the indian feed industry
DESCRIPTION
TRANSCRIPT
The Indian feed industry
S.V. Vaidya
Dr S.V. Vaidya has been working in the feed industry since 1975 and has also worked in research anddevelopment, feed formulation, technical training, export, purchasing and the feed business. At present he isManaging Director of Pranav Agro Industries Ltd, Pune, India, and Chairman of the Compound LivestockFeed Manufacturers' Association (CLFMA). He can be contacted at e-mail: [email protected]
The Indian feed industry is about 35 years old. It is mainly restricted to dairy and poultry feedmanufacturing; the beef and pork industry is almost non-existent. The quality standards of Indianfeeds are high and up to international levels. Raw materials for feed are adequately available inIndia. The industry's production is about 3.0 million tonnes, which represents only 5 percent of thetotal potential, and feed exports are not very high. The feed industry has modern computerizedplants and the latest equipment for analytical procedures and least-cost ration formulation, and itemploys the latest manufacturing technology. In India, most research work on animal feeds ispractical and focuses on the use of by-products, the upgrading of ingredients and the enhancing ofproductivity.
The country has entered into a period of liberalization and this is bound to influence the livestockindustry. The per capita consumption of milk, eggs and broiler meat will grow. The Indian feedindustry is undergoing a very exciting phase of growth for the next decade.
Table of Contents
Introduction
The livestock industry of India
Feedstuffs and ingredients in animal feeds
Animal feed commodity production
Feed standards and specifications
Feeding practices and the use of compound feed
Research and development in animal feed
The feed industry and CLFMA
Issues in the animal feed industry
The future of the Indian feed industry - winds of change
INTRODUCTION
Feed manufacturing on a commercial and scientific basis started around 1965 with the setting up of medium-sized feed plants in northern and western India. Feed was produced mainly to cater to the needs of dairycattle. The poultry sector was not developed at that time and was restricted to backyard production, with thedesi (or native bird) kept mainly for the production of eggs. The poultry industry is now growing inimportance. Today, the Indian feed industry is worth approximately Rs 45 billion, that is about US$1 billion.
THE LIVESTOCK INDUSTRY OF INDIA
India's animal wealth is quite large in terms of its populations of cattle, poultry, sheep and goats, camels,horses and pets (Table 1). Recently, aquaculture has also been growing in importance in India.
Table 1Livestock population in India
Livestock type Population
(millions)
Cattle 204.5
Buffaloes 84.2
Sheep 50.8
Goats 115.3
Pigs 12.8
Horses/ponies 0.8
Mules 0.2
Donkeys 0.9
Camels 1.0
Yaks 0.06
Mithuns 0.15
Total livestock 470.86
Source: Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Ministry of Agriculture. 1992.Livestock census.
Dairy cattle
Worldwide, India is number one in milk production, at 78.0 million tonnes per annum, and the dairy industryis spread across the whole country. India has one of the largest populations of cattle and buffalo in the
world. In a total of 288 million head, there are 10 million cross-bred cows, 15 million good milch cows oflocal varieties and 36 million buffaloes of good milch varieties (Table 2). The remainder of the cattlepopulation is of a non-descript variety and a sizeable proportion consists of bullocks.
Table 2Cattle and poultry indicators
Dairy
Cross-bred cows (millions) 10.0
Improved cows (millions) 15.0
Improved buffaloes (millions) 36.0
Milk production (million tonnes) 78.0
Per capita consumption (g/day) 240
Poultry
Commercial layers (millions) 150
Commercial broilers (millions) 650
Stock breeders (millions) 6.5
Egg production (109) 40
Per capita availability (eggs/year) 40
Poultry meat production (million tonnes) 1.0
Per capita availability (g/year) 1 000
Poultry feed production (million tonnes) 9.0
Annual growth
Dairy industry 5%
Layer industry 6-7%
Broiler industry 10%
Source: CLFMA studies assembled from published reports in Indian dairy and poultryjournals.
