Studies on nutritional potentials of Anacardium occidentale (Cashew) leaf as off season feed for ruminants in the humid tropics

Abstract

This study was designed to investigate the nutritional potential of Anarcardium occidentale leaf (AOL) as off season feed for ruminants. Two studies were conducted; the first study involves evaluation of the nutrient, mineral and anti-nutrient content of green, yellow and brown AOL while the second study involves the in vitro gas production (IVGP) of AOL which was carried out over a period of 24 hr incubation to predict Metabolizable energy (ME), organic matter digestibility (OMD) and short chain fatty acids (SCFA). Methane (CH4) was measured by introducing 10 M NaOH into the inoculums after incubation. Results revealed significant (p<0.05) differences in the values of the nutrient composition. The dry matter ranged between 89.68% and 90.91% in green and brown leaf respectively. The highest crude protein (17.44%) was obtained in green leaf, while the lowest (16.06%) was recorded for brown leaf. The mineral and anti-nutrient content of AOL were not significantly different from each other, but within acceptable limit for optimum metabolism. The total IVGP varied significantly (p< 0.05) with the green leaf recording the highest (16.00ml) value, while the lowest (7.00ml) value was obtained in brown leaf. Same trend was observed for IVGP parameter and characteristics, with green leaf recording the highest values, while the lowest values were obtain from brown leaf for all parameters measured). It can be concluded that AOL has potential in livestock nutrition. Also the problem associated with disposal of falling brown leaf can be conveniently reduced by incorporating them into ruminant feed.