Think Grain Think Feed November issue 19

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Volume 6 | Issue 01
November-2019

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Marketing &
Designing
Ashwani Verma
Dr. Dinesh T. Bhosale
Former Chairman, CLFMA of India
Mr. Amit Sachdev
Indian Representative, US Grain Council
Dr. P.E. Vijay Anand
US Soybean Export Council
Dr. Suhas Amrutkar
Subject Matter Specialist, Animal Nutrition,
MAFSU, Parbhani
Dr. SN Mohanty
Former Principal Scientist, CIFA
Dr. Meeta Punjabi Mehta
Agricultural Economist
Dr. Swamy Haladi
Feed Additive Expert
Dr. R Gnana Sekar
Lead Consultant, GS Dairy Farm Consulting
Dr. Suraj Amrutkar
Assistant Professor, Dept. of ILFC,
SKUAST-J, Jammu
www.benisonmedia.com
Managing Editor
Dr. T.K. Walli
Former Head,
Dairy Cattle Nutrition, NDRI
EDITORIAL
otwithstanding the fact that straws and
other crop residues are low in energy,
Nprotein and minerals and due to their
highly fibrous nature are low in palatability and digestibility, these are
still used as major roughage feed in most of the arid and semi-arid
regions of the world, including India. Because of its bulky nature, its
transportation and handling is also difficult, risky and costly. Every year
during November-December, the city of Delhi and its surrounding areas
get enveloped by thick smog, as rice straw worth thousands of crores of
Rupees is burnt in the field itself in many northern states of India,
because the farmers have to clear the field for sowing the wheat crop. No
doubt, burning of straw means loss of feed resource apart from causing
environmental pollution and soil degradation. India has some regions
where the straw is available in plenty and the ones where it is deficient.
Unfortunately, the post-harvest technology of crop residues has not
received much attention so far.
It is time that management of bulky crop residues is taken on priority
basis by policy makers. Different equipment for securing/picking up the
straws from the field, like bailers/happy seeders/pick up equipment,
must be made available to the farmers on priority basis, through
cooperatives and village Panchayats. The collected straw can be
converted into complete feed through the technology of mixing with
concentrates through the process of densification. One way is to make
densified straw blocks enriched with the addition of molasses, urea and
mineral mixture. Such feed blocks could be stored in fodder banks and
transported to save the animals against starvation during natural
calamities. Alternatively, we could go for the straw based complete feed
blocks/ pellets, providing all the major and minor nutrients for animals
yielding milk even up to 20 kg/d. This technology offers several benefits
like: Providing a balanced ration to the animals; Providing a good vehicle
for feed additives; Avoiding wastage of feed; Being time and labor
saving; Being cheaper and easier to handle and transport; Requiring less
space for storage; and Improving productive and reproductive
efficiencies of the animals. No doubt, it is a costlier feed, however, feed
cost /kg milk production is lesser. However, the technology has not
picked up as yet the way it should. In spite of govt subsidy, the
compound feed manufacturers are not coming forward to set up such
plants, because of its high initial cost in terms of additional space and
machinery needed for cutting paddy straw, mixing of concentrate and
straw and pressing the mixed stuff into blocks.
Till now, about a dozen plants have been set up in different states on the
initiative of dairy Cooperatives, dairy federations and livestock boards.
Government should give directives to all the state-level livestock boards
and dairy cooperatives for setting up bigger plants, while smaller
capacity units can be set up through village Panchayats.
TK Walli
Think Grain Think Feed - Volume 6 | Issue 01 | November 2019
Circulation & Subscription Head
Ramesh Kumar
Government support
needed to convert straw
into complete feed blocks,
rather than burn it
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Monthly Magazine for Feed & Feed Technology
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Think Grain Think Feed is a monthly magazine published by BENISON Media at its office in Karnal. Editorial
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R&D
ARTICLE
05
INDUSTRY THOUGHT
INDUSTRY NEWS
INTERVIEW
As aquaculture booms, it's consuming
more fish than it produces
08 Preparing Balanced Total Mixed Ration
(TMR) for Dairy Animals
Indian Poultry Industry from
an international perspective
12
Precision Poultry Nutrition
in Practice to Improve Farm Profitability
14
20
24
27
28
28
Growth prospects of Iran
feed industry
The prolonged rainy season tackled
the dreaded Fall Armyworm
An eco-friendly alternative to
stubble burning
West Bengal government
plans to raise maize
cultivation
UPCOMING
EVENTS
27-29 Nov
2019
07-09 Feb
2020
FeedTechExpo 2020Animal Feed Technology

R&D
05
Aquaculture is one way to meet Asia's
growing demand for seafood, but using
fish as feed could worsen the problem
of declining fish stocks globally. What
alternatives has the industry come up
with to end this 'fish-eat-fish' world?
The popularity of seafood as a source
of protein is on the rise globally. But
particularly in Asia Pacific, which is
predicted to account for 70 per cent of
global seafood sales in the next 13
years, according to the Food and
Agriculture Organization of the United
Nations (FAO). Small-scale fisheries are
also an important source of income and
food in Asia, employing over 30 million
people in coastal communities.
But although farmed seafood is touted
as a more environmentally friendly
source of protein—land-based livestock
farming now facing fierce criticism and
wild fish stocks in drastic decline—one
issue remains a thorn in the side of
farming seafood or aquaculture: fish feed.
Known in the industry as forage fish, species lower down
in the food chain such as anchovies and sardines are
turned into fishmeal and fed to farmed fish, and
contributes to unstable fish populations. For instance, a
study has found that aquaculture worsens the problem of
falling fish populations in China.
Furthermore, feeding fish to fish is also inefficient. For
every kilogram of salmon produced, for example, the
farmer uses two kilograms of fishmeal over the course of
the animal's life.
Michael Philips, director of aquaculture science and
fisheries at WorldFish, an international research
organisation headquartered in Malaysia, explains: “A fair
proportion of the fish production on the planet relies on
fish feed. As we get intensive with our farming and try to
increase productivity from the water to meet global
demand for fish, demand for the fish that feed them
grows even more.”
Alternative protein for fish feed
With the global spotlight on illegal, unregulated fishing
and wild fish stocks at an all-time low, the aquaculture
As aquaculture booms, it's
consuming more fish than it
produces

