Azolla Animal feed

For those doing subsistence farming, struggling at times to purchase feed with economic conditions of rapid feed price increases!,. Here is a way to cut down on costs of feed and increase profits.

According to Mr Deon Du Preez, of the Walkerville Farmers Corporation (WFC) in the Vaal Triangle, farmers can purchase Azolla seeds to reduce costs of feed for all their animals.

Azolla is an ‘aquatic free floating fern’ that is grown in water, it can either be grown in ponds, plastic containers or concrete pots, it multiplies very rapidly, explained Mr Du Preez.

He further went on to elaborate on the fact that, Azolla animal feed has a crude protein of about 25% and rich in ammino-acids, minerals, as well as vitamins. It can be fed in its natural wet state or dried state.

Azolla is fed to livestock such as dairy cattle, poultry, pigs, ducks, fish, goats, rabbits, sheep, etc. Animals fed Azolla increase milk production, meat production, growth rate as well as egg production.

Furthermore, he added that, Azolla can be fed alone or used as supplement feed. As a supplement feed it’s mixed together with the concentrates or commercial feed. The use of Azolla as a supplement feed reduces the costs feed as the quantity purchased reduces. Thus it reduces the costs of production by 20% as the costs of production increases to 70%.

Commenting on the effectiveness of Azolla feed supplement, one satisfied farmer, Mrs Ashley Smith said, “planting 1kg of Azolla on a 1metre by 4metres pond allows harvesting within 10-14days after planting harvesting 1kg per day with correct pond management!”..

“Egg production will be excellent!, I’ve an Azolla and a weed pond, yes with good management of the pony you harvest  a kilogram daily “,she concluded.

By L. Siziba