5 Approved Cassava Products Extremely Good As Livestock Feed

Cassava products can be used in livestock feeding. Large quantities of cassava roots and cassava waste are utilized in the cassava-producing countries for this purpose.

Read also: Detailed Guide to Good Cassava Cultivation

Cassava products for feeding livestock

Let us take a look at some cassava products that are used in feeding livestock.

1. Chips

   This is the most common form in which dried cassava roots are marketed and most exporting countries produce them. The chips are dried irregular slices of roots which vary in size but should not exceed 5 cm in length so that they can be stored in silos. They are produced extensively in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and some parts of Africa.

   Processing the cassava chips

   The present method of processing chips in Thailand, Malaysia and some other countries is very simple, consisting of mechanically slicing the cassava roots and then sun drying the slices. The recovery rate of chips from roots is about 20-40%. However, the products are considered inferior in quality by some quality-conscious feedstuff manufacturers, although many others consider them satisfactory.

   Preparation of the roots

   When the roots are not sorted, peeled and washed, the chips are usually brown in colour and have a high content of fibre sand and foreign objects as well as hydrocyanic acid. Trimming, peeling and washing the roots in a similar manner as for the processing of cassava flour are recommended in order to produce white chips of superior quality.

   Slicing or shredding

   The roots are shredded in a special machine, which is usually made locally. The machine consists of a rotating notched cutting disk or knife blades mounted on a wooden frame equipped with a hopper as shown in Figure 31. The cassava roots are cut into thin slices and pieces as they pass through the machine.

   Drying

   Sun drying is used mostly where the sliced roots are spread out on drying areas, or concrete floors of various dimensions. Experiments in Madagascar showed that the concentration of chips during drying should not exceed 10-15 kg/m2, the required drying area space being about 250 m2 for each ton per day of dried roots produced.

   To produce good quality chips the roots must be sliced and dried as quickly as possible after harvest. The chips should be turned periodically in the drying period, usually two or three sunny days, until the moisture content reaches 13-15%. The chips are considered dry when they are easily broken but too hard to be crumbled by hand. The thickness of the slices also has an effect on the quality of the chips. Thick slices may appear dry on the surface when their internal moisture content is still high.

   When rain threatens during the drying process, the chips are collected by hand or by a tractor into piles under a small roof. Interrupted sun-drying affects the quality of the finished chips and pellets. When the semi-dried chips are wet again by rain, they become soggy and upon completion of drying lose their firm texture. In rainy regions, where continuous sun drying is difficult, some form of artificial heat drying is required.

2. Broken roots

   Similar to chips in appearance, but generally thicker and longer, they are often 12-15 cm long and can jam the mechanism of handling equipment. They are produced mainly in Africa where local processors prefer to produce longer roots because of the domestic demand mainly for products suitable for human consumption, as cassava is part of the staple diet. Once processed into chips the product becomes inedible, and the producer wants to conserve the local market.

3. Pellets

   The pellets are obtained from dried and broken roots by grinding and hardening into a cylindrical shape. The cylinders are about 2-3 cm long and about 0.4-0.8 cm in diameter and are uniform in appearance and texture.

   The production of pelleted chips has recently been increasing as they meet a ready demand in the European markets. They have the following advantages over chips: quality is more uniform; they occupy 25-30% less space than chips, thus reducing the cost of transport and storage; handling charges for loading and unloading are also cheaper; they usually reach their destination sound and undamaged, while a great part of a cargo of sliced chips is damaged in long-distance shipment because of sweating and heating.

   Pellets are produced by feeding dried chips into the pelleting machine, after which they are screened and bagged for export. The powdered chips which fall down during pelleting are re-pressed into pellets and the process is repeated. There is usually about 2-3% loss of weight during the process.

4. Meal

   This product is the powdered residue of the chips and roots after processing to extract edible starch. It is generally inferior in quality to chips, pellets and broken roots, has a lower starch content and usually contains more sand. The use of cassava meal in the European Economic Community has declined with a shift to the other cassava products during the last few years. However, there will remain some demand for this product, especially by small-scale farmers who produce their own feedstuffs. since it does not require grinding and thus can be readily mixed with other ingredients.

5. Residual pulp

   During the processing of cassava flour, the residual pulp which is separated from the starch in the screening process is used as an animal feed. It is usually utilized wet (75-80% moisture content) in the neighbourhood of the processing factory but is sometimes sun dried before it is sold. This product is considered a by-product of the cassava starch industry. It represents about 10% by weight of the cassava roots.

   The approximate analysis product (dry matter)

Source: FAO