What is silage?

Silage is pasture grass that has been ‘pickled’. It is a method used to preserve the pasture for cows and sheep to eat later when natural pasture isn’t good, like in the dry season. The grasses are cut and then fermented to keep as much of the nutrients (such as sugars and proteins) as possible. The fermentation is carried out by microscopic organisms living in the grass. The process must be carried out under acidic conditions (around pH 4-5) in order to keep nutrients and provide a form of food that cows and sheep will like to eat. Fermentation at higher pH results in silage that has a bad taste, and lower amounts of sugars and proteins.

Silage has been defined in various ways, but all the definitions have a common element. For example, silage is forage preserved in succulent conditions by partial fermentation in a tight container. Others indicate that silage is a feed resulting from the storage and fermentation of green or wet crops under anaerobic conditions. This is the definition we use because it incorporates all important elements from the other definitions.

Silage is the process of processing (deoxygenated) green grass/green leaves- tender branches of plants by maintaining specific acidity and alkalinity levels for long periods of time. Silage is a highly nutritious feed for livestock. Preserved silage is fed when cattle's natural feed is scarce.

If cattle are fed only grass silage or corn silage and no grain feed; Then commercial dairy and fattening farms are never feasible; This is the reality. Just as cattle must be fed grain with grass, grass silage and grain must also be fed to achieve the desired production.

However, 60%-70% less grain feed is required when Moringa silage is fed to animals, GTML moringa Silage has been tested at BLRI (Bangladesh Livestock Research Institute).