Oorsig/Review
Dr Ariena Shepherd
Feed is the biggest expense
in all livestock systems as well as the
most important factor in the production of
any product. However often very little attention
is given to planning fodder flow. Essentially it is
needs versus what is available and how to balance
the differences. Needs are all the nutritional
needs of each animal in the system for every day
of the year.
This is done on a spreadsheet taking into account
number of animals, their sizes, reproductive
stages and offspring produced. A second
spreadsheet is created representing all the
available feed resources including quantity and
quality and when it is available. The next step is
to compare the spreadsheets and plan how to
overcome the differences.
Estimating nutritional needs are done by simply
using body mass and stage of reproduction. Many
publications are available which can give very
detailed information. This can be added over time
as the planning evolves. If there is more than one
animal species a separate sheet must be done for
each or if there is more than one breeding season
it is also better to do it on separate sheets and
then combine it afterwards.
Evaluating grazing and pastures requires using
some measuring methods. The most accurate is
cutting, drying and weighing. However, this is
very time and labour intensive. Non-destructive
methods are quicker and less expensive but are
limited in accuracy. The most commonly used are
the raising plate meter, comparative yield method
and the meter stick. Areas can be calculated using
Google Earth or existing farm maps. Nutritional
values of veld grazing will depend on season,
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Fodder Flow
Planning