PROCESSING OF
ROUGHAGE
Ragunath K C
BVT21075
INTRODUCTION
• Ruminant livestock in poor, densely populated
countries rely on low-quality roughages like rice
straw, which have low digestibility and energy
intake, limiting production.
• Small-scale systems with few animals per family
provide milk, draft power, and reproduction.
• Improving roughage quality is crucial for
enhancing productivity.
Processing of roughage
Physical treatment Chemical treatment Biological
treatment
DRY PROCESSING WET PROCESSING 1.Alkali treatment 1.Enzyme treatment
1.Grinding 1.Green Chopping 2.Ammonia treatment 2.Fermentation
2.Chopping 2.Soaking 3. Microbe
3.Bailing
4.Pelleting
5.Cubing
6.Dehydration
• Physical characteristics of roughages may be altered to
improve digestibility ,considered in four categories.
1.PARTICLE SIZE: reducing particle size in order to increase
the surface area for microbial fermentation of fibrous
components.
2.HANDLING: to produce a material that is easier.
3.DENSITY: to increase the density of the material so that
animals are able to increase their intake.
4.MIXING: to mix other ingredients with the roughage to
balance the nutrients
GRINDING
• Grinding of roughage is a prerequisite for mixing and
pelleting.
• These mechanical processes increase voluntary intake,
nutritive value and facilitate preparation of complete feed.
• Roughage should be ground to 1-2” (2.5-5 cm) long for
roughage feeding alone or from 0.5 to 1.0” (1.3-2.5 cm)
when it is to be incorporated in complete rations.
• The dust loss can largely be prevented by addition of 1%
tallow or water to the material at the time of grinding.
• Addition of molasses to ground hay makes it highly
palatable and increases feed intake.
• Soaking – Chopped straw is soaked in water overnight.
Softens the straw leading to increasing intake.
Disadvantage is mold growth.
• Chaffing – Decreasing particle size. Increase surface
area for action of rumen microbe and hence increase
digestibility.
• Pelleting – Particle size reduced 0.1 to 0.3 cm and
pelleted through 1–2cm die. Retention time in the
rumen increases and the disadvantage of only grinding
is overcome.
• Irradiation – Straw is treated with gamma irradiation.
Causes rupture of ligno cellulosic bonds and makes
cellulose available for microbial action
ALKALI TREATMENT
• The main chemical method to improve the
digestibility of roughages is alkali treatment.
• This process breaks down chemical bonds in
roughage, making the digestible parts of the cell
walls (like carbohydrates) more accessible by
separating them from lignin, which is indigestible.
• Early research using sodium hydroxide showed
significant improvements in digestibility and feed
intake for sheep and cattle.
• Following this, other alkalis like calcium hydroxide
and potassium hydroxide, as well as ammonia
(from anhydrous ammonia, urea, or urine), were
also studied for treating roughages.
• While this method is effective in improving
roughage quality and animal performance,
practical challenges like safety, logistics, and
environmental concerns have limited its
widespread use in commercial farming.
• The process is similar to the alkali treatment
used in making paper.
• The alkali breaks down the lignin, non-starch
polysaccharides (NSP), and cellulose in
roughage.
• This makes cellulose easier for enzymes to
digest.
• Using heat with alkali can also dissolve lignin,
releasing free phenols, and steaming roughage
at temperatures above 160°C can further
improve digestibility by melting lignin and
breaking it down.
AMMONIA TREATMENT
• Urea and Ammonia Treatment of Straw for Feeding Urea is
commonly used to treat plant-based roughage, such as straw,
to improve its nutritional value for feeding livestock. When
urea is added to plant material, bacteria with urease activity
break it down into ammonia and carbon dioxide, which, in the
presence of water, forms ammonium hydroxide.
1. Why Urea is Used
Urea is safer to handle than ammonium hydroxide
and can be applied to straw in an aqueous solution.The
recommended urea concentration is 5% (50 kg per
tonne of straw).
2. Application Process
After treating the straw, it must be covered
with plastic or stored in an airtight container (e.g., a
silo) for at least 4 weeks . This ensures the treated
straw remains stable for long-term use.
3. Alternative Method:
Ammonia Gas Anhydrous ammonia (3%)
can also be used to treat straw . It is applied as a
gas to large stacks of straw covered with plastic .
This method is efficient but risky because the gas is
toxic and flammable.
4. Storage and Mechanization
• Proper facilities for airtight storage and
equipment for harvesting, chopping, and feeding
treated straw are crucial for success.
• Mechanized methods are preferred due to the
large volume of material involved.
• Overall, this process improves the usability of
straw as livestock feed but requires careful
handling and adequate infrastructure for safety
and efficiency.
Biological treatment of roughages
1. Enzyme treatement: Cellulase solution is sprayed on straw at
25 mg/100 kg straw.
2. Fermentation: Chopped straw is pretreated with 3-5% NAOH,
and steamed at 120°C for 15 min; then fermented with bran
type media cultured with cellulolytic microorganisms at 40-50°C
for 2 days.
3. White-rot fungi, mushrooms and other microbes.
• The efficient utilization of lignocellulosic straws is
limited because of metabolic block caused by
lignin which occurs in a range of 3 to 13%.
• Some of the white-rot fungi like Phanerochaete
chrysosporium degrade lignin to the extent of 65-75%
while other fungi like Ganoderma applanatum and
Coriolus versicolor degrade over 45% of lignin in the
lignocellulosic materials.
• Preference is given to species which degrade only lignin
but not hemicelluloses.
