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[av_heading heading=’URBAN FARMER | PH can lessen its dependence on expensive imported soybean’ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY JULIO P. YAP JR.
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Wednesday, March 22, 2017
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COPRA meal, which is primarily used in the manufacture of feed for animals, is an important feed resource in the Philippines.
During 2014, the country was able to produce about 750,000 metric tons of copra meal, which is one of the by-products of coconut.
About 60 percent of this was locally utilized mainly as animal feed.
Compared to soybean meal, copra meal can be technically classified as a plant-based protein feed ingredient and mainly used as source of protein and energy in mixed feed.
Records obtained from 2012 showed that the Philippines has been importing about $500 million worth of soybean every year.
There are, however, several concerns on the use of soybean meal as feed ingredient.
These include its fluctuating market price, its being an expensive import commodity, its erratic supply, and the fact that that it even competes for the production of human food.
To address the issue regarding the high cost of importing soybean, and to ensure the quality of animal feeds produced locally, the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (PCAARRD-DOST) supported various research and development (R&D) programs on feed resources under its Industry Strategic Science and Technology (S&T) Program (ISP).
One of the program’s accomplishments is the use of formulated feeds for swine, poultry, and aquatic animals with Protein Enriched Copra Meal (PECM) that was developed by the National Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology of the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB-BIOTECH).
Through the solid-state fermentation technology, the PECM is enriched with microorganisms that increase the protein content of copra meal to about 36 percent up to 44 percent crude protein content, comparable to the 46 percent of soybean meal.
As a result, a group of researchers from the Institute of Aquaculture, College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences of the University of the Philippines Visayas studied the possibility of substituting 50 percent soybean meal, as a major feed protein source, with PECM.
With its title “Field trial of protein enriched copra meal (PECM) as feed protein for tilapia, milkfish, and shrimp,” the project is led by Professor Valeriano L. Corre Jr. and Dr. Rex Ferdiand M. Traifalgar of the said agency.
Result of the study showed that soybean meal and PECM have the same biochemical composition in terms of crude fat, crude protein, and crude fiber.
Under the project, several feeding trials were conducted on shrimp (Penaeus vannamei) in low and high density systems, freshwater tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), and milkfish (Chanos chanos) to determine the effect of formulated feeds that are combined with PECM as protein ingredient.
Initial trials showed promising results in reducing feed costs.
As envisioned, results showed that protein enriched copra meal could be used as major protein source and replace 50 percent soybean meal in aquaculture diets without compromising the growth, production and feed efficiency.
With PECM, it is expected that the country can lessen its dependence on expensive imported soybean meal and fish meal./PN
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