by Grain and Milling Company ranges from 500 to 1,500 tonnes per month. The large range in monthly production is not necessarily a response to demand at the time. It is indicative of the unpredictable nature of the supply of concentrate feeds. Most of the concentrates produced are used by commercial animal producers.

Minerals and supplements are also supplied by the Grain and Milling Company but other companies such as Shell Chemicals and Malawi Pharmacies also supply them.

Table 6. Available TDN from crop residues and by-products

a. Calculated from the estimated yields given in Table 5

Utilization of feed resources

The research work conducted on animal production in Malawi is usually geared towards small-scale livestock production. The main feeds evaluated are crop residues (maize stover and groundnut tops), maize bran and Rhodes grass (mainly for fattening steers).

The performance of steers grazed on Rhodes grass pasture is given in Table 7. Cattle performance per LU declined with increasing stocking rate, although total gain increased per hectare. The situation in Malawi favours the 2.5 stocking rate due to short supplies of fattening stock, and hence high individual animal performance is desired.

Table 7. Effect of stocking rate on animal production (Rhodes grass pasture)

Source: Addy and Thomas 1976b

Since smallholder farmers rarely make hay, the performance of steers grazed on Rhodes grass aftermath was investigated and the results are shown in Table 8. During bad rainfall years (1973) aftermath grazing nearly met maintenance requirements of the animals. During good rainfall years (1974/75) aftermath grazing gave some gains, although at high stocking rates weight losses were experienced (Table 8).

Table 8. Performance of steers grazed on Rhodes grass aftermath

Source: Addy and Thomas 1976 b

Maize stover and ground tops are the main crop residues produced in the nation, and most of them are grazed in situ. Table 9 shows the performance of steers grazed on maize stover. The stover used was obtained from crops yielding 6,250 to 7,500 kg/ha grain. Maize stover was able to meet the maintenance requirements of the type of cattle used in these trials (Table 9).

Table 9. Performance of yearling cattle grazing on maize stover

The performance of steers fed different types of crop residues and supplements is shown in Table 10. The table demonstrates the value of including either groundnut tops, Leucaena leaf or cottonseed cake in maize stover/maize bran-based diets. Both daily gain and conversion efficiency of the maize bran is improved by the inclusion of groundnut tops, Leucaena leaf and cotton-seed cake, all of which are higher in crude protein content than maize.

Table 10. Performance of steers fed different types of residues and supplements

Conclusion

The potential carrying capacity of ruminant animals in Malawi has almost been reached. Increased production per animal needs to be emphasized more than increasing the numbers of animals. Such an improvement in production per animal will result from increasing the utilization of crop residues to minimize liveweight losses of animals during the later months of the dry season. Good range management, through controlled grazing and bushfires, will also contribute significantly to increased feed supplies for the animal during the dry season. Emphasis should be put on teaching the traditional sector simple practical animal husbandry techniques, conservation of rangelands, and proper rationing of the available feed resources to last a whole year.

References

Addy, B.L. and Thomas, D. (1976a). The utilization of crop residues, madeya and Leucaena for winter stall feeding in Lilongwe District. Research Bulletin No. 2/76, Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

Addy, B.L. and Thomas, D. (1976b). Rhodes grass pastures: some aspects of management and utilization. Research Bulletin No. 3/76, Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

Booker Agriculture International Limited. (1983). Livestock and meat study. Final report, Vol. 2. Republic of Malawi.

Department of Animal Health and Industry (DAHI) (1982). Annual Reports. Ministry of Agriculture, Malawi.

Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) (1969). National Sample Survey of agriculture reports. Lilongwe, Malawi.

MOA (1982). Ministry of Agriculture Annual Reports. Lilongwe, Malawi.

(MOA) (1983). Pasture Handbook for Malawi. Lilongwe, Malawi.