AGRIBUSINESS: HOW TO REAR RABBITS FOR PROFIT.

AGRIBUSINESS: HOW TO REAR RABBITS FOR PROFIT. Rabbits are herbivores,easy to rear and manage. Their characteristic prolific mature coupled with short gestation period has made them the urban animals to rear.The meat is also nutritious as its fatless and has no cholesterol making it a healthy substitute for red meat. Rabbits an be reared in farms or in -house in hutches,wooden cages or wire cages depending on the scope of production.Rabbits feed on grasses,legumes and vegetables basically,but commercialized pellets can also be used to enhance growth.Rabbits must be given water alongside feed,also salt is essential for their diet. The male rabbit is called a buck and sexually mature at 5-6 months of age.,the mating ratio is 1 buck to 15 does. The female rabbit is called a doe,sexually active at 5-6 months of age,comes on heat every 3 weeks and can have an average of 5-9 kits per kindling and can kindle 3-4 times a year depending on management practice. The doe is taken to the buck when on heat,mating takes place within minutes with the buck falling on his back with a momentary stiffened posture.The doe is returned to her cage and the process repeated at day 2/3. The doe is palpated for fetus at 14 days after mating to ascertain pregnancy.The nesting box is placed in the does hutch on day 25 after mating,and the doe kindles 30-31 days after mating. Fresh feed,must be available for the doe until weaning at 4 weeks and the cycle continues,until you decide to sell off or slaughter to process for packaging. Starting with 10 does @ 10,000 naira at the start of the year the does averaging 7 kits/ kindle........70 kits then in a year will be 70 x3...........210 kits.This can be increased with proper management by choosing does from very prolific progeny. The medication costs can be reduced by ensuring strict bio security protocols,and giving clean ,nutritious meals and prevent exposure to sun.Rabbits do benefit from early morning sunshine,but they must not be exposed for long periods as this reduces fertility and also results in death when over exposed.

AGRIBUSINESS: HOW TO ENSURE FOOD SECURITY THROUGH BREED SELECTION AND SELECTIVE BREEDING.

AGRIBUSINESS: HOW TO ENSURE FOOD SECURITY THROUGH BREED SELECTION AND SELECTIVE BREEDING. The bull was originally bred in France in a place called Charolais, hence its name. It is a naturally horned beef animal.In Africa, the largest population of the breed is found in South Africa followed by Kenya, mainly in Laikipia . 

 The Bull heavier than buffalo fetches Sh600,000.Weighing in at 1,050kg, a bull heavier than a buffalo was auctioned for Sh600,000, equivalent to the price of a Probox car. However, if slaughtered in the farm, the bull could fetch Sh1 million.The ‘charolais’ bull was the main attraction during the East Africa Growers Council agribusiness expo in Kabarak University. 

 The four-year-old bull from Kabarak Farm Ltd only feeds on grass and drinks a minimum of 60 litres of water a day, according to the farm manager Joseph Bett.Bett says there are about 107,000 of such animals in the farm and a single dose of artificial insemination costs Sh1,000. The agribusiness expo brought together more than 15,000 farmers, sponsors and exhibitors. Source;The star

QUALITIES OF FEED PELLET.

