‘Sakwa’ meal can replace corn in pigs’ diet

Gabi (known internationally as "taro"), aside from human food, is also used as feed for livestock specially its corm (locally known as ‘sakwa’) where the tubers are attached.

Sakwa, upon harvest and after the tubers are removed, maybe considered already as waste, except when used as planting materials or feed. The common practice of farmers is to boil or mix chopped sakwa with commercial feed and feed it to pigs at the finishing stage. Sakwa was found to have good performance as feed.

Thus, researchers of the University of the Philippines Los Banos (UPLB) studied the feeding value of sakwa meal (SM) of "gabing San Fernando" (Xanhtosoma sp.) as total or partial replacement for corn for growing and finishing diet in swine.

In the Philippines gabing San Fernando is also known as "tannia" and "gabing Cebu." However, root crops experts recommend that yautia be used as adapted common name.

In the study, monitored by the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development of Science and Technology (PCARRD-DOST), fresh sakwa were sliced, dried, ground to meal and subjected to chemical analysis. Results of the analysis were used to formulate varying levels of SM replacements of corn in the growing and finishing diet of pigs.

Proximate analysis showed that SM had 7.67 percent crude protein (CP) as feed basis comparable to corn with 8.5 percent. On dry matter (DM) basis, CP of SM was 8.98 percent which is closer to corn’s 9.66 percent as compared to other crops like cassava meal or camote.

Proximate analysis showed that SM had 7.67 percent crude protein (CP) as feed basis comparable to 8.5 percent of corn. On dry matter (DM) basis, CP of SM was 8.98 percent which is closer to corn's 9.66 percent as compared to other root crops like cassava meal or camote meal

SM as replacement of yellow corn can be used up to 80 percent in grower and up to 90 percent in finisher diet without affecting the overall performance of the animal. Further, SM replacement of yellow corn at 60 percent in grower ration, and 70 percent in finisher ration, reduced the feed of cost per kilogram gain of the pig.

The Study also, showed that the effects of SM-based ration in the live weight, carcass yield, backfat firmness score and loin eye were not significantly different among other treatments. The 40-70 percent SM replacement was significantly tender among the dietary treatments. Total replacement was significantly tender among the dietary treatments. Total replacement of corn with SM improved the backfat thickness of pigs. (Bengie P. Gibe, S&T Media Service).