Small-scale feed grinder to improve the quality of roughage feed in Chouarnia CLCA Site, Seliana North West Tunisia

Abstract

ICARDA donated twenty (20) mobile grinders to young entrepreneurs and farmers associations in Northern, Central and Southern Tunisia. The grinders can chop and grind materiel like cactus cladodes and fruits, small olive branches and leaves, straw, hay, date kernels, cereals, faba beans etc. and work with both, 380 V or PTO powered by a tractor. Production capacity per day varies between 1.5 and 10 t, depending on the materiel to be chopped. Low cost feed supply is a major constraint for small scale livestock farmers in Northern, Central and Southern Tunisia, in particular during summer. Through grinding of locally available feed the intake will be increased, and productivity gained. Beneficiaries, either entrepreneurs or farmer associations, d use the machine to develop their feed and / or compost business. They either produce and sell the final product or they provide grinding services to farmers. It is an ideal tool for smallholder farmers to improve their incomes which represents an opportunity for improved livelihoods in traditional small-scale farming. These grinders can lead to reducing costs and thus increasing income. The use of these tools can reduce the labor time spent on feed-farming operations, hence enabling more time for small-scale farmers, especially for women farmers to carry out additional operations.