Social and economic feasibility of using selected indigenous browses as protein supplements for goats in Central Tanzania

D M Komwihangilo and J L Mlela*

National Livestock Research Institute, P.O. Box 202, Mpwapwa, Tanzania
* Ukiriguru Agricultural Training Institute, P.O. Box 1433 Mwanza
dkomwihangilo2001@yahoo.com

Abstract

Studies were conducted  to assess the social and economic feasibility of using selected browses in goat feeding in central Tanzania. In the first study, a cross-sectional survey was conducted in four villages of Kongwa and Mpwapwa districts. A total of 141 households (farms) were individually visited in order to determine the factors influencing the use of native and exotic tree species for goat feeding .

Results indicated that common indigenous browses  including Acacia tortilis, Ecborium spp, Grewia spp, Ficus spp, Tamarindusindica and Leucaena leucocephala were fed to goats and their importance was ranked diferently among farmers (P < 0.01) between districts. Palatability was an important factor as indicated by 29% of the respondents (n= 123). Other factors  were associated with improved animal conditions / health (28%) and milk yields of dairy goats (18%). In a separate on-station study, an economic analysis of feeding browse leaf meals showed that the use of browse-based supplements were relatively cheaper than the use of cotton seed cake (CSC). The highest profit margin was obtained with T. indica due to higher live-weight gain, followed by Lablab. Nevertheless,  work is  needed to train  farmers to establish  exogenous species and to sustainably manage  the abundant multipurpose indigenous trees and shrubs. 

Key words: Lablab, smallholder farmers, Tamarindus indica

Introduction

The role of trees and shrubs as supplementary high protein and minerals sources has been recognised in tropical livestock systems. Studies on nutritional and feeding values showed that Delonix, Tamarind and Grewia species could improve growth performance of dual-purpose goats. (Goromela et al 1997; Komwihangilo et al 2005).Other studies have demonstrated that local farmers know of the roles and contribution of the native grass forages and browses to the health and growth of goats, and other ruminants,whereby branches from various tree species are habitually harvested to provide leaves and pods (Komwihangilo et al 2001, Komwihangilo et al 2007). Nevertheless,studies  on feeding  to meet nutritional requirements of livestock using the locally available feeds  are required  to address the growing demand for feeds both. At the same time, the social and economic feasibilities of using the local browses effectively need to be established. 

A study was designed to determine the factors influencing the use of native and exotic tree species in mixed livestock systems in Semi-arid Central Tanzania. 

Materials and Methods

A cross-sectional survey was conducted in Kongwa and Mpwapwadistricts, Dodoma region of Tanzania, in July and August 2007 and February 2008 respectively. The areas are in the sorghum-millet-groudnut and maize-sorghum-bean based cropping systems that include goats and cattle. The cross-sectional design was adopted  to allow  the description  in the farming system at a single point in time (Gujarati1995). A stratified random sampling procedure was used to select goat keepers. The households (farms) were chosen with the assistance of local agricultural extension officers based mainly on the number of total goats (kids, does and bucks) owned (i.e. 1 – 5; 6 – 10; 11 – 15 and >15) before or at the time of interview. A total of 141 farms were visited where individual interviews were conducted to household heads or adult representatives with a pre-tested questionnaire. It consited of open and close-ended questions including respondent and flock background, land resources, other economic engangement and  extent of investment to ensure steady availability of browses.  

Feeding experiments were conducted at the National Livestock Research Institute, Mpwapwa, between February and June 2011. Twenty four (24) weaner goats were fed on adlibitum hay with supplements containing leafmeals of Delonixelata, Lablabpurpureus and Tamarindusindica or cotton seed cake (CSC) (Komwihangilo et al 2012). Effects on growth performance, carcass quality and economic benefits were determined. 

The supplements were formulated to contain approximately 18% crude protein (Table 1).  

Maize bran and mineral mix were included to balance the energy and mineral content  and to meet  requirements for maintenance and growth of the  goats. Mean initial and final weights were determined by weighing on three consecutive days at the beginning and end of the experiments. Individual feed intakes of hay and supplements were recorded on a daily basis. Refusals were collected at 8:00h before new rations were offered. The economic benefits of substituting CSC by T. indica, D. elata and L. purpureus (Lablab) leaves  were calculated as the difference between the revenue from  weight gain per animal and the cost of the concentrate consumed.  

Results and Discussion

Socio-economic characteristic of farmers 

Table 2 indicates some characteristics of the respondents (71 males, 70 females). The majority (88%) were in the most active age group, between 25 and 60 years and most of them (92%) had primary education. This distribution among respondents and their associated socio-economic indicators were similar  as  in many rural areas of Tanzania where  households were analysed (Mkamilo 2004; Komwihangilo 2005).  

Cultivatable lands were small,16.9% had plots  of less that 5 acres and a similar proportion more than 30 acres. There were little or no additional agricultural inputs, such as improved seeds and agrochemicals,thus harvests per unit area were  low. This leads to food insecurity  in many households as has been observed in other pars of Same and Korogwe districts in the Kilimanjaro and Tanga regions respectively (WVT 2008; WVT 2009).  

