Ensiling Characteristics and the In situ Nutrient Degradability of a By-product Feed-based Silage

• Published in: Animal bioscience Vol. 27; no. 2; pp. 201 - 208
• Main Authors: Kim, Y I, Oh, Y K, Park, K K, Kwak, W S
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Korea (South) Asian - Australasian Association of Animal Production Societies 01-02-2014; Asian-Australasian Association of Animal Production Societies (AAAP) and Korean Society of Animal Science and Technology (KSAST); 아세아·태평양축산학회
• Subjects: Animal feeding and feeds; Beef cattle; Food and nutrition; Nutritional aspects; Production processes; Properties; Silage; 축산학; South Korea; Spent Mushroom Substrate; Degradability; Ruminant; Silage; By-product Feed
• ISSN: 1011-2367; 2765-0189; 1976-5517; 2765-0235
• DOI: 10.5713/ajas.2013.13448

This study was conducted to evaluate the ensiling characteristics and the in situ degradability of a by-product feed (BF)-based silage. Before ensilation, the BF-based mixture was composed of 50% spent mushroom substrate, 21% recycled poultry bedding, 15% ryegrass straw, 10.8% rice bran, 2% molasses, 0.6% bentonite, and 0.6% microbial inoculant on a wet basis and ensiled for up to 4 weeks. The BF-based silage contained on average 39.3% moisture, 13.4% crude protein (CP), and 52.2% neutral detergent fiber (NDF), 49% total digestible nutrient, and 37.8% physically effective NDF1.18 on a dry matter (DM) basis. Ensiling the BF-based silage for up to 4 weeks affected (p<0.01) the chemical composition to a small extent, increased (p<0.05) the lactic acid and NH3-N content, and decreased (p<0.05) both the total bacterial and lactic acid bacterial counts from 10(9) to 10(8) cfu/g when compared to that before ensiling. These parameters indicated that the silage was fermented and stored well during the 4-week ensiling period. Compared with rice or ryegrass straws, the BF-based silage had a higher (p<0.05) water-soluble and filterable fraction, a lower insoluble degradable DM and CP fraction (p<0.05), a lower digestible NDF (p<0.05) fraction, a higher (p<0.05) DM and CP disappearance and degradability rate, and a lower (p<0.05) NDF disappearance and degradability rate. These results indicated that cheap, good-quality BF-based roughage could be produced by ensiling SMS, RPB, rice bran, and a minimal amount of straw.