The cross-bred population is either Jersey or Holstein-Friesian, crossed with local cows. Cross-breedingwas a natural solution to upgrading the milk yield in the absence of high-value imported varieties of pure-bred animals. The buffalo breeds are unique to India, and produce milk with a fat content of 7 to 8 percent. Milk is seen as a health drink and a variety of Indian sweets are prepared from milk. The ice-creammarket is growing. Farms are located on the outskirts of cities and within cities. Almost all villages have a number of cattle,but there are only a few organized dairy farms. In India, dairy is not so much an industry as a smallholderfarming activity. Growth in the milk sector has occurred mainly through cooperative efforts. Cooperatives started bysupplying milk collection centres, where milk was collected from villagers in quantities as small as 1 litre, andgradually started to provide other services to farmers, including education, artificial insemination, veterinaryhealth support and feeding. The small farmers became prosperous, loan facilities were made availablethrough banks, and member farmers started to share the profits from cooperatives. Cooperatives also set uptheir own modern computerized feed plants. They have modern milk processing plants from which theyproduce and market pasteurized milk, butter, butter oil, chocolate, ice-cream and milk sweets, which arevery popular with Indian consumers. Today, the feed production from cooperatives is about 0.6 milliontonnes per year. The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), which has excellent facilities for research on breeding,nutrition and health care, has played a pivotal role in setting up cooperatives. Without NDDB and several ofthe existing dairy cooperatives, the milk sector in India would have suffered. The dairy industry in India is expected to grow, but growth will be restricted to individual small farmers. Itis unlikely that India will see the advent of large, organized dairy farming in the near future.
Poultry
Compared with the rest of the livestock sector, the poultry industry in India is more scientific, betterorganized and continuously progressing towards modernization. Breeding and feeding management hasimproved through education, training, competition, expansion and survival instincts. India is the world's fifthlargest egg producer, with a total production of 40 billion eggs per year. The broiler industry is growing at
the rate of 10 percent per annum. Indicators are given in Table 2. India has 150 million layers and 650 million broilers. Annual per capita consumption of eggs is 40, and thatof broiler meat is 1 000 g. Although these figures are low in comparison with those for developed countries,the industry has great potential to expand because 30 percent of the country's population (about 300 millionpeople) is developing economically and the demand for poultry products is therefore likely to grow. The poultry industry has witnessed several ups and downs in the last 25 years as a result of unplannedgrowth and a lack of government regulation. Currently, it is growing at the rate of 10 percent in broilers and6 to 7 percent in layers and is going through a phase of integration in broilers which is likely to change theface of the industry. Although the phenomenon is new, it is expected that there will be very rapid changestowards integration as more farmers find it increasingly difficult to run farms with marginal profits ornegative margins. The poultry industry is very modern, with pure-line breeding, the latest vaccines and
medicines, environmentally controlled poultry houses, up-to-date processing units, the latest managementpractices, chicken processing, exports of hatching eggs and excellent feed quality.
Sheep, goats and camels
The sheep and goat sector is mostly in the hands of nomadic tribes and no significant scientific husbandry,rearing and management practices are implemented. Research on breeding and nutrition is being conductedat research institutes and agricultural universities. Most of the country's camels are located in the desert area of the western part of India, in the states ofRajasthan and Gujarat, bordering Pakistan. Camels are reared by individuals who feed them localingredients. There is a lack of scientific management practices, genetic studies and scientific feedingpractices in camel rearing and the industry survives mostly on the basis of local, long-established knowledgeof feeding and breeding. There is, however, a fairly good disease diagnosis and treatment system, withmodern medicines and vaccines.
Swine
India is a multilingual, multiracial country whose people hold various religious beliefs. Although the majorityof the population is Hindu, there are sizeable minorities of Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains,Parsees and others. India also has a large tribal population and is a plural society in which the sentiments ofeach social and religious group need to be respected for harmony and peaceful coexistence. Thus, moststates in India have banned cow slaughter and the beef industry is therefore non-existent. The majority ofpeople disapprove of pork consumption, maybe because of the lack of scientific management on swinefarms. Swine reared on the streets are very unhygienic and buyers are always suspicious about the sourceof pork, so there is no organized pork industry.
Aquaculture
The aquaculture industry is relatively young. Prawns and fish are grown in both fresh and brackish water,the latter being located mostly in the southeast and southwest coasts. Aquaculture feed is manufacturedwith highly scientific methods and modern plants that use new technologies and are highly efficient.Multinational companies from Thailand and Taiwan Province of China have invested in this business. Indiaexports most of its aquaculture products.
Horses and pets
The Indian equine industry goes back more than 50 years and is considered modern, scientific and very wellequipped in terms of every aspect of animal husbandry practices. The equine industry is spread across Indiaand is restricted to horse racing. Imports of good genetic material are quite common in this industry. Thefeeding of these valuable animals is mostly at the farm level under the supervision of experienced peoplefollowing traditional practices. What innovation there is tends to be closely guarded by the companiesconcerned. The Indian pet industry is in a nascent stage, with the main focus being on dogs rather than cats and theemphasis on breeding and training. Regular dog shows are held by enthusiastic dog owners to increaseawareness of the rearing of good-quality pure-breds; dogs are a source of pride for households. In manycities, animal health care systems are run by qualified vets with well-equipped facilities such as X-raymachines, surgical facilities, imported vaccines and the latest drugs. The feeding of pets is however, left tothe household. Some commercial preparations are available in the form of dog biscuits, chews, etc., but dogsare fed mostly on home-cooked food. One of the reasons for this could be the high cost of commercial petfood.
