Animal feed processing is one of the efforts to increase livestock productivity. The processing of animal feed is closely related to the process of preserving the ingredients. In the dry season, farmers usually find it challenging to get forage feed. Meanwhile, the need for forage will certainly decrease. For this reason, hay technology is present as a solution in animal feed processing.
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The Purpose Of Preserving Animal Feed
The utilization of technology in animal feed processing aims to avoid wasting excess forage after harvest. In addition, hay production can be carried out directly post-harvest as stock supplies during the dry season or as feed reserves during long trips. With the existence of preservation technology, some farmers also end up doing special production to provide preserved hay for livestock.
Types Of Hay For Animal Feed
The types of hay for animal feed are distinguished based on their constituent materials, the way they are dried, and how they are stored. Among others are :
- Grass – which is derived from grass.
- Legumes – derived from leguminous plants.
- Mix – derived from a mixture of forage, legumes, and other ingredients.
- Barn – i.e., dry hay that is stored in the shade and has been aired. This type of hay is usually used in areas that often experience the rainy season.
- Dehydrated – which is a type of artificial hay that is intentionally produced from the best forage crops. In this condition, the forage will be cut and dried immediately so that the color is still very green; the young leaves do not fall out much, the nutritional content is still high.
- Salted – which is hay added with salt to increase the appetite of livestock. The addition of this salt is only in the range of 0.5-1.0%.
How To Preserve Hay
Looking at the weather conditions in some areas, the storage method is divided into 3 types, including:
- Stock, i.e., storage of hay in the open, either with little or a lot of incoming sunlight.
- Barn, i.e., storage in the shade.
- Bale, stored in special packaging with a moisture content of not more than 20%.
As a side note, although it should be stored dry, don’t allow it to completely lose its moisture content. Moisture content is still needed at a low level so that the forage does not break easily. If the condition of the hay is too fragile, it will be difficult for us to carry out the packing process when it is stored. For that, the proper water content is no more than 20%.
Preservation Errors
Errors are often found, especially in the storage period. For that, you need to know what to do and what to avoid when storing hay.
The things that must be done include making sure it is dry and storing it in the shade. It can also be stacked in the open but still shaded. Or you can pack it with bale net wrap. Silopak produces this roll-shaped bale net wrap, and it will help you to do the moving and organizing of the hay bales.
Meanwhile, things that must be avoided during the storage period are not to store it in conditions of too high a moisture content. This is because it can speed up the fermentation process. As a result, heat arises to fire from unstable organic compounds. The solution, you have to check the stored hay at least two times a week. Don’t stack them too tightly, and make sure there’s no bad smell.
Well, from some of the information above, we can conclude that the preservation of animal feed in the form of hay must be done properly. Make sure the it is dry and not rotten, and check it regularly. Thus preserved hay for your animal feed can be stored in the long term.