Editing Fodder

{{hatnote|For the former unit of weight, see [[load (unit)|load]].}}
{{redirect|Provender|the house in England|Provender House}}
{{short description|Agricultural foodstuff used to feed domesticated animals}}
{{more citations needed|date=October 2014}}
[[File:Fodder factory02.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|right|A fodder factory set up by an individual farmer to produce customised cattle feed]]

'''Fodder''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|f|ɒ|d|ər}}), also called '''provender''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|p|r|ɒ|v|ən|d|ər}}), is any [[agriculture|agricultural]] [[food]]stuff used specifically to feed [[domesticated]] [[livestock]], such as [[cattle]], [[domestic rabbit|rabbit]]s, [[sheep]], [[horse]]s, [[chicken]]s and [[pig]]s. "Fodder" refers particularly to food given to the animals (including plants cut and carried to them), rather than that which they forage for themselves (called [[forage]]). Fodder includes [[hay]], [[straw]], [[silage]], compressed and [[Compound feed|pelleted feeds]], oils and mixed rations, and [[sprouting|sprouted]] grains and [[legume]]s (such as [[bean sprout]]s, fresh [[malt]], or [[brewing#Brewer's spent grain|spent malt]]). Most animal feed is from plants, but some manufacturers add ingredients to processed feeds that are of animal origin.

The worldwide [[animal feed]] trade produced 1.245 billion tons of [[compound feed]] in 2022 according to an estimate by the International Feed Industry Federation,<ref name=IFIF>{{cite web| title=Global Feed Statistics| url=https://ifif.org/global-feed/statistics/|publisher=International Feed Industry Federation|access-date=18 March 2024}}</ref> with an annual growth rate of about 2%. The use of agricultural land to grow feed rather than human food can be controversial (see [[food vs. feed]]); some types of feed, such as corn ([[maize]]), can also serve as human food; those that cannot, such as [[grassland]] grass, may be grown on land that can be used for crops consumed by humans.

[[File:Manual cutting of green fodder in Punjab.jpg|thumb|Manual cutting of green fodder, Punjab]]

==Common plants specifically grown for fodder==

[[File:Round hay bale at dawn02.jpg|thumb|Round [[hay]] bales]]
[[File:Newton of Cawdor stack of bales - geograph.org.uk - 545290.jpg|thumb|Stack of bales, sweet-smelling fodder stored for winter]]
[[File:African boy transporting fodder by bicycle edit.jpg|thumb|Cut green fodder being transported to cattle in [[Tanzania]] ]]

* [[Alfalfa]] (lucerne)
* [[Barley]]
* [[Lemna minor|Common duckweed]]<ref>{{cite web |last1=Devlamynck |first1=Reindert |last2=Meers |first2=Erik |title=Valorization of agricultural wastewater streams into an alternative protein source duckweed |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/330586208 |date=May 2018}}</ref>
* [[Birdsfoot trefoil]]
* ''[[Brassica]]'' spp.
** [[Kale]]
** [[Rapeseed]] (canola)
** [[Rutabaga]] (swede)
** [[Turnip]]
* [[Clover]]
** [[Trifolium hybridum|Alsike clover]]
** [[Red clover]]
** [[Subterranean clover]]
** [[White clover]]
* [[Grass]]
** [[Bermuda grass]]
** [[Bromus|Brome]]
** [[Arrhenatherum|False oat grass]]
** [[Festuca|Fescue]]
** [[Danthonia|Heath grass]]
** [[Meadow]] grasses (from naturally mixed grassland swards)
** [[Orchard grass]]
** [[Ryegrass]]
** [[Timothy-grass]]
* Corn ([[maize]])
* [[Millet]]
* [[Oat]]s
* [[Sorghum]]
* [[Soybean]]s
* [[Tree]]s ([[pollarding|pollard]] tree shoots for "tree-hay")
* [[Wheat]]

[[File:A traditional method of storing wheat hay in Punjab.jpg|thumb|Traditional store of hay, Punjab]]
[[File:Green fodder.jpg|thumb|upright|Cut green fodder being transported to cattle in Nepal]]