FEEDSTUFFS AND INGREDIENTS IN ANIMAL FEEDS
India is currently self-sufficient in livestock feeds and does not depend on imports. Instead, the countryexports large quantities of solvent extracted meals, which are a major source of foreign exchange earning.
Cereals and grains
Maize, sorghum and bajra (a type of millet) are commonly used in animal feeds. Wheat and rice aremainly retained for human consumption.
Cakes and meals
Commonly used commodities of this kind are soybean, groundnut, rapeseed, sesame and sunflower meals inpoultry feed. In cattle feed, in addition to these meals, others such as cottonseed and copra are used aspremium ingredients.
Feeds of animal origin
Meat-meal, fishmeal, bone-meal and dicalcium phosphate of bone origin are the common raw materialsavailable for animal feeding. It is interesting to note that, with the exception of some bone-based dicalciumphosphate, the Indian feed industry does not use materials of animal origin in dairy cattle feed. This was notout of fear of any zoonotic problems but the result of deep-rooted beliefs that the cow is sacred and musttherefore be vegetarian. Now even the use of bone-based dicalcium phosphate has been banned andmineral-based dicalcium phosphate is used instead. Fishmeal and meat-meal were popularly used in poultry feed, but the increased production, improvedavailability and better awareness of soybean meal has led to its replacing fishmeal and meat-meal in mostpoultry rations. It should be mentioned that farmers have faced production problems owing to the bacterialcontamination of fishmeal and meat-meal. The quality of fishmeal is also very poor.
Popular by-products
Some by-products are very nutritious and palatable to cattle, and these products form the bulk of cattle feed.They include wheat bran, rice bran and oil-extracted rice bran, tapioca, guar meal, safflower meal, maizegluten and molasses. A special mention should be made of Indian cattle feed's unique use of hulls or shells,
popularly known as chunis in the local language. These shells come from pulses: horse gram, black gram,
mung bean and pigeon pea.
Minerals and vitamins
Cattle feed is necessarily enriched with vitamins A and D3, and trace minerals such as iron, zinc,manganese, copper, cobalt and iodine. Calcium and phosphorus are also included. Poultry feed is enrichedwith all of these and all of the B complex vitamins.
Feed additives and supplements
Feed additives and supplements have played a very important role in enhancing the performance of dairyanimals and, even more so, poultry. Today they are necessary in any feed formulation and essential for theformulation of a balanced diet. The additives and supplements used are antibiotic growth promoters (theirusage is not banned in India), prebiotics, probiotics, enzymes, mould inhibitors, toxin binders, anti-coccidialsupplements, acidifiers, amino acids, by-pass fat, by-pass protein, non-antibiotic growth promoters, milkboosters, antioxidants, feed flavours and herbal preparations of Indian origin. A number of these productsare imported from developed countries.
ANIMAL FEED COMMODITY PRODUCTION
Maize and sorghum
Maize is one of the most important cereals used in animal feed. The annual production of maize is about10.5 million tonnes; about 4 million tonnes of which are used in the starch industry, 4.5 million tonnes inanimal feeds and 2.5 million tonnes in human consumption and seed production. Maize production hasremained almost static in the past three years while demand is increasing. The major crop is during theKharif season (June to October), which accounts for 90 percent of the total. The remaining 10 percent isharvested in the Rabi season (November to February). The import of maize used to be restricted but, since April 2000, imports have been approved under opengeneral licence (OGL). There are, however, 15 percent duty and a grain inspection fee to be paid, so thereis no price parity between imported and domestically produced maize. There is no subsidy or minimum priceindex for maize, and the price varies with the market demand. Maize cannot be exported.
Sorghum and bajra are very sturdy varieties of millet that can grow under limited rainfall conditions and
are popularly used in animal feeds. Production of sorghum has remained static. There is no export of
sorghum and bajra (millet). See Table 3 for production of maize and sorghum.
Table 3Production of feed ingredients and solventmeals, 1998-1999
Commodity Production Export
(million tonnes) (million tonnes)
Maize 10.2 0
Jowar 9.3 0
Soybean meal 2.7 2.731
Groundnut meal 0.59 0.09
Rapeseed meal 1.05 0.92
Sunflower meal 0.52 0.03
Cottonseed cake 1.12 0
Rice bran (deoiled) 2.95 0.005
1 Spillover from previous year's production.Source: Government of India. 1995. Fertilizer statistics 1994-95.
Rice bran and solvent-extracted rice bran
Rice bran and solvent-extracted rice bran are by-products. India is one of the world's largest producers ofrice, producing 87 million tonnes during 1998/99 (1.7 percent more than in the previous year), and Indiaproduces approximately 2.95 million tonnes of solvent-extracted rice bran, which is regularly exported.
