Livestock Feed Resources within Integrated Farming Systems 131 Sugarcane for Beef and Pork Production

Tropical countries have a great comparative advantage due to the intensity and regular availability of solar energy which may be exploited through plant photosynthesis. Sugarcane is a C4 plant which has a greater capacity to utilize high light intensities with reduced water requirement and hence produce as much as 3.8 times more biomass per hectare than cereals. Total biomass yields of 255-480 T/ha are reported. Sugarcane has been used as the basis for meat production systems in the tropics, with the aim of maximizing output per hectare. Fractionation of cane, using traditional artisanal mills (50 % extraction) yields juice for fattening pigs, and pressed cane stalk and tops for feeding cattle. Trials were carried out on the farm. In this study, sugarcane juice, with or without palm oil, and 500 g protein supplement was fed to pigs from 20-80 kg and achieved average daily gains (ADG) of 633 and 666 g/day respectively. A second trial (30-80 kg) showed gains of 565 g/day, with or without palm oil. Bull calves fed on pressed cane stalk and tops, with Gliricidia sepium, multinutritional blocks (20 % urea), rice bran and poultry manure grew at 526 g per day, compared to cattle on a similar diet but with integral sugar cane replacing the pressed cane stalk and tops which had an average daily gain of 767 g per day. Comparison of beef production alone with an integrated pig and beef system favoured the integrated system. Direct production from cane was 132 Sugarcane for Beef and Pork Production 3,458 kg beef per hectare compared to 5,870 kg per hectare from pigs and bull-calves together. These figures compare to a maximum potential production of 1500-2000 kg meat per hectare from one hectare of star grass (Cynodon nlemfluensis) with fertilizer and irrigation, under the same climatic conditions. The integrated systems also provided more employment