==Types==

* [[Biochar#Stock fodder|Biochar]] for cattle<ref>{{harvnb|Daly|2019|p=}}:Mr Pow said his innovative farming system could help livestock producers become more profitable while helping to address the impact of climate change.</ref>
* [[Bran]]
* Conserved forage plants: [[hay]] and [[silage]]
* [[Compound feed]] and [[premixes]], often called pellets, nuts or (cattle) cake
* Crop residues: [[stover]], [[copra]], [[straw]], [[chaff]], [[sugar beet]] waste
* [[Fish meal]]
* Freshly cut [[grass]] and other forage plants
* Grass or lawn clipping waste{{sfn|Logsdon |2004 |p={{page missing|date=September 2024}}}}
* Green [[maize]] 
* Green [[sorghum]] 
* [[Horse gram]] 
* Leaves from certain species of trees<ref>{{cite web |url=http://r4d.dfid.gov.uk/PDF/Outputs/Forestry/DFID_impact_case_study_Fodder_trees_FINAL%5B1%5D.pdf |title=Fodder trees for more milk and income |publisher=Department for International Development |access-date=2015-09-22 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150927051732/http://r4d.dfid.gov.uk/PDF/Outputs/Forestry/DFID_impact_case_study_Fodder_trees_FINAL%5B1%5D.pdf |archive-date=2015-09-27 }}</ref>
* [[Meat and bone meal]] (now illegal in cattle and sheep feeds in many areas due to risk of [[Bovine spongiform encephalopathy|BSE]])
* [[Molasses]]
* Native green grass 
* Oilseed press cake ([[cottonseed]], [[safflower]], [[sunflower]], [[soybean]], [[peanut|peanut or groundnut]])
* [[Oligosaccharide]]s
* [[Insects as feed|Processed insects]] (i.e. processed [[Maggot farming|maggots]]<ref>{{cite magazine|url = https://www.wired.co.uk/article/food-of-larvae |title = How AgriProtein makes chicken food from maggots|date =9 March 2014|first = João |last =Medeiros|magazine = Wired}}</ref>)
* [[Seaweed]] (including [[Asparagopsis taxiformis]] which is used mainly as a supplement to reduce methane emissions by up to 90%)
* [[Seed]]s and [[grain]]s, either whole or prepared by crushing, milling, etc.
* [[Single cell protein]]<ref>{{cite journal| pmid=3292921 | doi=10.1002/food.19880320302 | volume=32 | title=Single cell protein as food and feed | year=1988 | journal=Nahrung | pages=219–29 | last1 = Giec | first1 = A | last2 = Skupin | first2 = J| issue=3 }}</ref>([[Solein|can also be made from atmospheric {{CO2}}]])
* Sprouted grains and legumes
* [[Yeast extract]] (brewer's yeast residue)

==Health concerns==

In the past, [[bovine spongiform encephalopathy]] (BSE, or "mad cow disease") spread through the inclusion of ruminant [[meat and bone meal]] in [[cattle]] feed due to [[prion]] contamination. This practice is now banned in most countries where it has occurred.{{Citation needed|date=May 2021}} Some animals have a lower tolerance for spoiled or moldy fodder than others, and certain types of [[Mold (fungus)|mold]]s, [[toxin]]s, or poisonous weeds inadvertently mixed into a feed source may cause economic losses due to sickness or death of the animals.  The US Department of Health and Human Services regulates drugs of the [[Veterinary Feed Directive]] type that can be present within commercial livestock feed.{{Citation needed|date=May 2021}}

== Droughts ==

[[File:Farmer mills branches of shrubs for the production of animal fodder in Namibia.jpg|thumb|Milling shrubs for low-cost fodder,  Namibia ]]

Increasing intensities and frequencies of drought events put rangeland agriculture under pressure in semi-arid and arid geographic areas. Innovative emergency fodder production concepts have been reported, such as bush-based animal fodder production in Namibia. During extended dry periods, some farmers have used woody biomass fibre from [[Woody plant encroachment|encroacher bush]] as their primary source of cattle feed, adding locally-available supplements for nutrients as well as to improve palatability.<ref>{{Citation |last1=Mupangwa |first1=Johnfisher |title=Utilising Encroacher Bush in Animal Feeding |date=2023 |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-2427-1_14 |work=Towards Sustainable Food Production in Africa: Best Management Practices and Technologies |pages=239–265 |editor-last=Fanadzo |editor-first=Morris |access-date=2023-07-13 |series=Sustainability Sciences in Asia and Africa |place=Singapore |publisher=Springer Nature |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-981-99-2427-1_14 |isbn=978-981-99-2427-1 |last2=Lutaaya |first2=Emmanuel |last3=Shipandeni |first3=Maria Ndakula Tautiko |last4=Kahumba |first4=Absalom |last5=Charamba |first5=Vonai |last6=Shiningavamwe |first6=Katrina Lugambo |editor2-last=Dunjana |editor2-first=Nothando |editor3-last=Mupambwa |editor3-first=Hupenyu Allan |editor4-last=Dube |editor4-first=Ernest|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{Citation |last1=Shiningavamwe |first1=Katrina Lugambo |title=Feed intake, growth performance and carcass characteristics of Damara lambs fed bush-based rations from four encroacher bush species |date=2024-05-14 |url=https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-4241387/v1 |access-date=2024-06-13 |doi=10.21203/rs.3.rs-4241387/v1 |last2=Lutaaya |first2=Emmanuel |last3=Mupangwa |first3=Johnfisher}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|publisher =Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry |date =2018|title = Report on the Bush-to-Feed Pilot Projet in the African Wild Dog Community Forest|url = http://www.forestry.gov.na/documents/32982/937523/NAFOLA+Report+on+bush/8be204be-eb4f-4156-bac7-610ae9c35315?version=1.0}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=2018-11-30|title=Manual on how to produce animal feed from local encroached bush launched |work= Namibia Economist| url=https://economist.com.na/40365/agriculture/manual-on-how-to-produce-animal-feed-from-local-encroached-bush-launched/|access-date= |first = Donald|last = Matthys}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=2016-10-18|title=Turning bush to feed in face of drought|work=The Namibian|url=https://www.namibian.com.na/157045/archive-read/Turning-bush-to-feed-in-face-of-drought|access-date=2020-06-22|archive-date=2020-06-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200625070201/https://www.namibian.com.na/157045/archive-read/Turning-bush-to-feed-in-face-of-drought|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Sprouted grains as fodder==