06
Think Grain Think Feed - Volume 6 | Issue 01 | November 2019R&D
industry is looking to alternatives to
forage fish.
One organisation doing this is the new
Aquaculture Innovation Centre (AIC) at
Temasek Polytechnic in Singapore,
which is dedicating the first three years
on research into optimal nutrition for
fish farmed in intensive, high-tech
environments.
Centre director Dr Lee Chee Wee
reveals that the centre is experimenting
with different food pellets with
reformulated nutrients that will be able
to meet special requirements of urban
fish farming and keep the animals
healthy even under stressful conditions.
Due to Singapore's limited land area,
aquaculture farms are built vertically
with tanks stacked on top of one
another. Packed tightly, the marine
creatures can suffer from heightened
stress levels from being packed densely
together.
“The best feed is still protein, which
comes from fish meat. But catching fish
to feed fish doesn't make sense, and
there's no longer any fish for you to
catch anyway,” says Lee.
According to him, the answer to
sustainable aquaculture lies in cities,
where large quantities of high-quality
waste, such as food waste, are
produced. As part of the centre's
research, he is investigating how waste
products can be processed into fish
feed.
“Every city has their own urban waste
and this waste is usually disposed with
at a cost, but we can actually turn that
into a high-quality valuable product for
the fish. With urban fish farming, there's
huge potential to have a very small
environmental footprint,” he says.
Fish-free opportunities for business
Companies are jumping on board the
business of alternative fish feed to
address the depletion of wild fish
stocks and deliver health benefits to
seafood consumers.
One example is a joint venture by DSM
and German chemicals company
Evonik. Veramaris cultivates marine
algae rich in omega-3 fatty acids
eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and
docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).
Using technology developed by US
space agency NASA in the 1960s, Veramaris produces an
omega-3 algal oil that Karim Kurmlay, chief executive
officer, says is richer in EPA and DHA than alternatives and
more than twice as rich as feed grade fish oils, leading to
more benefits to both fish and consumer health.
“This innovation will help alleviate pressure on over-fished
wild fisheries, enable the salmon industry to become a net
producer of fish, help improve marine biodiversity and
allow the salmon industry to raise the omega-3 levels in
the fillet sustainably,” says David Nickell, vice president of
sustainability, animal nutrition and health at DSM, adding
that the Veramaris facility can produce the amount of
algal oil equivalent to 1.2 million tonnes of wild-caught
forage fish in a year.
Farmers include fish oils in feed because fish must get
sufficient EPA and DHA omega-3 fatty acids to stay
healthy, while the omega-3 levels in salmon have declined
to less than half of what it used to be over the last decade,
says Oyvind Ihle, Veramaris' global marketing and
communications director. The main reason being that
forage fisheries were not able to keep up with demand as
well as cost considerations.
“Fish farming relying on fish oil as a source of omega-3
cannot grow much further as there is simply not enough
fish in the ocean. On the other hand, if fish farmers could
get alternative sources of EPA and DHA they could both
relieve some pressure off [natural fish stocks] and get on a
more sustainable growth path for their business,” Nickell
adds.
Around the world, business have come up with other
creative ways to produce fish feed that do not further
exploit the marine environment.
In Africa, cassava waste is being processed to feed fish in
farms, while start-ups in Asia are investing in cultivating
black soldier fly larvae and single cell proteins derived
from yeast and bacteria to replace fishmeal. There are
many more ways to use ingredients to feed fish that are
not competing in any way with human food, said
WorldFish's Philips.
“The world is eating and likely needs to eat more seafood.
But oceans have limited capacity to supply the seafood
that the human population requires,” he adds.
Experts predict that aquaculture will have to more than
double production by 2050 to meet global demand, and
that within the next two years, the amount of fish farmed
will exceed that caught in the wild.
“This is a part of the food system that has changed very
quickly over a short period of time, from very wild-based
to being a production system split between the waters
and farming,” says Philips.
The impact of fisheries can be managed by using
alternative feedstock so that rivers and oceans can be
allowed to recover, even as they are harvested sustainably
for food, he adds.
Source: Eco Business

08
ARTICLE Think Grain Think Feed - Volume 6 | Issue 01 | November 2019
Balanced ration is a prerequisite for
successful dairy farming. An animal of
high genetic potential will become a
medium milk producer if feed is not
properly balanced. When the feed is
not properly balanced, it leads to low
milk production, lower growth in
heifers, impaired reproduction and low
immunity. In Punjab, the majority of
farmers keep animals under mixed
farming system doing both crop
production and animal husbandry. Such
farmers rely more on crop residues like
wheat straw and paddy straw for
feeding to animals. Crop residues are
inherently low in essential nutrients and
animals subsisting on these produces
lower quantity of milk. On the other
hand, the farmers who take dairy
farming as their main profession tend to feed more
balanced ration and their milk production per animal is
higher. Before formulating a balanced concentrate feed,
the following points need to be kept in mind:
! Type of forage being fed - Non legume fodders are
low in protein but high in energy whereas legume
fodders are high in protein, calcium and phosphorus
but low in dry matter
! Quality of forage fed - Mature, dry fodders are low in
digestibility and in energy and other essential
nutrients
! Milk yield and milk fat % of the target animal
! Stage of lactation and body condition score - In late
lactation, animals with good body condition score
(3.0 or above) require less energy in their ration
! Body weight of the animal
! Age of cow, whether first calver and growing or
mature cows
Preparing Balanced Total
Mixed Ration (TMR) for
Dairy Animals
RS Grewal and Jaswinder Singh
Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Ludhiana
ImageSource:ThePoultrySiteImageSource:AbbeyMachinery

09
Advantages of TMR feeding
TMR is a feed for dairy animals, in
which green fodder, especially silage is
mixed along with concentrate in
proportion and composition, to make it
a balanced ration for a particular group
of animals. Thus, in ruminants the
mixing of roughage and concentrate
portion of the feed as a blend i.e. TMR,
has several advantages, like;
1. It is very suitable on silage-based
feeding system.
2. It maintains rumen pH in
favorable range (above 6.0).
3. The incidence of lameness in the
herd is reduced.
4. Animals eat balanced ration in
every bite.
5. There is an increase in fat % in
milk and also milk yield by 3-5%.
6. The unpalatable materials can be
mixed in TMR at higher
proportions without affecting the
intake of animals.
7. Feeding operation can be
mechanized, thereby reducing the
labor requirement.
Cow's requirement for nutrients
Cow's requirement of energy, protein,
calcium and phosphorus depend upon
body weight and milk production.
To calculate the energy required for 20
kg milk with 3.5% fat.
0.70 Mcal NEL/kg milk x 20 = 14
9 Mcal is required for maintenance for
500 kg animal
Total requirement is 9 + 14 = 23 Mcal
NEL/d. For first lactation animals, we
have to give growth allowance also. For
500 g/d growth, 2.4 MCal NEL and 320
g/d protein is required. This will add in
addition to the requirement for
maintenance and milk production.
Protein requirement for milk production
is 85 gm/kg milk in cows.
Environmental temperature also plays a
role in energy requirement. Exposure to
cold increases the energy requirement
of the animal.
The starting point in balancing the
dairy cow ration is to know the quantity
and quality of green fodder/silage/hay.
For example, if we have green sorghum
silage at optimum stage of harvest, it
will have 25% dry matter, 8% crude protein and 0.9 Mcal
NEL/kg DM. In early lactation, we fix forage concentrate
ratio at 60: 40 for medium yielders (approx. 4000 kg
milk/lactation) and 50: 50 for high yielders (approx. 6000
kg milk/lactation). Taking the example of a cow having 500
kg body weight and producing 20 kg milk per day, we can
proceed in the following manner:
DMI = 17 kg/d (Table-1)
From Green fodder = 8.5 kg
(50% of DMI)
Crude protein from green = 8.5x 0.08 = 0.68 kg
Energy = 7.65 MCal NEL
Requirement DMI NEL CP, kg
Total 17 23 2.7 (17 x 0.16)
From fodder 8.5 7.65 0.68
Balance 8.5 15.35 2.02
Table-2 Contribution of DM, energy and protein from concentrate and fodder
We need concentrate which has
2.02 x 100 = 23.76%
CP % = ----------
8.5
15.35
NEL = ---------- x 100 = 1.80 Mcal/kg
8.5
For making concentrate mixture of required crude protein
per cent, Pearson square method can be used. It is
described below:
Pearson square method
First fix the
ingredients 2.0% bypass fat
1.5% mineral mixture
1% salt
4.5% molasses
0.5% buffer
0.1% toxin binder
0.1% yeast
0.05% chelated trace minerals
0.25% limestone powder
Total = 10
These 10 parts of concentrate will not supply any protein,
therefore, balance 90 kg should contain 23.76 kg crude
protein
Milk production
kg/d (3.5% fat)
DMI (kg/d) NEL (Mcal/d) CP % Calcium % Phosphorus %
20 17 23.0 16 0.62 0.35
30 21 31.5 18 0.70 0.38
Table.1. Nutrient requirements for milk production
On percentage
basis 90
23.76
x 100 = 26.4% CP=