Oilseed meals
India produces soybean, groundnut, rapeseed, sunflower, sesame and cotton meals and these are used asmajor ingredients in animal feeds. The production of solvent meals is shown in Table 3. For animal feeds, soybean is the most frequently used oilseed meal and has completely replaced fishmealin poultry feeds. Cottonseed cake and meal are often used in cattle feed throughout the country. Groundnutmeal is less popular because of the aflatoxin problem. Rapeseed meal is second to soybean meal inproduction and second to cottonseed cake and meal for cattle feed. Sunflower meal is commonly used inboth cattle and poultry feed. India regularly imports edible oil and imported 4.4 million tonnes in 1998-1999. These imports have createdproblems for the country's crushers and, although India has about 600 solvent extraction units, they arerunning at only 50 percent of capacity.
India's economy is agro-based but the yield per hectare is a cause of major concern to the country'sfarmers and agriculture. The government recognizes this and there are subsidies on fertilizers and powertariffs. The government also assures base prices for many agro-based commodities. India's average yieldsper hectare of major commodities compared with the highest yields realized worldwide are given in Table 4.
Table 4Average yield per hectare of selected agricultural seeds(in tonnes)
Seed Highest yield worldwide Indian yield
Soybean 2.62 (United States) 1.0
Rapeseed 3.52 (France) 1.0
Sunflower 1.78 (Argentina) 1.0
Groundnut 2.82 (United States) 1.5
Sesame 0.78 (China) 0.6
Maize 7.9 (United States) 1.6
Sources: Data collected from SEA Publications 2000; Government ofIndia. 1995. Fertilizer statistics 1994-95.
With a population of 1 billion people, the demand for agroproducts is great and India will have to augmentits agricultural production by several hundred percent if the country is to remain self-sufficient.
FEED STANDARDS AND SPECIFICATIONS
For cattle and poultry, nutritional standards have been prepared with respect to the genotype, environment,quality of available raw materials, maintenance methods, production and reproduction requirements,production capacity and phase of production. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) is a central government organization that facilitates discussionbetween scientists and industry and prepares guidelines and specifications. Table 5 shows the BISspecifications for dairy cattle and Tables 6a, 6b and 6c those for poultry.
Table 5BIS standards, dairy feed requirements
Characteristic Type I (IS: 2052, 1979,reaffirmed 1990)
Type II (IS: 2052, 1979,reaffirmed 1990)
Moisture (maximum %) 11 11
Crude protein (maximum %) 22 20
Crude fat (minimum %) 3 2.5
Crude fibre (maximum %) 7 12
Acid-insoluble ash (maximum%)
3 4
Source: Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi, India.
Table 6aBIS standards, poultry feed requirements
Characteristic Broilerstarterfeed
Broilerfinisherfeed
Chickfeed
Growingchickenfeed
Layingchickenfeed
Breederlayerfeed
Moisture(maximum %)
11 11 11 11 11 11
Crude protein (N
x 6.25)(maximum %)
23 20 20 16 18 18
Crude fibre(maximum %)
6 6 7 8 8 8
Acid-insolubleash (maximum%)
3.0 3.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 4.0
Salt (as NaCl)(maximum %) 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6 0.6
Source: BIS. Poultry feeds - specifications, fourth revision.
Table 6bBIS standards, poultry feed declaration requirements
Characteristic Broilerstarterfeed
Broilerfinisherfeed
Chickfeed
Growingchickenfeed
Layingchickenfeed
Breederlayerfeed
Calcium (Ca)(maximum %)
1.2 1.2 1.0 1.0 3.0 3.0
Availablephosphorus(minimum %)
0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5
Lysine (maximum%)
1.2 1.0 0.9 0.6 0.650.65
Methionine(maximum %)
0.50 0.35 0.3 0.25 0.30 0.30
Metabolizableenergy (minimumcal/kg)
2 800 2 900 2 600 2 500 2 600 2 600
Source: BIS. Poultry feeds - specifications, fourth revision.