Feed pelleting can be defined as conversion of finely ground mash feed into dense, free flowing pellets or capsules, in a process that involves steam injection (moisture and heat) and mechanical pressure. There are several advantages for feeding broilers pelleted rather than mash feed. The main advantage is the improved bird performance (improved feed intake, weight gain and feed conversion). Birds fed pelleted diets spend less time and need lower maintenance energy requirements during eating and digestion in comparison to those fed mash feed. The other benefits of feeding pelleted diets include increase feed density, decrease feed dustiness, wastage and selection, better mechanical handling of feed on the feed lines, and destruction of feed-borne pathogens. Therefore, the full genetic potentials of modern broiler strains cannot be achieved without pelleted feed. In order to achieve these multi-benefits, the pellet durability should be of a standard quality (not contain too much fines), otherwise, the bird’s performance will be adversely affected. High quality pellets can be defined as pellets that can withstand repeated handling as can occur during bagging, transportation, storage, and moving on feed lines without excessive breakage or generation of fine particles. Pellet quality is usually expressed as the pellet durability index (PDI), and measured by using a tumbling can device, in which the pellet sample to be tested is first sieved to remove fines, then tumbled in the tumbling can device for a defined period of time. The tumbled sample is then sieved to remove fines, and the amount of intact pellets is determined. Factors affecting pellet quality Several factors have an effect on the quality of the pellets. First of all the feed formulation (raw materials and additives used). Some feed ingredients have a good impact on pellet quality, while others could adversely affect the quality. Unfortunately, corn-soy diets are not the ideal diets to achieve the desired pellet quality. Dietary inclusion of wheat grain or wheat by products (wheat midds, wheat gluten) can increase pellet durability, because of the high protein (gluten) and hemi-cellulose content of wheat in comparison to corn or corn co-products. Similarly inclusion of oat as a partial substitute of corn can increase pellet quality. We can rank feed grains according to their positive impacts on pellet quality from best to worst as followings:oat,wheat,barley,corn and sorghum. It was previously known that starch and its gelatinisation is the most important factor for achieving the desired pellet quality. However, recent reports indicated that the positive impact of protein on pellet quality is much more important than that of starch. Dietary inclusion of oil has an adverse effect on pellet quality. This is attributed to the coating effect of oil to the feed particles which prevent their penetration by the steam, also oil reduces the friction generated between die and feed particles with subsequent decrease in the starch gelatinisation rate. Inclusion of binding agents (e.g. water (simplest binder), lignin sulphonate, hemicelluloses extract, gelatin, etc.) and/or surfactants can increase pellet quality. Pellet quality can be influenced by several factors, including the ingredients, diet formulation and processing. A good rule of thumb is the pellet quality factor (PQF), that each feed ingredient has. The PQF has a score from 0 to 10, where 0 predicts poor pellet quality and 10 good pellet quality. From experience we know that starch and its gelatinisation is the most important factor for achieving the desired pellet quality. However, recent reports indicated that the positive impact of protein on pellet quality is much more important than that of starch.

Flavonoids and their effect on broiler immunity.

Flavonoids, naturally occurring plant secondary metabolites, are currently under investigation as feed additives in poultry for their antioxidative properties. Antioxidative agents are important for poultry nutrition as they reduce lipid peroxidation, a major concern for the organoleptic characteristics and nutritional value of meat and eggs, and can prolong poultry product shelf life. Apart from potent antioxidants, flavonoids have been shown to possess immunomodulatory and in particular anti-inflammatory properties. Quercetin, a flavonoid belonging to the class of flavonols, is present in several fruits, vegetables and herbs and has been shown to improve oxidative status of broiler meat when added to the birds' feed and was detectable in the plasma and in several tissues of the animals. Quercetin has been shown to act as an anti-inflammatory agent in mice and in humans. So far studies on flavonoids in poultry examine, in addition to meat oxidative status, effects on growth performance and other productive traits, including meat and egg quality parameters. The effect of quercetin on broiler meat quality parameters has been tested before as well. This particular study investigated the possible effects of dietary quercetin on parameters of broiler immune function and status. The Greek researchers examined parameters of cellular and humoral immunity, lymphoid organs size and cellularity and thymus subset composition to determine whether the immunomodulatory properties of quercetin exhibited in other animals are manifested in broilers when it is included in their feed. Animals received or 0.5 gr quercetin per kg feed or 1 gr quercetin per kg feed or a control diet. The researchers did not find differences between dietary treatment groups in cellular immune response or immune status (P>0.05). Interestingly, while total and IgM antibody titres did not differ among treatment groups (P>0.05), IgY antibody titres significantly increased with increasing quercetin supplementation (P-linear<0.05). therefore, dietary quercetin did not compromise any of the immune parameters tested but on the contrary enhanced igy antibody production.> The research paper culled from world poultry.

Essential oils key in fight against antibiotic use.