ARTICLE
10
Then select energy ingredients like
maize, wheat bran and deoiled rice
bran. Give weighted value to calculate
the crude protein % of these energy
ingredients. Here we have taken 50%
maize, 25% wheat bran and 25%
deoiled rice bran. The crude protein per
cent in these are 9, 13 and 16%,
respectively. The average CP of grain
mix will be
(50 x 0.09) + (25 x 0.13) + (25 x 0.16) =
11.75%
Similarly, protein mix of mustard cake is
(70%) and soybean meal (30%) having
CP % of 36 and 45%, respectively. Their
average CP will be 38.7%.
Then applying the Pearson square
method:
Maize (50%) + Wheat bran (25%) +
DRB (25%)
The quantity of concentrate ingredients per animal per
day was calculated by taking proportion of each
ingredient from 8.5 kg daily concentrate allowance. For
example, the above concentrate contains 20.54 % maize in
it. The daily maize intake by the animal will be
8.5x0.2054=1.75 kg.
If we take DM level (92% approx.) in to consideration then
8.5
On as such basis the conc. offered /ani/d = ------= 9.24 kg
0.92
Feeding of TMR to milking cows
1. Feed TMR twice in summers during cooler hours of
the day.
2. In winter one-time feeding could be practiced.
3. Make sure that there is always 2-3% residue left in the
manger which could be fed to dry animals.
4. Check the quality of silage from lab periodically.
5. It is difficult to design a TMR on green fodder
because the quality changes frequently but on silage-
based feeding system the quality of roughage
remains similar for longer periods and accordingly
calculation could be done.
Properly balanced ration not only increases the milk
production but also lowers the cost of milk production as
well as it provides balanced ration with higher efficiency of
conversion of ration DM to milk solids. On an average, the
dairy ration should be balanced on fortnightly basis
depending upon change in milk production and quality
and quantity of available green fodder.
11.75
38.7
12.3 (38.7-26.4)
14.65 (26.4-11.75)
26.4
26.95Mustard cake (70%)+
SBM (30%)
= (12.3/26.95) x 90 = 41.08 kg grain mix
= (14.65/26.95) x 90 = 48.92 kg protein mix
90 kg will contain
Grain mix required:
Maize = 41.08 x 0.5 = 20.54 kg
Wheat bran = 41.08 x 0.25 = 10.27 kg
DRB = 41.08 x 0.25 = 10.27 kg
Protein mix required
Mustard cake = 48.92 x 0.7 = 34.24 kg
SBM = 48.92 x 0.3 = 14.68 kg
The final composition of concentrate mixture Parts per 100 kg
Maize 20.54
Wheat bran 10.27
DRB 10.27
Mustard cake 34.24
SBM 14.68
Mineral mixture 1.5
Salt 1.0
Buffer 0.5
Toxin binder 0.1
Yeast 0.1
Chelated MM 0.05
Molasses 4.5
Bypass fat 2.0
Limestone powder 0.25
Vit Ad3 0.5 gm
Ingredients DM, kg/
Ani.
CP % Total
CP (kg)
NEL
/kg
Total
NEL
Non-legume
silage
8.5 (34
kg fresh)
8 0.68 0.9 7.65
Maize 1.75 9 0.16 2.01 3.5
Wheat bran 0.87 13 0.11 1.61 1.40
DRB 0.87 16 0.14 1.50 1.3
Mustard cake 2.91 36 1.05 1.75 5.09
SBM 1.25 45 0.56 2.2 2.75
Bypass fat 0.25 - -- 4.1 1.04
Molasses 0.27 - -- 1.76 0.47
MM, salt,
yeast. trace
min, Vit
AD3etc.
0.35 -- -- -- --
Total 17.0 2.70 23.21
To again check the ration for its nutrients

Development of Indian Feed Sector
The growth in Indian animal husbandry
has on an average been 7-8% over the
past few years. This growth has
understandably fueled the growth in
Indian feed sector as well. While the
demand increased, the industry has also
evolved substantially over the past few
decades.
The Indian feed sector has evolved in
terms of developments in process,
milling technology (increased
throughput & capacity of pellet mills),
extent of automation, quality control
checks, refinement in formulation etc.
However, raw material volatility in terms
of pricing, quality and availability has
always been a challenge in meeting the
demand-supply gap.
In fact, the Indian feed sector has made
good progress in terms of the sufficiency
of raw materials and continues exploring
the possibilities of alternate raw
materials for the inclusion into poultry
feed. Given this scenario, the Indian feed
industry will certainly continue to grow in a positive
direction.
Challenges in Developing and Developed markets
The major challenges in the poultry industry vary
significantly per region. In countries with a rapid growth in
population, rising middle-class and increasing incomes, the
meat and egg consumption is growing fast, which is putting
pressure on availability of inputs (like raw materials), and
requires significant improvements in feed efficiency and bird
health control. New technologies and innovations related to
precision nutrition, quality control and poultry health care
are nowadays instrumental to achieve the required
production increases.
In other countries, in particular those with relatively high
incomes, a key challenge is to adapt production methods to
accommodate rapidly changing consumer demands related
to animal welfare, non-GMO and environmental
sustainability. Examples include slow-growing broilers, free-
range layers and meat produced without any usage of
antibiotics and coccidiostats. Interestingly, several of these
trends become visible in developing economies at a much
faster rate than many of us expected.
At the same time, we see several challenges that are present
in almost all poultry production countries, such as disease
outbreaks (viz. coccidiosis and necrotic enteritis are currently
Indian Poultry Industry from
an international perspective
INDUSTRY THOUGHT
12
Dr. Ruud Eits, Trouw Nutrition
Dr. Ruud Eits

13
a costly challenge in broiler production
in many countries) as well as the need to
minimize production cost (particularly
feed cost) in order to stay competitive.
Personally, I do expect that scientific
progress related to alternative proteins
(like 'artificial' meat), combined with the
increasing public concerns about climate
change and antibiotic resistance, will
result in a notable decline in meat
consumption in some markets in among
others Europe and USA, in the next 3 to
5 years.
Various aspects of poultry farming
and feed production in India
! Genetics: Breed should always be
more adapted to local climatic
condition so as to withstand the
hot weather & disease challenge.
At present the scenario that we see
in Indian poultry as far as genetics
is concerned is that 70% of the
broilers reared are Cobb 430Y, 15%
are SunBro and 15% are other
international breeds (Aviagen,
Hubbard). Layers is dominated by
BV 300 at approx. 85% and others
(Hyline, Lohmann, Bovans) at 15%.
! Farm management and Biosecurity:
Biosecurity is one of the major
concerns and open housing
practices pose a challenge to
biosecurity for Indian poultry. Hot
and humid weather conditions add
to the challenge. AGP & antibiotics
are still in use. Salmonella and other
Enterobacteria management have
been a global challenge for poultry
producers. There is no magic bullet
for this especially in the times of
lowered antibiotics and AGP usage.
We have developed a
comprehensive program to manage
these microbes in raw materials,
feeds and inside the gut.
! Farm and Feed Mill Audit Programs
provide great opportunity to
understand the challenge and
implement right solutions. Use of
the right combination and quantity
of various organic acids in raw
materials and feeds help to
enhance gut health, feed safety and
public health.
! Nutrition: Even though over the
years we have seen development in poultry
nutrition, but aspects like precision nutrition -
managing the nutrient levels as per the bird's
requirement and the availability through different
raw materials – have still not been explored.
! Feed production: Indian feed industry has been
facing challenges with respect to pellet quality
specifically in terms of steam quality and
conditioning. Added to this, the external
environment tends to be quite dry, leading to
moisture loss from poultry feeds, which in turn can
affect feed intake, and digestibility of poultry feeds.
Excessive moisture loss during feed production can
also reduce the profitability of feed mills. A “Moisture
Management System” which not only helpsin
managing moisture in complete feeds but also helps
in improving feed throughput, reduce energy costs
and reduce mould growth, which is needed under
such conditions.
! Responsible usage of antibiotics: One of the
concerns for global community has been responsible
usage of antibiotics. Indian poultry sector also faces
similar concerns. With stricter global norms and also
increasing awareness among the Indian consumers,
antibiotic usage will become a big challenge in years
to come. A better understanding about programmes
that help to reduce antibiotic usage will certainly
become important.
Innovations in the industry:
There is an extensive research and development
happening in the sector globally. From animal nutrition
to animal behavior monitoring, various aspects are being
studied in order to fully explore the genetic potential of
animals.
Innovations like NutriOpt On-site Adviser (NOA), which
are able to assess the nutrient quality of ingredients on
farm have proved to be important in decision making for
the owners while it has also been instrumental in
precision feeding programmes of farmers and integrators.
One of the aspects of research area has been feed safety
which has led to advancements and innovation in the
field. Quality Assurance and Traceability are the key
elements in any feed and food safety programs. Raw
materials used in animal feeds are exposed to various
hazards such as moulds, bacteria, mycotoxins and
endotoxins. Subjecting these raw materials to rapid and
reliable testing procedures is very critical. Time is of high
importance and method to detect the toxins on farm or
in feed mill can prove to be very beneficial.
Further, one of the aspects that has gained importance in
this digital age is the database and accessibility of the
same through cloud. Going forwards integration of
Artificial Intelligence with the available database to make
more informed decisions shall be explored by the
industry.

