A Natural Farming System For Sustainable Agriculture In the Tropics Sustainable Agriculture Book - Chapter 16 Livestock Integration
Published: 2005-01-20
The best way to finish off your dream farm or garden is to balance it with a small livestock unit. Animal integration is Fundamental #10. It will create a low cost high quality fertilizer source as well as produce food to eat.
Livestock properly managed will bring the tropical farmer higher profits than some market vegetables and most grains. We raise goats, chickens and hogs. Our goats graze and browse as well as feed on fermented grains. Some crop residues are fed to the goats; it reduces feed costs and their manure will reduce fertilizer costs. We cut and carry feed stock fresh while some confined grazing is practiced. Concentrated grains are used as a supplement to pasturage. Grains are fermented with beneficial microbes to increase feed conversion and act as a probiotic, eliminating all medications. The feed creates natural vitamins and health enhancing components that protect livestock because EM is active in it. The cost of the EM is far less than antibiotics and vitamin shots and replaces all antibiotics. Our goatbreeding program been successful; we’re expanding it. We are looking for a cow to pasture; we’ve some premium legumes for grazing.