CARABAO FEEDLOT FATTENING IS A PROFITABLE BUSINESS VENTURE FOR FARMERS, STUDY SAYS

In light of this, a production system for this animal is now seen as a very profitable venture. The system is called ‘carabao feedlot fattening’. This is an intensive carabao raising practice which is one of the fastest ways to increase carabeef production.

The practice is more beneficial in areas where there is an abundance of farm byproducts such as corn stover, fresh corn stalks, sugarcane tops, cover crops, pineapple pulp, rice straws, and banana leaves and trunks. The system requires feedlot facilities and simple animal management.

CROSSBRED FOR MEAT PRODUCTION The Philippine Carabao Center (PCC) initiated the crossbreeding program of the native carabaos in compliance with the Philippine Carabao Act of 1992, which is aimed at increasing production of milk and meat.

Crossbreeding involves impregnating female native carabaos (with frozen-thawed semen collected from superior sires) through artificial insemination. The first offspring of crossbreeding is a crossbred with 50% purebred blood and 50% native blood. The purebred bloodline of the crossbred increases as it undergoes backcrossing.

The crossbred has the potential for better milk production. It also has a larger body size and when slaughtered, provides more meat than the native type. According to researchers, male crossbred carabaos have more potential in the meat processing enterprise owing to its higher dressing percentage.

Studies have shown that carabao meat—particularly from the crossbreds raised and properly fed using the same good management practices used for cattle—is comparable to beef in terms of its physiochemical, nutritional, and palatability characteristics.

In a comparative study conducted by the PCC at the University of the Philippines-Los Baños (UPLB) on the meat characteristics of cattle and carabao, it was noted that “crossbred carabao can grow as fast as cattle and can be raised economically under an intensive production system at 90 days fattening period.”

“With feedlot fattening, two to three production cycles a year are possible,” said Dr. Rosalina L. Lapitan, then Supervising Science Research Specialist of the PCC at UPLB.

In feedlot fattening, buffaloes are kept in a confined area to minimize their movements and help develop their tissues. They are usually fed and fattened with locally available quality feeds.