ARTICLE Think Grain Think Feed - Volume 6 | Issue 01 | November 2019
14
Introduction
As per statistics poultry products will
account for sizable portion of future food
demand forecasting significant increase in
global food production by 2050.
Production and consumption of poultry
products are projected to double in next
30 years, growth propelled by its low-cost,
small environmental footprint, positive
health attributes and lack of religious
restrictions (Roembke, 2017). Poultry
products (broiler meat and eggs) are the
most affordable sources of animal
proteins for all class of peoples, hence
future of poultry industry is bright but
such growth will be possible by advances
in feeding (nutrition), breeding (genetics)
and management (maintenance). The
increasing demand of poultry products
and lesser supply of quality raw materials
for feed production are putting pressure
on the farmers. Similarly, competitive
industry trends driven by consumer
demand for safe (antibiotic free) and
affordable animal protein amidst shortage
of feed raw materials is becoming a
challenge day-by-day. The global
population, resources, and climate
dynamics suggest, we must improve
sustainability of food production system,
and the precision feeding of animals may
be one of the ways to accomplish this
goal (Liebe and White, 2019). Precision
nutrition would help in effective utilization of available feed
resources with the aim of maximizing animals' response to
nutrients and improve farm profitability (Andonovic et al.,
2018). Hence, we need to understand the importance of
precision nutrition and how such developing technologies
could help in improving production efficiently in poultry
industry.
Precision poultry farming
Precision farming signifies, satisfying the need of animals and
crops at the highest precision to get maximum output with
available resources. The more precisely the need is satisfied,
the less waste will be there in the system, resulting in more
economic and environmental benefits. This also helps in
reduction of Greenhouse gases and ammonia emission in air,
nitrates and antibiotics pollution in water bodies, phosphorus
and heavy metals in the soil (Andonovic et al., 2018; Tullo et
al., 2019). Precision farming, and especially precision nutrition,
will help to optimise feed efficiency with positive effect on
animal health, animal welfare and the environment.
Feed accounts for nearly 70% of production cost and
considered as the greatest single expenditure associated with
poultry production. Broiler and layers are highly efficient in
converting feed to food products but still a significant amount
of undigested feed is excreted. Generally, digestibility of
nutrients is in the tune of 50-85% depending on the specific
nutrient, therefore a significant improvement can be made to
further improve the efficiency of feed utilization. To optimize
the poultry nutrition, researchers are focusing on deep
understanding on nutrient requirements and their fate in the
body, evaluation of alternative raw materials, availability of
quality feed ingredients, use of novel feed additives and
formulation of nutrient rich least-cost feed. Main aim is
Precision Poultry Nutrition
in Practice to Improve Farm
Profitability
Dr. Kumar Kore, BASF India Ltd
Fig. 1. Making poultry production more sustainable with precision farming

15
precision farming and precision nutrition
is utilizing the inputs at their maximum
possible ways, lower costs and maximize
economic efficiency of poultry farming.
Precision poultry nutrition
Precision nutrition intends to provide the
animal with the amount of feed/ nutrients
that precisely meet its nutritional
requirements for optimum productive
efficiency to produce better quality animal
products (meat and eggs) which are also
safe for consumers and harmless to
climate change (Reddy and Krishna, 2009).
In other words, precision feeding is the
practice of meeting the nutrient
requirement of animals as accurately as
possible in the interest of a safe, high
quality and efficient production while
ensuring the lowest possible load on the
environment under the given conditions.
Improving sustainability of livestock
production systems can be achieved
through optimized reproductive, genetic,
nutritional, and health management
(White et al., 2014, 2015).
Feed formulation to achieve precision
nutrition
The object of formulation is to derive a
balanced diet that provides appropriate quantities of
biologically available nutrients at least cost. In the past, we
always tried to over-formulate diets due to uncertainty about
the raw material quality or nutrient requirements. This practice
is no longer acceptable, not only because it is wasteful, but
also because excess nutrients excreted in the manure leads to
environmental pollution. Fine tuning of the diets to closely
match the requirements of the birds, helps to optimize
efficiency of nutrient utilization. Main objective in formulation
of poultry feed is production of low cost, high-quality finished
products. Due to restriction of antibiotics in poultry feed,
nutritionists need to understand more about the digestive
tract microbiota and how to modulate it through the diets.
Over the years, feed formulation has evolved from a simple
balancing of a few feedstuffs for a limited number of nutrients
to a linear programming system that operates with the aid of
computers.
Systems using stochastic non-linear programming are now
becoming popular, with commercially available formulation
software. To achieve precise nutrition, use of nonlinear feed
formulation need to be practiced, where formulas will depend
on other variables such as age, sex, temperature, baby chick
price, feed cost and/or final product margin etc. (Penz, 2019).
Introduction of non-linear programming, to optimize yield
and minimize feed cost in animal feed formulation, may lead
to better approximation as compared to those of linear cases
(Saxena et al., 2012). Use of Growth models to simulate feed
intake and production parameters under given husbandry
conditions are more practical to reach our goal of optimum

