Greenpro Africa developed its own hydroponic fodder sprout system for animal feeds. Such feeds are supplied to cattle, goat, horse, wildlife, rabbit, chicken and sheep, produced in a closed, controlled system that can produce feed all year-round.
The technology is important for farmers due to shortage of green fodder in most of the Middle East, African and Asian countries and during drought. To meet this increasing demand for green fodder, one of the alternatives is hydroponic fodder production to supplement the inadequate pasture resources.
Today, hydroponics is mostly used in harsh climates such as desert, areas with poor soil or in urban areas where high land costs have driven out traditional agriculture. Hydroponic fodder production is probably bes-suited to semi-arid, arid and drought-prone regions of the world, suffering from chronic water shortages or in areas where irrigation infrastructure does not exist, and electricity is a scarce resource.
The Greenpro Africa controlled grow rooms consist of LED lights, internal automated irrigation system, specialized racks to grow fodder in, humidity controller, and external cool room to house the fodder. The seed grows into full grown fodder to be fed to the animals within 7-days.
Advantages of Hydroponic fodder feed systems for animals:
Sprouts in animal diets have proven to increase Omega-3 levels. This applies to meat, milk and eggs. When the animals are healthier the benefits are passed along to humans.
ENVIRONMENT - Growing sprouts uses less than 1% of the water and electricity required for standard forage production. Even in times of severe drought you can have fresh green feed. There's no fertilizer used, no pesticides and no soil needed.
FARMLAND SAVING - Vast savings can be achieved when it comes to farmland. Up to 100 sheep can be held on a small 2-Ha piece of land.
Sprouts (also known as "fodder" when used for animals) are economical to produce compared to other traditional animal feed.
Due to the high moisture content (80-85%) sprouts can improve hydration in the animals.
Living sprouts are extremely high in nutrients needed by animals. In dairy rations, sprouts generally show an increase in milk fats and other components. The weights of weaned calves improve drastically when sprouts are incorporated. Hydroponic fodder has more nutrients than traditional fodder, dry food or grain. It contains high carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins.
Compared to traditional fodder, which often needs months to grow, hydroponic fodder can grow in just one week 7-days..
It is important to note that the typical animal feed entails two thirds of the feed being Sprout Fodder, and that one third of the feed by weight, must be roughage feed, which now can be of a low quality.
