India offers a vast array of cattle feed ingredients designed to boost milk production and improve animal health. Each feed is tailored specifically for each animal’s individual requirements.
Cow feed primarily consists of green fodder, concentrates and by-products. These may include crop residues like straw from wheat or rice that is often left over when crops are harvested.
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Green Fodder
Green fodder is an essential ingredient in Indian cow feed. This natural source of nutrients aids milk production and the health of dairy animals.
Cattle can be effectively fed a variety of grains and legumes, as well as grasses and cereals. It is an economical solution to meet their daily nutrition requirements.
Cultivating green fodder reduces the need for concentrate feeds, thus increasing profitability. Furthermore, it eliminates the labor-intensive task of managing fodder.
Concentrates
Concentrates are protein-rich feeds that can be added to a dairy ration to make up for any nutritional deficiencies. They’re also commonly used to promote growth and increased milk production.
India often mixes concentrates with grain to boost milk production and keep their cattle healthy. This method of feeding emphasizes nutrient balance, making it simpler to produce and process more milk.
Concentrates are composed of dry and green fodder as well as crop residue that has been prepared in blocks and suckled to cattle. During the wet season, concentrates can also be fed along with hay for additional energy sources.
By-Products
By-products are an invaluable source of animal feed ingredients. They come from various industries such as milling grain and oilseeds, fermentation of grains and molasses, and dairy product production.
In addition to protein, some by-products provide added vitamins and minerals. Furthermore, they are high in fiber.
Wheat byproducts have been around for centuries as supplemental feed, often found in poultry diets. Those with higher fiber contents are usually used for cattle, sheep and horses while those with lower content often go into swine or poultry feed.
Corn gluten feed is made from degerminated corn for starch or syrup production, and contains both the corn germ and bran fraction of the kernel. It has a similar crude protein content to that of oats, approximately 6% fat content, and an energy content around 14%.
Private Feed Mills
One of the most lucrative small business ideas in India is cattle feed manufacturing. This is because there are numerous farms and husbandries throughout India that require high-quality fodder.
There is a shortage of nutritious feed in the country, making it possible for veterinarians to open their own feed mill units.
They produce animal feed for various livestock and poultry species such as quail, emu, ostrich. Additionally, they may purchase fertile land to grow fodder.
These businesses require a substantial amount of fixed capital to purchase heavy equipment and ensure an uninterrupted supply of ingredients. Furthermore, they require an FSSAI Food Safety License in order to guarantee the safety of their product.
Cooperative Feed Plants
India boasts one of the largest livestock populations in the world. Most of their feed needs are met through crop residues and products; grasses, weeds and tree leaves collected from both cultivated and uncultivated lands (Dikshit & Birthal, 2010).
India needs to increase the supply of cattle feed in order to improve livestock productivity. To do so, an organized animal feed industry is necessary and this market is expected to expand over the coming years due largely to the expansion of dairy farming in the country. Furthermore, government policies and schemes designed to support this growth are being considered by officials.