Half of the farmers had to walk to their farms  between 2 to 8 km and many of them depended on  hoes and rudimentary implements for cultivation and weeding, comparable to  other regions in Tanzania (Mkamilo 2004) and Africa, Latin America and South Asia (Devendra and Thomas 2001; Phiri et al 2004). 

Utilization of trees and shrubs for livestock feeding

There are  trees and shrubs  including Acacia tortilis, Ecborium spp, Grewia spp, Ficus spp and Tamarindus indica (Table 3), commonly used in Central Tanzania (Komwihangilo et al 1995). 

Criteria for use of different tree / shrub species 

Farmers ranked differently the importance of using trees and shrubs and  differed significantly (P < 0.01) between districts. The differences could be attributed to individual farmers’ experiences and agro-ecological variations of farming systems. The villages in Kongwa with sorghum-millet-groundnut had more intensely browsable species than those in Mpwapwa with maize-beans (DRD, 2003). However, 92% of the respondents (Table 4) consider trees and shrubs very important or important for goats.  

There were different reasons for the use of  trees and shrubs (Table 5), either through direct browsing or pollarding in zero grazing. Palatability for 29% of the respondents (n= 123) was important for frequency of use. Other reasons were direct benefits to the animals as improved condition / health (28%) and milk yields in dairy goats (18%). There was a general views that consumption of indigenous trees and browses contribute to desirable flavours and aroma of meat. Palatability for farmers refers to how a goat craved for or was interested in a forage when browsing or grazing. Palatability, appearance and/or body condition of  goats and  the amount of milk are essential in local and scientific descriptions of  quality of locally available feeds (Komwihangilo et al 2007).  

More goat keepers (61.4%) depended on naturally growing plants for feeding their animals than those who had planted them (Table 6). Except for Leucaena and Ficus thonningii, that were commonly planted near or around homesteads, deliberate efforts in the establishment of forage species for goats or other livestock species were scanty. Reasons for not establishing the species included abundant availability in the wild (31.6%), sheer negligency of the need or importance of planting them (42%) and lack of adequate land. There is a need of educating farmers on the importance of the establishment of tree / shrub and other forages. This will improve high quality fodder availability because current increases in human and animal populations is  leading to opening up communal grazing areas (source of cut and carry forages) for crop production, housing and public infrastructural development, such as roads.  

Economic analysis of using browse leaf meals 

The type of supplement did not significantly (P>0.001) influence carcass characteristics of the slaughtered goats (Komwihangilo et al 2012). However, in absolute values, goats with T. indica had the heaviest carcass weight and dressing percentage (DP) compared to those with CSC, D. elata and Lablab purpureus. The economics of feeding treatments in the experiment are presented in Table 7. The highest profit margin per live weight gain was obtained from animals on T. indica diet followed by Lablab, D. elata and CSC.  

The economic analysis of supplementation showed that browse supplements were relatively cheaper than cotton seedcake. Higher profit margin was realized when browses were used for diet formulation, whereby the highest profit margin was obtained with T. indica supplement because the weight gains were highest, followed Lablab, D. elata and CSC. Cotton seed cake is a conventional commercial concentrate, always more expensive than tree browses and most of the time not readily available, because of its relative diversified uses (Komwihangilo et al 2005).  

Conclusions

• The use of trees and shrubs for goat feeding is a common phenomenon in Kongwa and Mpwapwa districts as in most of the semi arid areas of Tanzania. Most of these are naturally growing plants are accessed from communal areas where the animals are freely grazed. This is an opportunity that need to be fully exploited since livestock keepers are aware of the direct and indirect benefits of allowing their animals to access these feeds, which sources of protein and otheir important nutrients for animal production. Deliberate efforts are required to ensure a sustainable supply of these important feed resources. This is because, little efforts were observed in the production and conservation of the important fodder trees and shrubs, since farmers take it for granted that the feeds are freely available, although there is gradual dissappearance of species due to increase in human and animal populations. Research efforts need to be intensified to find out the contribution of some of the important naturally growing tree / shrub species in the nutrition of ruminant livestock, including goats. Results from this project have indicated that goats supplemented with D. elata had higher ratio of lean to fat, while those supplemented with Lablab purpureus had higher bone weight and higher ratio of bone to carcass weight compared to other types of supplements. This means that leaf meals from local browses such as T. indica, D. elata and Lablab purpureus can be used as protein supplements for small ruminants grazing on poor quality roughages, replace the conventional protein sources such as cotton seed cake and have significant influences on biological aspects of meat from goats. However, extension efforts need to be stepped up not only for enable farmers to establish and care for the already identified exogenous trees and shrubs, but also to sustainably use the still abundant indigenous trees important for fodder, shade, windbreak, soil stabilization, firewood and construction material and  other numerous uses. 

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the funding for the study from the International Foundation for Science (IFS), Stokholm, Sweden (Project No. B/2983-2). 

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Received 14 March 2012; Accepted 2 June 2012; Published 1 July 2012

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