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IAEA-TECDOC-1495 Improving Animal Productivity by Supplementary Feeding of Multinutrient Blocks, Controlling Internal Parasites and Enhancing Utilization of Alternate Feed Resources Apublication prepared under the framework of an RCA project with technical support of the Joint FAO/IAEA Programme of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture December 2006 IAEA-TECDOC-1495 Improving Animal Productivity by Supplementary Feeding of Multinutrient Blocks, Controlling Internal Parasites and Enhancing Utilization of Alternate Feed Resources Apublication prepared under the framework of an RCA project with technical support of the Joint FAO/IAEA Programme of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture December 2006 The originating Section of this publication in the IAEA was: Animal Production and Health Section Joint FAO/IAEA Division International Atomic Energy Agency Wagramer Strasse 5 P.O. Box 100 A-1400 Vienna, Austria IMPROVING ANIMAL PRODUCTIVITY BY SUPPLEMENTARY FEEDING OF MULTI-NUTRIENT BLOCKS, CONTROLLING INTERNAL PARASITES, AND ENHANCING UTILIZATION OF ALTERNATE FEED RESOURCES IAEA, VIENNA, 2006 IAEA-TECDOC-1495 ISBN 92–0–104506–9 ISSN 1011–4289 © IAEA, 2006 Printed by the IAEA in Austria December 2006 FOREWORD A major constraint to livestock production in developing countries is the scarcity and fluctuating quantity and quality of the year-round feed supply. Providing adequate good quality feed to livestock to raise and maintain their productivity is, and will continue to be, a major challenge to agricultural scientists and policy makers all over the world. The increase in population and rapid growth in world economies will lead to an enormous increase in demand for animal products, a large part of which will be from developing countries. Future hopes of feeding the millions and safeguarding their food security will depend on the enhanced and efficient utilization of alternative feed resources that cannot be used as food for humans. In addition, a large area of land in the world is degraded, barren or marginal and the amount is increasing every year. This also calls for identification and introduction of new and lesser- known plants capable of growing in poor soils, which can play a vital role in the control of soil erosion in addition to providing food and feed. In developing countries, livestock are fed mainly on low quality roughages, including natural grazing and agro-industrial by-products, such as cereal straws/stovers, sugarcane by- products and other similar feeds, all of which contain large quantities of ligno-cellulosic material. These feeds are deficient in protein, energy, minerals and vitamins. In addition, at certain times of the year, the quality of grazing and browse deteriorates substantially due to seasonal influences, and livestock, productivity consequently declines, and in the case of lactation ceases, unless supplements are offered. Addition of foliage from tree leaves or supplementation with seed meals, or for ruminants’ urea in the form of urea-molasses multi- nutrient blocks, can improve the utilization of low quality roughages mainly through the supply of nitrogen to the rumen microbes. Attempts to increase the productivity of ruminants in developing countries generally encounter another principal constraint: health. Of the health constraints, bacterial and viral diseases can be successfully controlled through conventional vaccination and quarantine procedures. However, for parasitic disease, these approaches are either not yet possible or impractical, and chemotherapy, coupled with grazing management, are the only methods of control method currently available. In developing countries, the losses induced by clinical and subclinical parasite infections have been estimated to equal the value of the present output of ruminant industries, therefore improved control has the potential to yield considerable productivity benefits. The RCA (Regional Cooperation Agreement for the Asia and Pacific Region) project, RAS/5/035 entitled Improving Animal Productivity and Reproductive Efficiency was initiated in 1999 to assist RCA Member States to improve animal productivity and reproductive efficiency. This project had two components: animal nutrition, and animal reproduction. The animal nutrition component focused on: (i) developing and feeding of urea-molasses multi- nutrient blocks to supply nutrients deficient in crop residues and forages; (ii) using the urea- molasses multinitrient blocks for the delivery of anthelmintic medication to control gastrointestinal nematode parasitism; and (iii) enhancing efficiency of utilization of feed resources which are locally available and for which humans are not competing with livestock for food. The present publication presents results on these three aspects obtained by the participating groups from the RCA Member States and presented at the Final Review Meeting of the project held in October 2004 in Bangkok, Thailand. This publication is a good source of reference for research workers, students and extension workers alike. It will help promote efficient utilization of feed resources and
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