Silage App Developed to improve livestock nutrition

Senior Livestock Specialist with RADA and creator of the silage app, Maxine Brown. Ms. Brown said two apps were created but the silage app is now in circulation with the aim of increasing livestock owner access to better nutrition for their animals.

 

The Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) has approved a mobile app to help boost livestock access to silage, a key part of good nutrition for animals.

 

Senior Livestock Specialist with RADA and creator of the mobile application, Maxine Brown, said two apps were created but the silage app is now in circulation.

 

“It's a silage app because we constantly push persons to say you need to make silage because it's a way to conserve the hay for animals during heavy rains or when you have dry times. But this app will also allow persons to be able to calculate what quantity of silage do I need,” she said.

 

According to the Agricultural Marketing Resource Centre, silage is a preserved forage produced by fermenting high-moisture crops in an oxygen-free environment, to retain nutrients and feed value.

 

In a recent interview with JIS News, Ms. Brown explained that the app, which was recently developed and has been endorsed by RADA, will assist with silage calculations for cattle, goats and sheep, for a set timeframe.

 

“To follow the silage app, I've also sent out a small survey to see how many persons would be interested in purchasing silage if it were available, because this can be used to guide a potential investor who would want to go into silage production as a
business to assist farmers. In the same way that persons sell hay, we can have more persons producing silage for sale,” she said.

 

Though the app is not yet available for download from the Google Play Store or iOS, it is being circulated among livestock owners through RADA offices.

 

“It is something that I'm planning to work on, hopefully by the end of September, to get it on the Google Play Store. But it is being circulated generally among farmers,” she said.

 

For further information, livestock owners can visit their parish RADA office.

By Twila Wheelan