Dr John-James Adamu, Farm Manager, Iyafin Feedlot Production Hub, Badagry, Lagos, has urged livestock farmers to embrace establishment of feedlot/ranching programme in the state.
Adamu told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Tuesday that feedlots programme was the best way to protect animals from spreading and contacting parasites and diseases.
According to him, feedlot programme is obtainable and achievable in the state, if properly set up, adding that managing it is affordable and better than open grazing.
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He said that feedlot/ranching helped to control the spread of diseases and parasite among animals and that it could provide a safe and conducive environment for the animals.
“Managing and operating a feedlot/ranch is affordable and better than open grazing because it prevents clashes between farmers and herders.
“In feedlot programme, it takes about three months to breed a cow to full size and be ready to be sold for consumption.
“Once you are able to establish a feeding system, there is no problem in establishing a feedlot/ranch.
“Animals consume the ruminant feed, which is known as commercialised feeds for animals as well as forage feed.
“The programme allows the animals to stay in one place where they can be taken care of, fed and nurtured in terms of diseases. It also controls the spread of diseases.
“When herders go grazing, they contact so many animals outside. In the process, they bring diseases back home and contaminate more animals, which is not the case in feedlot.
“The animals also get some of these parasites when you go grazing. So in ranching, the spread of diseases is more controlled and easily managed,” he said.
The farm manager urged farmers to also embrace forage farming in order grow forage feed to supply livestock farmers to feed their animals.
He said that once the herders were able to establish a feeding system for the animals, it was very easy to operate and manage.
“Maybe in the future, we are going to be getting people who are going to specialise only in farming food for the animals.
“Farmers should embrace forage farming through which they will grow for livestock herders to feed their animals, just as we do in poultry farming.
“I am calling on people to go into the forage farming because it is going to be another value chain in the feedlot system.
“Once we start having feedlots and ranching across the state, it is going to be another value chain in the feedlot programme.
“Forage farming will make the job easier for people in the feedlots business and not worry about growing food for the animals. Indeed, they don’t have problem producing or searching for feed themselves.
“Forage farming is something that is on the way and we have started it in Lagos. It only needs some awareness for people to know about it and will want to go into forage production and fattening programme.
“I’m sure that when people get to know about, they will want to go into it for commercial sales,” he said.
Adamu said that the state government had set up a type one feedlot project in Badagry as a pilot project on establishment of feedlot for livestock farmers.
“We want to use this place as a type one feedlots project, where people can see what we do and be able to establish it on their own.
“This is a pilot scheme being run by government in Badagry before spreading it to other parts of the state,” he said.
NAN