[[File:Fodder Solutions.jpg|thumb|On-site grain sprouting, US]]

Fodder in the form of [[Sprouting|Sprouted]] [[cereal grains]] such as [[barley]], and [[legume]]s can be grown in commercial quantities. Sprouted grains can significantly increase the nutritional value of the grain compared with feeding the ungerminated grain to stock.<ref name="mla.com.au-Oct2003p15">{{cite book | title=Review of Hydroponic Fodder Production for Beef Cattle | last1=Sneath | first1=Roger | last2=McIntosh | first2=Felicity | date=October 2003 | page=15 | publisher=Meat & Livestock Australia | access-date=7 June 2018 | isbn=1740365038}}</ref> They use less water than traditional forage, making them ideal for drought conditions.  Sprouted barley and other cereal grains can be grown [[Hydroponics|hydroponically]] in a carefully-controlled environment.<ref name="mla.com.au-Oct2003">{{cite book | title=Review of Hydroponic Fodder Production for Beef Cattle | last1=Sneath | first1=Roger | last2=McIntosh | first2=Felicity | date=October 2003 | publisher=Meat & Livestock Australia | access-date=7 June 2018 | quote= Hydroponic sprouts may have profitable application in intensive, small-scale livestock situations with high value outputs, where land and alternative feed costs are high, and where the quality changes (eg less starch, more lysine, vitamins, etc) due to sprouting are advantageous to the particular livestock. | isbn=1740365038}}</ref> Hydroponically-grown sprouted fodder at {{Nowrap|150&nbsp;mm}} tall with a {{Nowrap|50&nbsp;mm}} root mat is at its peak for animal feed. Although barley is a grain, barley sprouts are approved by the American Grassfed Association as livestock feed.{{Citation needed|date=May 2021}}

==See also==

* [[Cannon fodder]] (metaphorical usage)
* [[Circular agriculture]]
* [[Factory farming]]
* [[Feed manufacturing]]
* [[Food-feed system]]
* [[Pasture]]

==References==

{{Reflist}}

===Works cited===

* {{cite book |title=All Flesh Is Grass |last=Logsdon |first=Gene |publisher=Swallow Press |year=2004 |isbn=0-8040-1069-2 |location=Ohio University |at=Chapter 20}}
* {{cite web | url = https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2019-10-18/wa-farmer-uses-beetles-and-charcoal-to-combat-climate-change/11613846
 | title =Poo-eating beetles and charcoal used by WA farmer to combat climate change | last =Daly | first =Jon | date =18 October 2019
 | website =ABC.net.au | publisher =Australian Broadcasting Corporation}}

==Further reading==

* Zhou, Yiqin. ''Compar[ison of] Fresh or Ensiled Fodders (e.g., Grass, Legume, Corn) on the Production of Greenhouse Gases Following Enteric Fermentation in Beef Cattle''. Rouyn-Noranda, Qué.: Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue, 2011. ''N.B''.: Research report.
* {{cite book |last1=Ritthausen |first1=Karl Heinrich |title=Die Eiweisskörper der Getreidearten, Hülsenfrüchte und Ölsamen: Beiträge zur Physiologie der Samen der Culturgewächse, der Nahrungs- und Futtermittel |date=1872 |publisher=Verlag von Max Cohen |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=M8U9AAAAYAAJ |language=de |ref=none}}

== External links ==

{{Wiktionary}}
{{commons}}

*[http://www.food.gov.uk/foodindustry/farmingfood/animalfeed/animalfeedlegislation UK Food Standards Agency, Animal feed legislation and guidance] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101213235422/http://www.food.gov.uk/foodindustry/farmingfood/animalfeed/animalfeedlegislation |date=2010-12-13 }}
*[http://www.fao.org/ag/AGa/AGAP/FRG/Feedsafety/feedsafety.htm FAO Feed Safety guidelines] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101202144046/http://www.fao.org/ag/AGa/AGAP/FRG/Feedsafety/feedsafety.htm |date=2010-12-02 }}

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[[Category:Fodder| ]]
[[Category:Animal feed]]