banner1
Welcome to the Centre for Livestock and Agriculture Development
Content

 

7.Ensiled cassava leaves and fresh water spinach as protein sources for fattening pigs on farms, Cambodia

CelAgrid, 2006. Full report is available at CelAgrid

Summary: The studied was carried out in two villages; Sras Takoun and Lok, Sanlong commune, Treang district, Takeo province around 110km from Phnom Penh city, Cambodia from 20 December 2005 to 11 April 2006. Ten (five families per village) participated in the on farm trial. Each family received two piglets, cassava stem for planting, material for making cassava silage, rice bran, notebook for recording, pen and salt from the project and farmers contributes broken rice and water spinach. There were two treatments (i) ensiled cassava leaves plus rice bran and broken rice and (ii) ensiled cassava leaves plus water spinach, rice bran and broken rice and each treatment replicated five times. The design was completely randomize design (CRD). All pigs were vaccinated against Samodelosis, Pasteurella, Swine fever and they were also de-wormed. The cassava leaves were ensiled using 100kg of cassava leaves with 10kg of rice bran and 0.5kg of salt and it was preserved one month before feeding. Water spinach was harvested from farmers plots fertilized with effluent from biodigestor.

Abstract: Twenty crossbred pigs (local x exotic) about 12-17kg initial weight were distributed to ten households (five households per village) to compare effect of supplementing the water spinach on cassava leaves silage with basal diet of rice bran and broken rice. There were no any symptoms of toxicity cause by cassava leaves silage. The total feed intake was high when fed a mixture of ensiled cassava leaves and water spinach but low in crude protein intake compare with ensiled cassava leaves alone. No differences in growth rate of pigs (with or without water spinach) by individual participants but high growth rate and feed conversion ration were improved when diet was included water spinach.

<< Back