Essential oils are a key solution to an alternative for antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs), this was shown by research carried out by US food giant, Cargill. But what do essential oils achieve that other non-medicated feed additives don’t? Essential oils key in gut health support : Gut health is important in poultry production because the digestive system performs key functions essential to ensuring birds' optimum performance. The optimal gut function in 4 key areas are:1)Managing microflora for a well-balanced bacterial population. 2) Controlling immune function and inflammatory response 3)Maximising nutrient digestion and absorption 4 ) Improving the physical barrier against pathogens. While all additives studied showed some benefit in these areas, Cargill researchers found that selected essential oil compounds, particularly those derived from thyme, cinnamon and oregano, had the most comprehensive effect on overall gut health. Benefits included antimicrobial activity, modulation of immune response, antioxidant activity, improvement of nutrient digestibility and stimulation of mucus production. "Activity against pathogens": "Only essential oils have both a broad spectrum of activity against pathogens and a direct impact on digestive function," said Stephanie Ladirat, global technology lead for gut health additives in Cargill's animal nutrition business. Essential oils were found to be particular efficient in conditions where intestinal infections such as Salmonellosis and Coccidiosis were present. They were also found to be a viable alternative to antibiotics as more than 85% of the results showed a minimal difference between the positive control (antibiotics) and essential oils. The research also showed that essential oils are just one facet of a feeding programme that promotes ideal gut health and allows antibiotic reduction. Research findings support combining essential oils with organic acids to get maximum efficacy. "Cargill's local nutrition experts are working directly with poultry producers to develop customised, holistic feeding programmes encompassing nutrition, additives and farm management based on the study results," says Twan Van Gerwe, poultry R&D director in Cargill's animal nutrition business. Feed conversion trials: Combined study results from 12 trials demonstrated that birds given Cargill's Promote Biacid Nucleus additive, which contains a proprietary mixture of 7 carefully selected essential oil compounds, in combination with an antibiotic-free diet, consistently improves body weight gain by 2% and feed conversion by 1.5%, producing a return on investment (ROI) of 5:1 for producers. The research was reported in world poultry.

First confirmed human infection of zoonotic parasite reported in Vietnam.

Researchers have reported the first laboratory-confirmed case of Trypanosoma evansi infection in a Vietnamese woman with no deficiencies. They linked transmission of the parasite with bovid exposure. Over half of Vietnam’s population resides in rural areas, and most participate in small-scale animal production, which likely facilitates the transfer of pathogens from animals into humans,” the researchers wrote. “T. evansi is associated with acute disease in camels and horses and chronic disease in cattle and buffalo, and can be found in South America, North Africa, the Middle East, South and Southeast Asia.” There have been four probable cases of T. evansi infection reported worldwide that lacked molecular parasite speciation. One previous case was reported in India in 2005 with molecular confirmation, although the patient had a deficiency of Apolipoprotein L1 (APOL1), a serum component with trypanocidal activity. The present case, a previously healthy Vietnamese woman aged 38 years with no APOL1 deficiency, first presented to a health care facility with 18 days of fever, headache and arthralgia. She had no history of travel to any regions where T. evansi has been observed. Although initially treated for malaria, microscopic examination of blood samples revealed unicellular flagellate protozoa with the morphology of Trypanosoma. The patient received a treatment reported to have trypanocidal activity for 7 days, but returned with symptoms 6 weeks after discharge and subsequently treated with a first-line anti-trypanosomal treatment and eventually recovered with no complications. PCR amplification and serological testing of the patient’s serum confirmed the infecting species as T. evansi, and APOL1 testing found the patient’s concentrations to be within a healthy range. As the patient reported potential exposure while butchering locally reared beef, the researchers conducted a census of livestock farms surrounding the patient’s relatives’ household. Blood samples from some cattle and buffalo were indicative of T. evansi infection, and some farmers reported a mystery illness affecting their livestock. These data helped the researchers conclude that these bovid were the likely source of the patient’s infection. Furthermore, the parasite may have been circulating among Vietnamese livestock for some time while avoiding detection, and if endemic could have further economic and human health consequences for the region. “Subsequent field investigations demonstrated a high prevalence of bovids in the immediate environs of the patient with clinical and molecular evidence of T. evansi infection,” the researchers wrote. “Further research is required to better understand this zoonotic pathogen, including host susceptibility factors, potential vectors and therapeutic options for both human and animal infections.” – story source; Helio infectious news.oo

NUTRITIOUS BISCUIT FOR SCHOOL CHILDREN.