TITLE:
Dairy Farming Conditions and Utilization Levels of Liquid Brewers’ Yeast in Kenya
AUTHORS:
Peter Alphonce Obuong Alaru, Alfred Anakalo Shitandi, Symon Maina Mahungu, John Muasya Kilumba Muia
KEYWORDS:
Dairy-Production, Liquid Brewers’ Yeast, Protein, Supplement
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Animal Sciences,
Vol.13 No.1,
November
22,
2022
ABSTRACT: Dairy
production plays an integral part in supporting smallholder farmers’
livelihoods. The desire to increase the number of dairy cattle is not feasible
due to the reduced output of feed resources occasioned by climate change.
Consequently, the need to increase productivity per cow is inevitable. Conventional protein
supplements are costly; hence, the need to explore affordable nutrientdense alternative feed resources. Liquid brewers’ yeast (LBY), a by-product of the
brewing industry, is a rich protein supplement in dairy production. This study
aimed to assess the dairy farming conditions and utilization levels of LBY as a feed supplement in Githunguri Sub-county,
Kiambu. Semi-structured questionnaires
were administered to 457 dairy farmers in a cross-sectional survey. The
findings revealed that most farmers (94.2%) fed their cattle on established
forage/fodder and crop residues with supplementation. Even though 53.1%
of the respondents were aware of the use of LBY, only 30.6% utilized it to
supplement dairy cows, most of whom (96.0%) used it fresh without preservation.
Membership in farmers’ organizations increased awareness of LBY (r = 0.732).
Principal component analysis indicated that the benefits of using LBY outweigh
the challenges involved with a loading matrix of 0.891 - 0.954 and 0.681 - 0.807,
respectively. The low adoption and use levels of LBY as a source of protein
supplements were due to low awareness. There is a need for concerted efforts by
stakeholders in the industry to increase farmers’ knowledge base on the
utilization and effectiveness of LBY in dairy production.