40
A Survey of Feeds and Fodders
TABLE VII
Requirement . . . . . . . . .
Requirement to increase the milk yieldby 1,544,000 tons . .
Total requirement .
Available from feeding stuffs .
.
.
.
.
.
.
„
„ food crops
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
„
„
„ for extra milk supply
.
.
.
. .
Total available .
Shortage . . . . . . . . .
Shortage—per cent requirement . . . . . . . . .
Dry matter
in thousand
tons
74,294
74,294
33,968
2,257
371
36,596
37,698
51
Digestible
protein in
thousand tons
3,489.6
80.3
3,569.9
525.2
252.3
36.1
813.6
2,756.3
77
Net energy
therms in
thousands
69,128,997
1,283,000
70,411,997
18,664,230
4,481,960
734,700
23,880,890
46,531,107
66
Table VII shows that for balancing the requirement of the livestock, the quantity of available
dry matter should be doubled. Digestible protein and net energy should also be increased by
and 66 per cent respectively.
How to make up the shortage. From the data it can be observed that about 4.8 times more crude
protein and 2.9 times fuel are necessary for 30 million livestock than what is required for 56 million
human population when the average digestibility of protein by the livestock is assumed as 60 per
cent and the ratio of fuel to net energy is 2:1. But it is surprising to note that, in view of the
relative requirements, the area under fodder crops is as low as 3.6 per cent of the total area under
crop.
Even with poor yield of the crops, besides the present 1.6 million acres, fodders can be raised
on another 10 million acres, the area which produces the grains in excess of human requirement.
Fodder crops provide much more nutrients for the livestock than the grain crops. For comparison
the yield of the nutrients per acre of some important grain and fodder crops have been tabulated in
Table VIII.
TABLE VIII
Yield of nutrients per acre from different crops
Food crops—
Rice
.
.
.
Wheat . . .
Barley . . .
Jowar . . .
Bajra . . .
Maize . . .
Gram . . .
Other food crops .
Oats-grains after first
cut
Groundnut . .
Fodder crops
Jowar . . .
Bajra . . .
Maize . . .
Lucerne . . .
Berseem . . .
Guar . . .
Senji . . .
Soyabean . . .
Oats . . .
Green
Dry
matter
(lb.)
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
.. 2,050
..
5,125
4,100
4,100
9,840
4,305
3,075
4,100
2,563
4,100
Diges-
tible
protein
(lb.)
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
.. 215.7
..
102.5
177.1
182.0
1737.0
579.8
163.6
410.0
327.9
431.3
Net
energy
(therms)
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
.. 1,025
..
2,307
2,089
2,182
4,428
2,440
812
1,558
1,343
2,049
Grain
Dry
matter
(lb.)
720
810
771
385
366
758
511
360
295
422
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
Diges-
tible
protein
(lb.)
45.4
68.9
60.9
22.4
28.6
50.1
58.3
72.0
20.9
85.3
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
Net
energy
(therms)
451
685
622
299
331
682
399
282
209
394
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
Straw
Dry
matter
(lb.)
1,080
1,620
1,542
1,155
916
1,895
511
360
738
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
Digesti-
ble
protein
(lb.)
Nil
Nil
13.9
18.5
14.7
41.7
11.2
7.9
6.6
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
Net
energy
(therms)
311
389
364
276
219
512
55
39
172
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
Total per acre
Dry
matter
(lb.)
1,800
2,430
2,313
1,540
1,282
2,053
1,022
720
3,083
422
5,125
4,100
4,100
9,840
4,305
3,075
4,100
2,563
4,100
Digesti-
ble
protein
(lb.)
45.4
68.9
74.8
40.9
43.3
97.8
69.5
79.9
243.2
85.3
102.5
177.1
182.0
1737.0
579.8
163.6
410.0
327.9
431.3
Net
energy
(therms)
762
1,074
986
575
550
1,194
454
321
1,406
394
2,307
2,089
2,182
4,428
2,440
812
1,558
1,343
2,049