Exploring Sugarcane Press Mud as an Economical Feed Ingredient for Growing Cattle

The abundantly available sugarcane press mud (SPM) has not been fully explored for its application in animal nutrition, despite possessing an acceptable nutrient profile. The present study examines the impact of incorporating SPM on the performance variables of growing cattle and its economic feasibility. Eighteen Vrindavani calves, aged 5 to 6 months and of similar body weight (BW: 33 ± 0.15 kg), were divided into three groups (T₀, T₁ and T₂), with each group containing six calves. Animals in groups T₀, T₁ and T₂ were fed with 0, 10 and 20% sun-dried SPM in their concentrate mixture, respectively, which proportionally substituted wheat bran on a weight-to-weight basis. Wheat straw was offered ad libitum as a source of forage in all the groups. The experimental feeding lasted for 180 days including six days of metabolism trial. The results indicated that the dry matter and nutrient intake, their digestibilities, as well as nutritional value of composite rations fed to 3 groups did not differ significantly (P>0.05). Furthermore, there were no differences in average daily gain in BW, feed conversion ratio, or nitrogen and phosphorus metabolism among the groups. Similarly, rumen microbial fermentation was not influenced by any of the dietary treatments. However, the intake of calcium and its retention were found higher (P<0.05) in groups T₁ and T₂ as compared to T₀. Beneficially, the cost of concentrate mixture and total feed cost were significantly lower (P<0.05) in both the T₁ and T₂ groups as compared to T₀. Based on these findings, we conclude that SPM can be safely incorporated into the diet of growing cattle at levels up to 20% without negatively affecting their performance parameters. These findings encourage the use of SPM as a low-cost alternative to partially substitute the conventional ingredient like wheat bran, thereby economising feeding programmes for growing cattle operations.