Table 6cBIS standards, poultry feed requirements for minerals, fatty acids,amino acids and vitamins
Characteristic Broilerstarterfeed
Broilerfinisherfeed
Chickfeed
Growingchickenfeed
Layingchickenfeed
Breederlayer feed
Manganese(mg/kg)
90 90 90 50 55 90
Iodine (mg/kg) 1 1 1 1 1 1
Iron (mg/kg) 120 120 120 90 75 90
Zinc (mg/kg) 60 60 60 50 75 100
Copper (mg/kg) 12 12 12 9 9 12
Vitamin A(IU/kg)
6 000 6 000 6 000 6 000 8 000 8 000
Vitamin D3(IU/kg)
600 600 600 600 1 200 1 200
Thiamine(mg/kg)
5 5 5 3 3 3
Riboflavin(mg/kg)
6 6 6 5 5 8
Pantothenic acid(mg/kg)
15 15 15 15 15 15
Nicotinic acid(mg/kg)
40 40 40 15 15 15
Biotin (mg/kg) 0.2 0.2 0.02 0.15 0.15 0.20
Vitamin B12(mg/kg) 0.015 0.015 0.015 0.01 0.010 0.01
Folicacid(mg/kg)
1.0 1.0 1.0 0.5 0.5 0.5
Choline (mg/kg) 1 400 1 000 1 300 900 800 800
Vitamin E(mg/kg)
15 15 15 10 10 15
Vitamin K(mg/kg)
1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0
Pyridoxine(mg/kg)
5 5 5 5 5 8
Linoleic acid(g/100 g)
1 1 1 1 1 1
Methionine +cystine (g/100 g)
0.9 0.7 0.6 0.5 0.55 0.55
Source: BIS. Poultry feeds - specifications, fourth revision.
The Compound Livestock Feed Manufacturers' Association (CLFMA) has prepared its ownspecifications, which are shown in Table 7 for cattle and Table 8 for poultry.
Table 7CLFMA specifications for compound feeds, dairy cattle and buffaloes
Characteristic Dairyspecialfeed
Type I feed Type II feed Type III feed
Moisture (maximum %) 12.0 12.0 12.0 12.0
Crude protein (on dm basis)(minimum %)
22.0 20.0 18.0 16.0
Undegraded protein(minimum %)
8.0 -- -- --
Crude fat (minimum %) 3.0 2.5 2.5 2.0
Crude fibre (maximum %) 7.0 7.0 12.0 14.0
Acid-insoluble ash(maximum %)
3.5 4.0 4.5 5.0
Source: CLFMA Standards for Compound Animal Feeds.
Table 8CLFMA specifications for compound feeds, poultry
Characteristic Chickfeed
Growerfeed
Layerfeed,I
LayerfeedII
Broilerstarterfeed
Broilerfinisherfeed
Breederchickfeed
Breedergrowerfeed
Broilerbreederfeed
Layerbreederfeed
Broilermalebreederfeed
Moisture(maximum %)
12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12
Crude protein(minimum %)
18 14 16 14 20 18 18 14 16 16 14
Fat (maximum%)
2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
Crude fibre
(maximum %) 7 8 8 10 6 5 5 7 7 7 7
Acid-insolubleash (maximum%)
4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
Metabolizableenergy(minimumcal/kg)
2 600 2 300 2 500 2 300 2 600 2 700 2 600 2 400 2 500 2 500 2 400
Source: CLFMA Standards for Compound Animal Feeds.
The specifications of both BIS and CLFMA are only guidelines and their use as standards is notcompulsory. The animal feed business is competitive and feed manufacturers therefore endeavour toproduce feed of the highest possible quality.
FEEDING PRACTICES AND THE USE OF COMPOUND FEED
In India, the term "compound feed" refers to feed that is nutritionally balanced and has been manufacturedusing the facilities of an analytical laboratory and under the supervision of nutritionists. There are also alarge number of small-scale feed mixers who produce feed for local consumption. Such feed is termed "self-mixed feed" or "home-mixed feed".
Cattle feed
Cattle feeding practices are very traditional. Farmers choose their own ingredients and prepare their ownformulations, believing that by these means they are able to pay more individual attention to their cattle. Theproductivity of the cattle is limited because of their poor genetic make-up, so high-quality compound feed(industry feed) may not necessarily generate a significant improvement in productivity and this hashampered growth of the cattle feed industry because most farmers are reluctant to use compound feedfully. Instead they compromise by using such feed in proportions of 5 to 60 percent, making up the balancewith their own formulations. It is only in the case of highly productive animals that compound feed has beenable to show its real potential and the importance of technology has been demonstrated. The share of compound cattle feed manufactured by the industry, in relation to the overall potential, is lowfor the following reasons:
The cattle population is fragmented and spread over large parts of the country. Farmers' low level ofeducation and strong traditional beliefs mean that there is generally little awareness of compoundcattle feed.More than 50 percent of the country's total milk production comes from a very large number of low-yielding cows and buffaloes. A further 25 percent of milk production comes from buffaloes and onlythe remaining 25 percent of the total is produced by cross-bred and improved cows.Industrially manufactured compound cattle feed has proved its value for cross-bred cows andbuffaloes but not for low-yielding cattle because of their genetic limitations. Home-mixed feed is veryfrequently used for buffaloes and low-yielding cattle.