production. Such models are effective
tools for: i) comparing actual versus
potential performance, which can indicate
the extent of management or health
problems in a flock; and ii) providing
economic analysis of alternative feeding
regimens. Several commercial growth
models are available for predicting the
production performance of both meat
chickens and laying hens. Finally, feed
formulations need to become customised
based on need of the bird and desired
output to support the concept of
precision nutrition.
Factors to consider while practicing
precision nutrition
Following factors have important
contribution in achieving goal of precision
nutrition
Feeding to genetic potential of birds:
Although Nutrigenomics is in infancy, the
future nutrient requirement and feeding
of animals will be based on specific need
of gene. In modern nutrition, generic
recommendations will be replaced by
customised solutions. Using
nutrigenomics as a tool in animal nutrition
allow us to develop new feeding
strategies, thereby creating an
opportunity to lower the cost of materials,
improve supplementation and rapidly
adapt new formulations in response to
changing regulation and demand. It also
allows us to identify and address
nutritional bottlenecks that prevent us
from taking advantage of the advanced
genetics that are the key of livestock and
poultry industries (Connolly and Dawson,
2015).
Nutritional manipulation of gene
expression meant to control the
expression of specific gene by under or
overfeeding of some nutrients. Similarities
in gene expression between the two
primary genetics companies can be used
as an advantage when it comes to the
precise feeding of chickens or the ability
to feed specific genes and deliver
nutrients to those genes at the right time
and in the right form. Through precision
nutrition for example, feeding additives
on exact days for a defined period to get
desired changes in gene expression
towards more production (for eg. chicken
with more breast meat or less abdominal
fat) can be achieved.
Feed ingredients: To make precision
nutrition a reality than theory, feed producers need to change
the way they considered feed ingredients such as corn,
soybean meal, meat and bone meal (where it can be used)
simply as a commodity into uniform, analysed ingredients to
exactly match the desired nutrient specification. Segregation
of raw materials (for e.g. based on the size of corn) and their
analysis will help to formulate the cost effective and
wholesome diet. Without knowing the ingredient analysis,
precise nutrition is elusive, even with the best diet formulation
(Penz, 2019).
Followed by ingredient selection and diet formulation, the
post-absorptive processes that rank feed raw materials based
on digestibility coefficients needs to be considered. Use of
advanced analytical technics such as near-infrared
Spectroscopy (NIR), inductively coupled plasma optical
emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) for mineral profile and Gas
chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy (GC-MS) for
contaminants (eg. pesticides) and in vitro assays to obtain
nutrient profile and anti-nutrients provide further nutrient
values to help in achieving more realistic diet formulation. We
can achieve the aim of precision nutrition by more precise
ration formulation based on nutritional value of each batch of
ingredient, proper weighing and mixing of ingredients, novel
feed processing techniques, use of feed additives, etc.
Feed additives: To make animal production highly efficient,
the nutrient loss should be minimized, which means more
units of output per unit of input. Feed additives play a pivotal
role in achieving increased efficiency and reduced
environmental load per unit of the animal product (refer Table
1). They improve nutrient digestibility, gut health, nutrient
absorption and support microflora modulation thereby
facilitates chicken growth with less variability and reduces
environment pollution. Feed additives like organic acids,
probiotics, prebiotics, enzymes and phytochemicals are used
to improve the feed efficiency mainly by improving animal
health and increasing digestibility of nutrients (Gadde et al.,
2017). These additives are now becoming popular and widely
accepted as an alternative to antibiotic growth promoter
(AGP's) in poultry production.
Feed milling: Although feed formulation is the key to
produce good quality poultry feed but without properly
processing the feed, it won't bring better results. After mixing
ARTICLE
16

of ingredients, most poultry feeds
undergo some form of processing, which
involves a wide range of thermal
treatments including conditioning,
pelleting, crumbling and cooling. Now
adays mostly pelleted or crumbled feed is
used for feeding of chicken, which
enhances the economics of production by
improving feed efficiency and growth
performance. These improvements are
attributed to decreased feed wastage,
higher nutrient density, reduced selective
feeding, decreased time and energy spent
on eating, destruction of pathogenic
organisms, and thermal modification of
starch and protein. Poultry producers
operate in highly competitive
environment and efficiency saving across
the supply chain can yield great results
from a relatively low investment. Other
than the discussed factors, feed mill is one
of the important segments which can
yield huge savings when handled
meticulously. By finding ways to get more
from existing equipment, improving staff
knowledge and minimising wastage, feed
mills can often gain better efficiency and
cost saving. Some of the important factors
like optimizing the production process through periodic
review of batching and mixing systems, reducing energy
usage by keeping optimum moisture, time and temperature
of conditioning will help to improve efficiency (Davies, 2019).
Maintaining feed hygiene during feed production has
significant positive impact on animal performance, moisture
management is also important to optimize resource efficiency.
Finally, the qualified staff in feed mill will help to ensure all the
processes are in place and running at optimum conditions.
Conclusions
Next 30 years appear to be most favourable for Indian poultry
industry in terms of increasing demand of affordable animal
protein, but it is also challenging due to scarce resources like
feed ingredients, land and skilled manpower. To meet this
demand, it is necessary to transform our traditional livestock
farming practices. Precision farming and feeding can help to
get optimum returns from poultry industry. Animal genetics,
alternative feed raw materials, precise feed formulation, novel
feed additives and optimized feed manufacturing process are
some of the key drivers for future development in the poultry
industry. Application of nutrigenomics, advanced farming
technologies, efficient feed utilization with less impact on
environment are the factors to be kept in mind in order to
achieve the goal of precision farming and optimum
production.
References are available upon request.
The corresponding author can be contacted at kumar.kore@basf.com
Think Grain Think Feed - Volume 6 | Issue 01 | November 2019ARTICLE
18
Feed Additives Main component Purpose Desired results
NSPases (Xylanase, Beta-glucanase,
mannanase), Phytase, Protease
To improve fibre (NSP) digestibility,
increase phosphorus availability and
reduction of nutrient losses and
environmental pollution
Improved body weight, FCR, bone
mineralization, improved gut health
etc.
Enzymes
Formic acid, Propionic acid, Acetic acid,
Lauric acid, Calcium propionate,
Sodium formate etc.
For feed preservation and hygiene,
mould inhibition, feed and water
acidification, alternative to AGPs, gut
acidification, antifungal and
antibacterial
Reduce microbial contamination and
spoilage of feed, improve gut microbial
balance, improve, overall improvement
in performance
Organic acids &
their salts
Bacillus spp, Lactobacillus spp
Bifidobacteriaspp, Saccharomyces spp
To maintain intestinal microbial
balance, competitive inhibition of
pathogens, enhance gut immunity,
reduce enteritis
Improved gut health, less mortality,
increased boy weight, FCR and less
diseases
Probiotics
Mannan-oligosaccharides (MOS), beta-
glucans, Fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS)
Xylo-oligosaccharides (XOS)
Acts as substrate for beneficial bacteria
in the gut, reduce pathogens in the
intestine, produce short chain fatty
acids in the large intestine favourable
for gut health
Improved gut health, intestinal
microbial balance, improve
performance of birds with less
outbreaks
Prebiotics
Asthaxantin, C-30 esters, Xanthophyll,
beta-carotene
To improve egg yolk coloration and
broiler skin colouration, to boost
immunity
Improved sensory value of eggs and
meat, more acceptance by consumers,
premium price
Carotenoids
Essential oils, Plant extract, Herbs,
Luetin
To improve GT tract health, reduce
pathogenic load in intestine
Improved bird performance, less
morbidity and mortality, more profit
Phytochemicals
Butylated hydroxy toluene (BHT),
butylated hydroxy anisole (BHA)
To prevent oxidative damage of fats
and oils in the poultry diet, to reduce
stress due to reactive oxygen sp.
Reduce various stresses in birds, overall
improvement of bird health, improved
shelf-life of feed and poultry produce
Antioxidants
Table 1. Additives contributing to precision nutrition by improving feed utilization

20
INTERVIEW
In September, Novus inaugurated its new office in Chennai and invited THINK
GRAIN THINK FEED to interview their global team including Francois Fraudeau,
President and Chief Executive Officer, w. Scott Hine, Vice President – Product &
Solutions and Chief Innovation Officer, Dave Dowell - COO, Dr. Vaibhav Nagpal
- Senior Director & CCO, Asia and Neeraj Kumar Srivastava, Managing Director,
Novus South Central Asia.
Along with interviewing the global team, Think Grain Think Feed had the
opportunity to interact with Asia heads and also some of the important
customers from Eastern part of the country. Following are the excerpts from
the interview:
Francois Fraudeau: There are many aspects to consider with any expansion, but
perhaps the most important is understanding the opportunities available in the
country that you want to serve and how best to utilize those opportunities. Of
course, there can be vast cultural differences but, ultimately, if you hire the
right people with the right skills – as we've done here in India -- those
individuals can make the transition very easy. Finding customers has never
been a challenge for Novus as most in the industry are seeking innovation and
differentiation.
Francois Fraudeau: Novus has invested significant resources in relation to
antibiotic use in animal agriculture. For the last 15 years, we have been working
rigorously on products for the European market where regulators have put a
complete ban on antibiotics as a feed additive. We expect the U.S. will follow
You have been associated with Novus nearly from its inception and the
company is operating in many countries around the world. Kindly share
the major challenges that the company has faced during this expansion
process.
Would you please highlight some recent research findings which the
company has under taken? Are there some new innovations with an
application in near future?
Asia - An investment
spot for Novus

