EB- CAPB-COM

Problems

Large quantities of cassava peels and poultry dropping end up in landfills where the decay and pollute the environment in Nigeria. This is because we lack the technology to turn the waste into quality materials, and there is no market for them.

Solutions

To create markets for these waste materials, PSFI ensiles wet cassava peels meal and fresh layers manure with palm kernel meal to produce a high quality composite feedstuff. Ensiling improves the nutritive value of the composite feedstuff. The feedstuff can replace maize in monogastric diets. The technology is simple, cost effective and environmentally friendly.

Marketing opportunity

PSFI tackles the agro waste challenges by developing a novel way of converting the waste to feed stuff. By partnering with peasant farmer, PSFI enters the waste for wealth creation service industry. PSFI’s product also creates additional revenue for the farmers who may collect and sale waste to processor.

Feed represents 60 - 70% of the cost of production of eggs and poultry meat. Primarily cereal grains and protein meals notably maize and soybean meal are the main ingredients. Presently, maize is costly due to demand pressure on it as animal feedstuff, human food and feedstock for industrial alcohol production. This has led to high feed prices which have almost eliminated all the profit margin in poultry business. The situation is gradually forcing small and medium scale farmers who prepare their own feeds and feed manufacturers out of business. There is need to address this poultry feed costs by the application of emerging technologies and exploitation of novel feed resources.

Cassava peels, palm kernel meal and battery cage layers are some of such novel feed resources produced in large quantities in Nigeria. Their use in poultry diets is limited due to high fibre and low energy density, low protein content, dustiness and hydrogen cyanide contents in cassava peels, high fibre and mannan in palm kernel meal and contaminants in layers manure. Various processing methods including fermentation have been used to increase their feed value but they only replace 10 – 30% of maize in poultry diets.

Approximately 10-20% of whole cassava root is the peel that ends up in landfills and pollutes the environment. Processing has not been able to increase its protein value relative to that of maize therefore cannot replace maize weight for weight in poultry diets.  

Fresh cassava peels collected from small holder cassava processor were ground into meal using a motorized rolling mill. The meal was mixed with palm kernel meal and fresh battery cage layers manure in a ratio of 5:2:1 and ensiled inside black polythene bags for 14days under room temperature. Palm kernel meal which is a high fibre and medium protein feed ingredient was added to reduce the moisture in the mixture while the high protein manure was added to enhance the crude protein of the final product. The ensiled product is sun dried for 2-5 hours depending on the intensity of the sun. The product which contains 10.15% crude protein is stored as ensiled blend of cassava peels-based composite meal (EB-CAPB-COM) and can replace maize weight for weight in broiler chickens diets

EB-CAPB-COM is produced for inclusion in poultry and pig diets. The product will serve both small and large scale poultry and pig farmers and feed manufacturers as well youths who may go into the production and sale of the product. The use of the product in formulated feeds will reduce feed cost with increased profit to the farmer.

A preliminary survey on the production, processing and use of cassava peels as well cost of available feed resources at our location was carried to understand the need of the people. A training workshop will be organized for  Cassava processors, livestock farmers and youths on the business of processing and use of the product in animal and for income generation. The processing and use of the product in poultry and pigs diets will reduce their demand for cereal grains and feed cost, and also provide additional income for cassava processor.

Cassava peels, Palm kernel meal and battery cage layers manure have been fermented individual and use in poultry and pig diets. Most often fermented whole cassava peels takes  a long time to dry especially during the wet season and may be contaminated in the process.  Again the individually fermented products do not replace large quantity of cereal grains in poultry and pig diets.

Considering that both materials are fermented before use  and the time for individual drying and use we decided to blend the wet cassava peels meal and fresh layers manure together using palm kernel meal to reduce their moisture content before ensiling. In choosing this technology, the individual nutrient values were considered. The product dries faster(in hours) than whole cassava peel and layers manure, less dusty and  higher in nutritive value than cassava peels meal and can replace cereal grains in poultry diets weight for weight. The nutritive and feeding value is better than those of dried wet cassava peels meal and/or the individually processed products and their combinations.

The technology is a biotechnological approach of enhancing the nutritive value of agro - waste products or adding more value to them. It involves the ensiling of a blend of agro waste and milling by-product to produce a value -added product.

Similar wet milling of cassava peels has been carried out by International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and IITA, Nigeria ( www://lrrd.org/lrrd..28(11)2016) but the process generates more moisture than ours and protein content  was not improved. However, except for our  studies which has proved the technology effective, there no available reports on blending  a ratio of the waste products together before ensiling and drying.  

The Product so processed will add to the livestock and poultry feed ingredient in Nigeria. It will also reduce the over dependence of livestock farmers on traditional feed grain and thus reduced costs of feeds. The  processing of the waste products into feed stuff will reduce their pollution effects on our environment and generate more income to the cassava processor and jobs for the youths who may take it up as a business.

The solution is currently serving 15 poultry and 10 pig farmers in our location. It is expected to serve 150 poultry and 100 pig farmers in one year and more than 500 farmers in 5 years.

After the pilot study in one of the communities in Imo state, Nigeria, we will start with train the trainers workshops in the 27 local government areas in the state and seminars on the business of processing and use of EB-CAPB-COM in poultry and pig diets. The same enlightenment programs will be mounted  cassava farmers and processor, livestock farmers and feed manufacturers  in other south - east states of Anambra, Enugu, Abia and Ebonyi.  

The major barrier to the achievement of the goals is finance. Funding is needed in carrying out the pilot study on the farmer's farms and for organizing the hands-on training workshops and seminars.The raw materials are readily available and can be collected at little or no cost, but needs to be transported from the farm to the processing centers. More also processing mills and their motorized components will be needed for on-farm demonstration.

We have 2 processing mills and motorized engines at our station for the grinding and mixing of cassava peels with palm kernel meal and layers manure. We intend to have a truck for transport of raw materials and finished product and multi media system for our community training and workshops. We also need a locally fabricated drier to enable us dry the products during the wet season.

We  have a total of 9 state as follows:

Full -time staff   - 3

Part -time staff   - 4

Contract staff     - 2

The Team is made of 4 practicing Animal Scientist in the field of Animal Nutrition and feed processing including Professors, a law practitioner and an information Technology expert.

The Animal Scientists among the team are Lecturers and Researchers at the Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Nigeria, with well over 20 year of research experience in the field of Animal science. They have been engaged in series of training workshops on the processing and use of neglected and underutilized plant and animal resources in poultry feeds.  

None

The business model is converting waste products to value-added feed stuff for livestock farmers and feed manufacturers. The product is made by ensiling a blend of wet cassava peels meal, palm kernel meal and fresh poultry manure. The product serves as an energy feed stuff in poultry and pig diets. This product is cheaper than traditional feed grains, but serves the same purpose in poultry and pig diets. Its use significantly reduced feed cost and feed cost/kg meat produced.

Our source of financial sustainability is grants  and selling of products.

We need funding for the transfer of our solution and products to farmers and feed manufacturers.

Our partnership goal is to attract sponsors and collaborators who will help in getting this technology of converting "wastes to wealth" to farmers and feed manufacturers in different parts of the world.

Any organization or funding agency that  has interest in our Technology and product

The fund will help us extend our hands-on product development  the 36 state in Nigeria and also establish pilot processing plants on cassava processing states in Nigeria.