Poultry feed
Poultry feed is divided into layer and broiler feed. In the case of layer feed, cost is the main constraint inusing compound feed. An innovative, high-value compound feed can result in increased numbers of eggs,but the risks are too high because of the birds' long life cycle. Compound feed has, however, made a major contribution to broiler feeding. This is an example of excellentcoordination among instrument technology, formulations and use of feed additives and supplements. Cost isa less important factor because the performance improvements are greater than the cost increases and thebirds' life cycle is short. Two types of poultry feed are prepared. One is ready-made and in the form of mash or pellets. The
second is in concentrated form for mixing with an energy source. Concentrates are protein sources,balanced in amino acids and containing vitamins, minerals and feed additives. They are mixed with energysources such as maize, sorghum or bajra to prepare poultry rations.
The quality assurance of compound feed
The Indian feed industry employs the services of qualified nutritionists. Members of the industry have theirown analytical laboratories and either have their own research and development facilities or have access tothe research laboratories of agricultural universities or government institutions. The industry is fullycommitted to quality and its technical staff are knowledgeable about the nutrition of cattle, buffaloes, layersand broilers. As well as the normal proximate principles, other analyses are regularly carried out, such as amino acids,aflatoxin, ochratoxin, castor, tannins and urease activity. There is a high degree of awareness of feedmicrobiology among the millers of feed. Feed raw materials and finished products are subjected to microbial
counts, Salmonella and Escherichia coli testing and mould count, and contaminated materials are
rejected and sometimes destroyed. Insurance cover is available. The feed millers have acquired the latest technologies and modern equipment such as high-pressure liquidchromatography (HPLC) and near-infrared (NIR) analysers. All vitamins, minerals and other feed additivesare regularly analysed using modern analytical techniques. Regular seminars are conducted, short-term courses are arranged and Indian scientists are constantlyworking to upgrade the quality of Indian feed and make it completely safe for animal feeding. The quality of Indian feed can be compared with that of any Western feed. Today it is common to achievea chicken house average of 310 eggs in 52 weeks, in layers, and body weights of 2.0 kg in less than sixweeks, with a feed conversion ratio of between 1.8 and 1.9, in broilers. Dairy feed can use the geneticpotential of Indian cattle at its maximum. The quality of Indian feed is satisfactory and innovation willcontinue.
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT IN ANIMAL FEED
Given the importance of feed ingredients, Indian scientists have worked on various aspects of research anddevelopment in the field of animal feeds and feeding. In the 1960s, all Indian raw materials were analysedfor their proximate composition, metabolizable energy values and deleterious factors. During the 1970s, thegovernment sanctioned special projects to study the use of by-products in animal feeds. Various by-productswere considered and their nutritional parameters studied (a list of the various by-products available in animalfeeds is given in Table 9). Indian scientists analysed ingredients for their chemical values and studied theirbiological values, and this information was useful to the industry in the initial stages of growth. In the 1970sand 1980s subsequent research was conducted on the energy-protein and energy-amino acid ratios and thevitamin and mineral requirements of animals. During the next phase of research, the main focus was onbypass fat and bypass protein utilization in ruminants, and on the role of various feed additives in enhancingmilk, egg and broiler meat production. Research and development work has been conducted on least-costformulations and usage of synthetic amino acids.
Table 9By-products used in animal feed
Forest produce Babul seed, dhaincha seed, puwad seed, patwa seed, sagaon seed, san seed, tulsi seed,tamarind seed, babul falli, mesta seed
Food industry Biscuit waste, cocoa-shell powder, cocoa beans, maize dust, macaroni waste, issapgul chhala
Gum and starch industry Guar seeds, guar kurma and chuni, dhaincha kurma, tapioca milk powder, tapiocaspent pulp, maize gluten, maize cake
Fruit and vegetable processing Orange peel, spent lemon, orange waste, jamun seed, potato waste, tomato
waste, mango kernel, pineapple waste, mango seed extraction, coffee waste, extracted tea leaves
Alcohol industry Barley waste, yeast sludge, grape extractions, penicillin residue
Essential oil industry Spent residue of pepper, cardamom and ginger, spent ajwan seed, spent anthia seedcake
Note: Most of these by-products are used in cattle feed. They are regional and seasonaland used, always fresh, in small quantities.