South-East Asian Markets
“There is a lot of variation in customers and industry with
in SEAP region like Indonesia and Pakistan are dominant
in Poultry while the major sectors in Thailand and
Vietnam are Aquaculture and Swine,” said Dr. Von
Richard Ebron, World Area Director for SEAP.
Speaking on scope of Aquaculture market, he said it is a
growing market and after African Swine Fever (ASF)
outbreak the consumer has shifted to aqua and poultry.
The mother company of Novus, Mitsui has also invested
in largest prawn production facility in Vietnam, which is
an area of interest for expansion for the company as well.
“Asia is an investment spot for Novus because of its
growth opportunities in all segments. Novus plan is to
invest more on customer facing side of the company
hence there is more manpower in this region compared
to the previous years,” he added.
suite. While the decision on antibiotic
use in India is pending, Novus is
prepared to offer solutions if India too
moves in the direction of antibiotic-free
production.
Apart from antibiotic alternatives, our
company has been producing and
marketing enzymes, methionine,
organic trace minerals and various feed
quality solutions. These products are
created and marketed with the
customer in mind, so we also pay close
attention to the regulatory landscape,
product quality and market conditions
to ensure the solutions we create are
accessible to those who need and want
them. Through focused efforts around
the world, we have been successful at
bringing new innovations and
applications of our products to the
market.
Francois Fraudeau: Novus is essentially
creating a balanced portfolio between
the methionine business and the
specialty business for poultry, swine,
Five years down the line what kind of
outlook does one expect for the
company. In which areas would it like
to put on more focus?
livestock and aquaculture. Methionine is a very important
amino acid for nearly all species. Novus's specialty
business, which includes enzymes, organic trace minerals,
eubiotics and feed quality products, is becoming a very
significant part of our portfolio. Five years from now, we
expect to see a more balanced share of our business
coming from the specialty business unit. Apart from that,
we are also marketing human supplements, though this
business is currently confined to North America. We hope
to bring this side of the company to the global human
supplement market within the next five years.
Dave Dowell: From an innovation perspective, the
production and marketing of enzymes and organic trace
minerals has certainly evolved. Novus caters to the
demand for enzymes, especially proteases and phytases,
at a global level. Feed safety and traceability are
undoubtedly two extremely important aspects of the feed
business today and we don't see that changing. Products
related to microbial load and mycotoxin management are
also of interest to our customers.
Neeraj Srivastava: Product registration differs from
country to country, as each has its own laws and
regulations. In India there is the advantage of good supply
chain and that helps in marketing our product. Apart from
that there is a fairly open regulatory policy in place within
the country. Also, customers in India are quite receptive to
new and unique technologies and Novus understands well
the challenges our customers here encounter. For these
reasons, the access to Indian market is fairly quick. For
example, India was the first country to market a new
Dave Dowell, you have been with Novus for more than
a decade now. How do you feel the way feed industry
has been evolved over the years?
Product registration differs from country to country.
Any take on that from your side. How much time does
it take for any new innovation to reach Indian market?
Dr. Von Richard
Ebron
World Area Director
Southeast Asia-Pacific
Novus International,
Inc.
21

22
INTERVIEW
organic trace mineral complex product
that we launched last year. Launching a
new product can take months to years
in other countries. It is a matter of
pride that Novus has developed one
of the fastest acting phytases in recent
years (CIBENZA® PHYTAVERSE®). It
took four years for Novus to enter the
phytase market in a big way, initially in
South Central Asia, and now globally.
Vaibhav Nagpal: Until last year Asia
was divided into two regions: North
East Asia (NEA) and South East Asia
Pacific (SEAP). India was part of SEAP.
However, since countries in South Asia
are growing on a fast tract, Novus
decided to approach South Asia as a
separate region. We now have a
separate technical and marketing team
specifically concentrating on this area.
In fact, we are already observing that
by making South Asia a separate
entity, business seems to be growing
faster. Thanks to added resources, we
can more quickly respond to our
customers in this area and we have a
better understanding of the
challenges they face; our customers
are really seeing the benefits.
Vaibhav Nagpal: We better understand
Could you please share the impact
of last year's reorganization of
regional structure of Novus in Asia?
It has been a decade since you have
established the Indian subsidiary of
Novus team in India. What are the
major changes that you have
observed during these years?
the Indian feed market and the problems customers
face. The customer requirements vary from country to
country. Understanding customer needs so that we can
anticipate future needs is paramount. This knowledge
guides our research efforts and the products we
innovate.
Regarding our growth as a company, it has been over a
decade since Novus first began work on enzymes and
organic trace minerals. Today Novus can proudly claim
that it is one of the leading players in the world of feed
enzymes and organic trace minerals.
Dave Dowell: Aqua feed in India has a huge potential to
grow. This industry is developing at a fast pace like
poultry industry. For the dairy feed industry, the market
is fragmented; the size of the average herd is invariably
very small, and things are changing slowly as related to
A lot has been talked about the poultry industry,
what about Dairy and Aqua?
Challenges in North-East Asian
Markets
“African Swine fever (ASF) proved to
be the biggest challenge for the
market which has resulted in ~65%
reduction in swine population.
Antibiotic free production is also a
major challenge which may increase
the mortality, production issues and
hence impact the economy of
livestock production. Environment
protection is rather an important
issue in China, especially for smaller
feed companies,” said Dr. Defa Sun
who takes care of China, Taiwan and
Korea market for Novus.
“Due to all these challenges,
industry will be more consolidated
in coming times,” he pointed out.
Dr. Defa Sun.
World Area Director
Northeast Asia
Novus International,
Inc.
L:R - Neeraj Kumar Srivastava, Dr. Vaibhav Nagpal, w. Scott Hine, Francois Fraudeau, Dr. TK Walli, Prachi Arora,
Reena Rani and Dave Dowell during Novus office inaugural program in Chennai

