Sugarcane waste eyed for feeds
Credit to Author: Eireene Jairee Gomez| Date: Mon, 17 Feb 2020 16:27:52 +0000
THE Department of Agriculture-Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (DA-PHilMech) is taking initiatives to convert waste from sugarcane fields into animal feed and fuel briquettes.
Based on research conducted by PHilMech, one hectare of land planted with sugarcane can produce 11 to 21 tons of agricultural waste in the form of leaves and stalks. Most of the waste from sugarcane farms are either left to rot in the field or burned, which could contribute to global warming.
To address the issue, PHilMech is conducting a study to see how the waste from sugarcane farms can be further utilized.
“One of the viable solutions to this problem is to convert them (waste and residue) into animal feeds and fuel briquettes. Hence, the study is being conducted to develop sugarcane crop waste-based silage and pelleted feeds for animal consumption, and an environment-friendly fuel briquette suitable for domestic cooking and industrial application,” a PHilMech paper about the study said.
PHilMech has developed a forage chopper and feed pelletizer for the processing of sugarcane tops into animal feed. Apart from this, 13 formulations were developed in the production of silage from sugarcane tops.
“Proximate and nutritional analysis of the produced silage is being done to determine the best formulation,” the PHilMech paper said.
Utilizing sugarcane waste could also result in additional income for farmers and cooperatives, and help save the environment, PHilMech Executive Director Baldwin Jallorina said in a statement.
“In many rural areas in the Philippines, wood is still utilized as fuel for cooking which contributes to deforestation. But with products like briquettes, rural households need not rely on wood anymore for cooking,” he said.
Furthermore, Jallorina noted that PHilMech is studying alternative or supplementary feeds for livestock, and sugarcane waste could be a raw material for silage as feed for animals.
PHilMech believes producing animal feeds and fuel briquettes from sugarcane farm waste will also benefit the farmers as they could earn additional income from processing and selling these two products.
“Instead of throwing away or burning their farm waste, sugarcane farmers could definitely earn from processing and selling animal feeds and fuel briquettes made from sugarcane waste,” Jallorina said.
PhilMech is the leading institution for farm mechanization in the Philippines, as mandated by Republic Act 10601 or “Agriculture and Fisheries Mechanization Act.” The agency develops protocols and processes, wherein technologies produced by the agency and locally-available equipment are tapped for easier adoption by farmers, cooperatives and agribusiness enterprises.