Source: Author's selection from various research and published work.
THE FEED INDUSTRY AND CLFMA
CLFMA was formed in June 1967 as an association of feed manufacturers and associated industries suchas ingredient suppliers, importers, feed additive manufacturers, consultants, hatcheries and milk cooperativesand feed machinery manufacturers. The objectives of CLFMA are to promote the concept of nutritionallybalanced compound feed; to promote, assist, organize and coordinate scientific research in the field ofanimal nutrition; to conduct, assign, sponsor or co-sponsor surveys and studies; to collect, classify andcirculate information related to animal feed to its members and government; to offer suggestions togovernment in formulating policies; and to impart training to livestock farmers, feed mill personnel,veterinarians, students and others. The office-bearers of CLFMA are elected and operate for a maximumof two years at one level. Over the years, CLFMA has been able to solve many problems of the industry, but many others stillremain unsolved. CLFMA is gradually becoming a representative of the entire livestock industry. The feedproduction of its members is described in Table 10, while the industry's production of feed vis-á-vis potentialis described in Table 11.
Table 10CLFMA members' production of compound livestock feed (milliontonnes)
Year Cattle Poultry Others Total
1995 1.50 1.26 0.05 2.81
1996 1.50 1.40 0.03 2.93
1997 1.41 1.34 0.02 2.77
1998 1.46 1.69 0.03 3.18
1999 1.60 1.90 0.03 3.53
Source: CLFMA publications on production.
Table 11Animal feed potential and the industry's production
Feed type Potential Industry's production Production as % ofpotential
(million tonnes) (million tonnes)
Cattle feed 60 1.6 2.6
Poultry feed 9 1.9 21.1
Total 69 3.5 5.07
Sources: Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Ministry of Agriculture. 1992.Livestock census; CLFMA production figures.
ISSUES IN THE ANIMAL FEED INDUSTRY
Standardization and regulation of animal feed manufacturers
As already mentioned, BIS has produced guideline feed standards and the industry also has its ownguidelines. Currently there is no compulsion to use BIS standards, but the central government has beenadvising states to introduce their own regulatory standards. The industry, however, is resisting this move.One of the major reasons for opposition is that the government wants to legislate regulation under theEssential Commodities Act 1955 which is considered draconian and totally inappropriate in this context. There is no shortage of compound animal feeds anywhere in the country. In fact, the organized sector ofthe compound feed industry is facing serious problems resulting from a huge idle capacity, to the extent of50 percent or more. New capacities are being added by global players in the feed business and by nationalas well as multinational integrators. The nature of animal feeds and the animal feed industry has completelychanged. Increasingly, products, including new products, are being excluded from the purview of the EssentialCommodities Act 1955. Major raw materials for compound animal feeds, such as groundnut, soybean,rapeseed and sunflower meals and cottonseed and rice bran extract, which are exported, are not covered bythe Act. There is therefore no reason for it to cover the animal feed manufactured with these raw materials. Furthermore, the industry has several reservations about implementing BIS standards. There is a lack offlexibility in these standards and they are lagging far behind the industry's products. For cattle, they have notbeen revised for 30 years, while the BIS standards for poultry are obsolete. Another feed standards issue that worries both the government and industry is that any changes to existingstandards will be slow and difficult to arrive at because of participative conflicts and various lobbyinggroups. However, the industry's principal concern about compulsory standards is that they will disturbefforts to innovate and upgrade feed production in order to improve the productivity of the animals. This isbecause all innovations would have to be passed by BIS, and such a process is likely to take several years tocomplete.
Classifications of animal feed supplements/additives for import
The classification of feed additives is a major hindrance to the Indian feed industry. Worldwide, animal feedsupplements and additives are covered under chapter 23.09 of the Harmonized System of Nomenclature(HSN), to which India is a signatory. In the HSN, all feed ingredients are listed under the "free" category forimport, but the Indian Government put them into the "restricted" category in October 1995. Since then, therehave been continuous discussions among the drug control authorities, the Director-General of Foreign Tradeand the Central Excise Department, all of which want to bring feed additives under their administration so asto increase their own revenues. The industry, represented by CLFMA, has made several representations tothe government, but these have been round various government departments, appellate tribunals, the HighCourt and the Supreme Court without providing any useful results for the industry.