23
Started 27 years ago with cattle feed,
Shivshakti Agro diversified to poultry
feed and the company was first to
introduce pellet feed in Eastern India
back in 1993. Presently, the company
is also into poultry breeding and
integration.
Demand-supply mismatch is the key
challenge for the poultry industry.
Removing traders out of the value-
chain and reaching farmers directly
may bring prosperity to the
producers, said Sumit Surekha,
Managing Director, Shivshakti
Agro.
“Aquaculture industry in India is at a
nascent stage. 5 years ago, the
company entered into aqua feed and
figured the difference of running an
aqua feed plant and a poultry feed
plant. At the same time we observed
the distributors in this sector are
more reliable because they prefer to
work with consistent quality feed
suppliers as end-product margins are
pretty good which is not the case in
poultry sector,” said Mr. Surekha.
On their association with Novus, the
Managing Director said it's been
more than a decade that we are
using their products specially the
antioxidant which is performing well.
We also started to use the moisture
optimizer which is under trial.
Shalimar Group – Sameer Agarwal
A major player from Eastern India -
Shalimar group is serving the Indian
Poultry business for the last 5 decades.
With considerable presence in PAN
India, the company is into feed milling
and integration, and recently
diversified into aqua feed and soya
plant.
Discussing on challenges of the
industry, Mr. Sameer Agarwal, Director
of Shalimar Group said human
resource is the biggest challenge for
the poultry industry i.e. getting right
people at the right position and talent
retention especially after the entry of
e-platform players like Swiggy, Ola
and others.
Variation in feed raw material prices is
an issue for Indian feed sector where
end-product price does not change
respectively.
“Feed raw material prices have gone
up in last one year and before that it
was fairly consistent, market may start
adjusting to it in a year or so as output
price will also increase proportionately
and it should not be a challenge
moving forward,” said Mr. Agarwal.
As many multinationals eyeing on
opportunities in the Indian market, Mr.
Agarwal feels that with the
multinationals coming in the market,
the market will grow and positively
impacted. Efficiency increases with the
competition which will further improve
cost of production.
M. Srihari Reddy, Lotus farms,
Bangalore started the family business
in 1991 with 6000 breeders and today
have 4 lakh breeders, hatchery, feed
mills and retail stores etc. The
company was also first to start
hatching egg sales in Eastern India
market.
Sharing his experience on how the
industry has changed in all these
years, Mr. Reddy said integration
model has changed the face of Indian
poultry industry.
“Today we are 95% wet market and it
may take several years or maybe
generations to convert to processed
market,” he added.
Speaking about Novus, he said that
the company has good products but it
needs further penetration in the
market. Production and logistics cost
management might support them.
Mr. Pradeep Agarwal from
Kamdhenu Udyog, Kolkata was the
other guest who spoke to Think
Grain Think Feed. He said Indian
poultry is not ready for antibiotic
free production, it will take time and
consumer awareness is the need of
the hour.
consolidation of these smaller herds
into larger, high-producing herds.
Novus has a dedicated dairy team
with sound technical knowledge who
can train the small dairy farmers with
respect to products and technologies
and show them how Novus products
can add significant value to their
production. Novus has been very
successful in areas where high-
producing dairy cattle are managed,
and this knowledge can easily be
transferred to any of our customers
around the world.
Francois Fraudeau: The feed market in
Where do you see the Indian feed
market 10 years down the line?
India is predicted to go bullish and the reason is simple:
The industry and the country is going through a big
transformation due to a growing demand for animal
protein like meat, chicken, eggs and fish. This demand is
supported by the affordability of these products due to
increasing incomes. So, I see a lot of opportunity and
support for Indian feed industry in the next 10 years.
That said, it is important to grow intelligently. Ultimately
everyone in the industry must be committed to working
for the sustainability of the livestock production system.
As urbanization increases and populations grow, we must
develop new products and technologies that are
renewable and sustainable. Livestock production, ably
supported by quality feed production, plays a key role in
the sustainability of food production worldwide.
CUSTOMERS VIEWS ON INDIAN MARKET

24
INDUSTRY NEWS Think Grain Think Feed - Volume 6 | Issue 01 | November 2019
Despite the economic turmoil caused
by US-led economic sanctions, Iran's
animal feed production is set to more
than double in the next five years,
gradually improving the capacity
utilization factor and developing
export supplies, according to industry
sources.
Iran has a well-established feed
industry with a 70-year history, said
Dr. Majid Movafegh Ghadirly, chairman
of the Iran Feed Industry Association.
As of today, there are 645 production
units in the country with a combined
production capacity of nearly 21
million tonnes of feed per year.
“The actual production is around 10
million tonnes per year, which means
that the industry operates at only 50%
of its designed production capacity,
while overall feed consumption in Iran
is estimated at 20 million tonnes per
year,” Ghadirly said.
The remaining 10,000 tonnes of demand is met with
products manufactured by livestock companies, which in
Iran commonly are not reflected in the feed industry
statistics. This picture is about to change as the
government recently ruled that the country's livestock
companies must stop manufacturing feed and close
their production units until 2023.
For Iran's feed mills, this would provide access to an
untapped market, Ghadirly said.
“In general, Iran's animal feed industry is developing and
over the next 10 years, if the operational plans that we
have foreseen for the industry (materialize), the animal
feed production in the country would reach 26 million
tonnes per year,” he estimated.
The industry largely depends on government policy and
is affected with the price of protein products on the
market and subsidies to animal feed manufacturers,
both set by the authorities, said Ghadirly.
Biting sanctions
US-led economic sanctions against Iran reinstated in
November 2018 have become a burden for the local
feed mills. The country is heavily dependent on
Growth prospects of Iran
feed industry

26
INDUSTRY NEWS
imported raw materials, primarily
corn, barley, soybean meal and feed
additives, and soaring devaluation is
bad news for all import-dependent
business.
“Without sanctions our annual growth
should be at least 4%, while our actual
annual growth is now at 2%,” Ghadirly
admitted. “Certainly, the sanctions
have not been ineffective, because the
production and the pace of
technology upgrades in Iran's animal
feed industry have been lowered while
the price of finished products has
been increased.”
It is believed that one of the reasons
inflation is so high is because of the
feedstuffs. Iran imports 80% of all raw
materials used in feed production.
Free market on the horizon
In the next decade, Iran's feed
industry is set to shift to operating in
free market conditions. Many believe
this will bring great opportunities “to
some leading feed companies and
main players of the industry” and be a
real threat to “the old and traditional
units,” according to Iran's Feed
Industry Association.
“We forecast that in the next 10 years,
the number of feed production units
in Iran would halve, while the
production capacity would increase,”
Ghadirly said. “The reason for this
claim is the (upcoming) liberalization
of the economy, the complete
elimination of subsidies and ultimately
the formation of a free economy.”
Compared to the animal feed market,
Iran's poultry concentrate market is
not as sophisticated, according to the
Iran Feed Industry Association. The
industry requires around 300,000
tonnes of feed additives while the
domestic production stands at around 30,000 tonnes
per year. The livestock industry alone requires 60,000
tonnes of premixes and the domestic production can
barely meet 10% of this figure.
Feedstuffs are an issue
Iran needs 72 million tonnes of feed ingredients for
feed production per year, including 7.5 million tonnes
of feed corn, 3 million tonnes of feed barley, 1.2
million tonnes of soybean meal and so on.
Although import-dependence could be reduced to a
certain extent, there's little chance it could be
eliminated completely, at least in the coming decades.
“Due to the fact that Iran is located in the dry region
and has dehydration and drought problems, self-
sufficiency in feedstuffs is not expected,” Ghardirly
said. “Since more than 80% of raw material and feed
ingredients are imported, overcoming the
dependence on imported feedstuffs in the near future
is impossible.”
Nevertheless, Iran's government intends to reduce its
dependence on imported feedstuffs. Ghadirly said this
is possible through renting the agricultural lands in
other countries, such as Brazil, Kazakhstan, Ukraine,
and Russia, for cultivation, using alternative feedstuffs,
and growing canola instead of soybeans.
Exports are a new target
The fall of the exchange rate of the national currency
has another impact — it makes all export suppliers
much more attractive. In 2017, Iran exported 186,000
tonnes of animal feed worth $74 million.
“In 2018, 208,000 tonnes of compound feed worth $87
million was exported from Iran to 17 countries in the
region,” Ghadirly said.
This is the highest figure ever, and all forecasts now
say that the export supplies will keep growing in the
future.
There are 51 feed producers in Iran engaged in export
operations. The target markets for Iran feed includes
UAE, Iraq, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan,
Turkey, Armenia, Tajikistan, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan,
Kuwait, Oman, South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia and
Uzbekistan, according to the Iran Feed Industry
Association.
Source: Sosland Publishing
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27
The prolonged rainy season tackled
the dreaded Fall Armyworm
The prolonged rainy season, which has
triggered hardships for the country's
farming community at large, has also
turned into a blessing in disguise for corn
growers. The prolonged wet spell has
helped farmers tackle the infestation of
the dreaded Fall Armyworm (FAW) pest,
which had a widespread impact on the
maize crop in the early part of the kharif
season.
The FAW, which made its presence in
Karnataka last year, had spread quickly to
many States, including the North East, this
year, and was seen threatening the maize
crop in the early part of the kharif season.
However, with widespread and surplus
rains in the recent months, the infestation
has reduced, say experts.
“Rains have indirectly helped in containing
the impact of the fall army worm on the
maize crop this year. The damage was less
this year when compared to last as good
rains have aided crop recovery,” said AN
Shylesha, Senior Scientist at the ICAR —
National Bureau of Agricultural Insect
Resources.
Fungus to the rescue
The favourable climate this year triggered
by good rains created an environment for
growth of a fungus in the soil —
Metarhizium Rileyi — a natural enemy of
FAW, which attacks and kills the larvae of
the worm, while boosting plant growth,
Shylesha said.
In addition, farmers, who were aware of
the pest this year, had taken precautionary
measures. As a result of all this, the impact
was less and there was not much of a
yield loss, Shylesha said. Last year,
prolonged dry spells had helped the pest
to multiply and spread quickly.
Maize was planted on about 82 lakh
hectares in kharif 2019, higher than the
previous year's 79.94 lakh hectares.
Bhagirath Chaudhary, Director, South Asia
Biotechnology Centre, New Delhi, which
conducted an awareness campaign for
over 15,000 farmers across many States
about the pest, says that heavy
precipitation has helped reduce FAW
infestation.
Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh still
vulnerable
However, Chaudhary said, in the late kharif sown areas of
Tamil Nadu, the infestation is severe and the threat of the
pest spreading to neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, where
maize is grown in the rabi season, still exists.
Among Northern States, in Bihar, a major corn producer in
the rabi season, the State agriculture department has been
taking proactive steps to educate farmers, he said. “If the
window of November is overcome then the pest infestation
will be automatically controlled during winter,” Chaudhary
added.
Though the incidence of the FAW might have come down,
the pest will still remain a challenge for the Indian farm
sector. “FAW is endemic to India. Getting rid of this pest will
be a big challenge. It still poses a very serious threat to corn
and other crops in the country,” Chaudhary said.
Per the first advance estimates of the Agriculture Ministry,
maize production is seen rising to 19.89 million tonnes in
the kharif 2019 season against last year's kharif output of
19.04 million tonnes.
In 2018-19, India's total maize output stood at 27.23 million
tonnes, per the fourth Advance Estimates.
Source: businessline

