Desafios na conservação de forragens

Abstract

Forage conservation is a promising tool to be used in the management of forage resources available in a ruminant production system. With wide applicability in semi-arid regions, its use is based on supplying the demand of herds in the dry season. One of the first challenges to be overcome in the adoption of these processes is the search for a balance between the production of biomass and the choice of the best conservation method. Hay making and ensiling are still the main techniques used. Hay making, as it is a technique that conserves forage through natural dehydration after cutting, is extremely dependent on the climate. The great challenges is to produce quality forage, dehydrate this material with as minimum loss as possible and keep it stored properly until use. Even in semi-arid conditions, maintaining the nutritive value in hays stored for more than a year is still a challenge. Ensiling, in turn, is a process that keeps the forage moist and requires some prudence in the steps that lead to a good fermentation. Thus, attention must be given mainly to harvesting, compacting, choosing the silo, using plastic films and dispensing silos. The latter is one of the key points, as it is a feed with high humidity and consequent perishability when exposed to air. Preserved forages are versatile in terms of inclusion in ruminant diets, being essential for its proper use the knowledge of its chemical composition and the nutritional requirement of the animals to be fed. It is important to emphasize that these conservation techniques are not exclusive, and can be used integrated or not on the same farm, and the goal should always be to obtain feed with adequate nutritional value for later use, but at the lowest possible cost within the production system.