Countervailing duty on amino acids
The essential amino acids, such as DL-methionine, L-lysine and L-threonine, are not manufactured in India.These products are vital ingredients of compound animal feed for improving the quality of the final feed andmaking it conversion-efficient. With a view to bringing about the rapid development of animal husbandry inIndia, the government reduced the import duty on essential amino acids to the present level of 10 percentcustoms duty, so that the feed price to livestock farmers would be economic. However, with the impositionof countervailing duty (CVD) and other duties, the objective of helping to promote animal husbandry hasbeen defeated. Table 12 shows the import duty on amino acids in different countries.
Table 12Import duty rates on amino acids in selected countries (1998)
Country Rate
(%)
Hong Kong 0
Indonesia 0
Japan 0
Malaysia 0
Nepal 4.0
Pakistan 0
Singapore 0
Sri Lanka 5.0
Thailand 0
India 39.61
Source: Information collected by CLFMA from various feed associations in the othercountries.
Local sales tax
Another threat to the industry is posed by local sales taxes. It must be noted that the feed industry is mainlycommodity-oriented and, although it is value-added, it cannot support the burden of any kind of taxation. Theindustry has made several representations to the government and some state governments have accepted itspoint of view and refrained from levying any tax on animal feeds.
Import and export
Indian feed was exported to the Near East during the 1980s, but the export demand was reduced when feedmills were set up in the Near East. At present, India exports about 25 000 tonnes of feed to the Near Eastas general animal feed. There is no import of animal feed as such into India. However, the country does import certain chemicals,feed additives, amino acids and essentials for aquaculture feed.
THE FUTURE OF THE INDIAN FEED INDUSTRY - WINDS OF CHANGE
At the beginning of the twenty-first century, India has a population of 1 billion people. Although the annualgrowth rate has slowed from 2 to 1.8 percent, the base is so broad that changes in population dynamics arenot perceptible. The population may stabilize by sometime between 2030 and 2040 if all sections of societysupport family planning wholeheartedly. The purchasing power of the middle class is growing (the middleclass accounts for approximately 300 million people) and food habits are also changing. The Indian economy is growing at the rate of 6 to 8 percent per annum. The livestock industry in India isthe second largest contributor to gross domestic product (GDP), after agriculture, and accounts for 9
percent of the total. Consumption is likely to increase as follows: per capita milk from 240 to 450 g per
year; per capita eggs from 40 to 100 per year; and per capita broiler meat from 1 000 to 2 000 g peryear. A major change is occurring in India on the economic front. The country has adopted a model that liesmidway between liberal and public sector production, but growth has been affected by the poorperformance of most of the public sector units, rising government costs and fiscal deficit, and the economyhas suffered. A process of liberalization was set in motion by the government and has been implemented forthe last eight to ten years. This has caused India to open up and invite investment from multinationals,liberalize imports, reduce government expenditure and remove public sector businesses. It also means thatthe days of nationalization, unnecessary government controls and restrictions will soon be over thanks toprogress in the country's economy. India has entered into an agreement with its trade partners under the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The changes brought about by the liberalization process will be slow but certain. The government is openingup imports in a phased manner, and it is expected that this process will be completed by April 2003. In themeantime, about 930 items, including agricultural products, will be open for import under open generallicence from April 2001, making it possible to import dressed chicken, milk and milk products. Various livestock industry associations have taken issue with such imports in an attempt to protect theirmembers. If the livestock industry is affected, the feed industry will also be affected. The Government of
India has raised the tariff on all poultry and poultry products from 35 percent to the WTO boundary levelof 100 percent. It therefore appears that there will be a level playing field.
In view of the expected rise in per capita consumption of chicken meat, eggs and milk, livestock
production and productivity will grow. The dairy industry, which is cooperative-based, is growing with theincreased capacities of milk processing units. The population of cross-bred cattle and buffaloes is also
growing. Milk is very popular in India. The poultry industry is developing towards vertical integration and
a few multinational companies have already entered the Indian poultry business. Although the live birdmarket currently accounts for about 90 percent of the total market, it is expected that the consumption of
dressed chicken will grow in the next five years, from the existing 10 percent to 25 percent or more. This
would mean establishing very hygienic and scientific processing units. Cold chains, branded chicken,chicken cuts, etc. will be introduced and, depending on the success and consistent quality, consumer
preference for dressed meat will grow. The next decade will see significant changes in restructuring, mergers, acquisitions, amalgamations, jointventures, diversification, integration and efficient service chains, e-commerce and use of the latestinformation technology in global tenders, trading, export/import and other commercial activities. At the rootof all these developments will be the scientific development of feed manufacturing technology. The Indianfeed industry will increasingly use biotechnology, more scientific formulations, new molecules and naturaland herbal products to improve animal productivity. Indian agriculture will also use biotechnology andgenetically modified organisms (GMOs) to support the feed industry, which is entering a very exciting phaseof growth for the next decade.