28
Think Grain Think Feed - Volume 6 | Issue 01 | November 2019INDUSTRY NEWS
An eco-friendly alternative to
stubble burning
There may be an eco-friendly solution
to stubble burning which is said to
have contributed to worsening of air
quality in the capital and surrounding
areas. A Pune-based agri biotech firm
recently claimed that it has developed
a microbial formulation that can
recycle crop residue in the field rather
than burning them away and thus help
improve soil fertility.
Named Speed Kompost, the microbial
solution developed by Kan Biosys
contains a cocktail of cellulose
degrading, starch degrading, protein
degrading bacteria and fungi.
"Speed Kompost can help improve soil
carbon by incorporating crop residues
efficiently in the soil," said Sandeepa
Kanitkar, Chairperson and Managing
Director of the Kan Biosys, which has
been working on plant nutrition and
soil health management since 2005.
The Pune firm has been working with
some farmers in Punjab and Haryana
for the past four years. "We have used
the formulation in nearly 20,000 acres.
The analysis of 150 samples has shown
that the soil carbon levels in those
fields where it was used have gone up
by 50 per cent from 0.2 per cent to 0.3
per cent in four years," she said.
As they are rich in silica and lignin, rice
straws take normally take long time to decompose on
their own even if there is ideal moisture available in the
soil. The microbial formulation developed by Kan Biosys
in fact accelerates the process, leading to better crop
yields.
There are several benefits from improving the organic
carbon in soil. Besides increasing soil fertility, it helps
reduce carbon dioxide released to the atmosphere by
burning. That way it also addresses the problem of
climate change, Kanitkar said. The stubble burning
disrupts the carbon content balance in the soil and
Speed Kompost can help restore it, Kanitkar said.
According to her, the investment required for taking care
of crop residues produced in one acre of land is around
Rs 2,000, of which Rs 600 is the cost of the product.
Besides, along with Speed Kompost farmers need to use
one bag of urea in each acre of land.
“The farmers in Punjab and Haryana have been burning
the stubble because limited technology options
available to them. Now that there is an environmentally
safe way of disposing of the agri waste, there is a need
to create awareness among them. Besides, they need to
be financially supported to adopt the safer alternative.
There can be substantial environmental and public
health benefits accrue from this," Kanitkar told
BusinessLine.
According to her, the combined area under rice
cultivation in Punjab and Haryana is around 1 crore
acres. The maximum investment required to take care of
the crop residue problem in a season is around Rs 2,000
crore.
Source: businessline
West Bengal government
plans to raise maize
cultivation
West Bengal government has decided
to raise cultivation of maize in the state
by 33% from the current 15 lakh metric
tonnes per year to 20 lakh metric
tonnes in two years' time.
Maize is an important component of
poultry feed and for making biofules. It
is also used in food processing. It is also
used to make the shell of capsules,
starch (which improves the quality of
cloth and makes paper stronger) and as part of the food
processing industry for making sauce, gravy, pudding, pies
and others.
The further stress on improving maize production comes
after the state government won the Krishi Karman Award
this year for improvement in maize production in the
country. This award has proved the big potential that the
state has to become one of the biggest producers of the
crop in the country.
Source: economictimes

Think Grain Think Feed - Volume 6 | Issue 01 | November 2019CALENDAR OF EVENTS
30
2019-2020
To list any industry event related to Grain & Feed industry please write us
at info@thinkgrainthinkfeed.co.in
DECEMBER
Regulation Updates on Animal Feed and Feed
Additives in the EU, USA and China
Date: 5-6 December 2019
Venue: Rembrandt Hotel, London
Email: info@pentec-consulting.eu
Web: www.pentec-consulting.eu
NOVEMBER
Poultry India
Date: 27-29 November 2019
Venue: HITEX Exhibition Complex, Hyderabad,
Telangana, India
Email: info@poultryindia.co.in
Web: www.poultryindia.co.in
FEBRUARY 2020
Feed Tech Expo
Date: 7-8 February 2020
Venue: GADVASU, Ludhiana, India
Email: feedtechexpo@gmail.com
Web: www.feedtechexpo.com
MARCH 2020
VIV MEA 2020
Date: 9-11 March 2020
Venue: Abu-Dhabi National Exhibition Center -
Adnec
Email: viv.mea@vnuexhibitions.com
Web: www.vivmea.nl
JANUARY 2020
International Production & Processing Expo
(IPPE)
Date: 28-30 January 2020
Venue: Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta,
Georgia USA
Email: info@ippexpo.org
Web: www.ippexpo.org
ILDEX Vietnam
Venue: SECC, HCM, Vietnam
Email: manuel.madani@vnuexhibitions.com
Web: www.ildex-vietnam.com
VICTAM Asia and VIV Health & Nutrition Asia
Venue: Bangkok International trade and Exhibition
Center (BITEC), Bangkok, Thailand
Email: panadda@vnuexhibitionsap.com
Web: www.victamasia.comWMFmeetsASIA (The World Mycotoxin Forum)
Date: 13-15 January 2020
Venue: Hotel Nikko, Bangkok
Email: WMFmeetsAsia@btcgroup.nl
Web: www.wmfmeetsasia.org
International PDFA Dairy & Expo
Date: 7-9 December 2019
Venue: Cattle Fair Ground , Jagraon , Distt Ludhiana,
Punjab, India
Email: info@pdfa.org.in
Web: www.pdfa.org.in

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