Yield, Quality and Feed Cost Efficiency of Milk Produced by Anglo-Nubian Goats Fed Different Mixtures of Napier (Pennisetum purpureum) Grass and Malunggay (Moringa oleifera)

Ilene  S. Basitan,; Emma  G. Jarcia,

Yield, Quality and Feed Cost Efficiency of Milk Produced by Anglo-Nubian Goats Fed Different Mixtures of Napier (Pennisetum purpureum) Grass and Malunggay (Moringa oleifera)

Discipline: Agriculture, Animal Science

Abstract:

The study evaluated which proportion of Napier grass and Malunggay diet is best in increasing milk quantity and quality of Anglo Nubian dairy goats and assessed the cost of producing goat’s milk in these animals. Six purebred and three upgraded Anglo-Nubian goats were distributed into three blocks according to breed and average weight and were subjected to a 60-day feeding period given the following treatment diets: Treatment 1 – 100% Napier grass; Treatment 2 – 70% Napier grass and 30% Malunggay; and Treatment 3 – 60% Napier grass and 40% Malunggay. All treatments received the same amount of concentrate as supplement. After the study, the average milk yield of the animals under Treatment 1 was 246.80 ml while Treatment 2 had 431.33 ml and Treatment 3 had 458.33 ml. The milk density was 26.46, temperature of 34.79ºC and freezing point of -0.381ºC. The milk contained 5.98% fat, 8.31% solids-non-fat, 2.74% lactose, and 4.76% protein. The diet which produced the highest milk yield in goats was the combination of 60% Napier grass and 40% Malunggay. As to the cost, the animals given 100% Napier grass plus concentrate had the lowest cost per liter of milk produced, followed by 40% Malunggay and 30% Malunggay.