Raising livestock with... herbal medicine

High quality products

In recent years, with the goal of producing high quality products, some farmers in the province have searched for and added traditional Vietnamese medicinal herbs to the diet of pigs, chickens, eels, pigeons, etc., contributing to improving product quality.

Having raised livestock for a long time, at the beginning of this year, Mr. Nguyen Dinh Luyen in Cau Dong residential area, Cong Hoa ward (Chi Linh) decided to switch to feeding pigs and chickens herbal food. AverageEvery year, Mr. Luyen's family raises two batches of chickens and pigs, each batch about 200 pigs and 2,000 chickens. "I find raising animals by mixing herbs quite convenient, because the bran is mixed in the right ratio, so I just have to feed the pigs and chickens according to each age without any difficulty," said Mr. Luyen.

As a breeder and supplier of herbal feed to many other breeders in the ward, according to Mr. Bui Van Linh in Cau Dong residential area, raising animals with herbs brings many benefits. Although the raising time is longer by 20-30 days/batch of chickens and pigs, the price of feed is 30,000 VND/bag cheaper, while the selling price is about 5% higher, so the economic efficiency is the same. However, the biggest benefit of raising animals with herbs is increasing the resistance of animals, limiting the use of antibiotics and chemicals to clean barns, thereby reducing costs. Animal waste does not smell. In particular, chicken and pork raised with herbs are considered more delicious and fragrant by many consumers.

The production of herbal feed is quite simple. On the market, there are corn, barley, dried beans, herbs such as cinnamon, star anise, bird's nest... which Mr. Linh bought and mixed in appropriate proportions for each type of livestock and each age. The feed is packaged in bags with instructions for use, so it is convenient for farmers to use.

Along with raising pigeons, recently, Mr. Nguyen Van Binh, Director of Thuy Phat Organic Livestock Cooperative in Ha Ky Commune (Tu Ky) has expanded eel farming with herbal food. Because eels live underwater, Mr. Binh uses herbs to treat the water to be clear, clean, and free of impurities to help the eels not get sick. He adds duckweed, water spinach, etc. to the eel parent tank to create a place for the eels to live and reproduce. In addition to regular bran, he also mixes more than 10 other herbs such as xạ đen, ginseng, bìm bịp, Hòn ngọc, kè, etc. in appropriate proportions for eel food. "Currently, I raise 5,000 parent eels and 20,000 meat eels. After 10 months, the eels weigh 200 - 250 grams/meat eel, the selling price is from 180,000 - 200,000 VND/kg, 50,000 - 70,000 VND/kg higher than eels raised by conventional methods. In particular, the eel meat is chewy, fragrant, and has no fishy smell," Mr. Binh affirmed.

Market orientation

Although new forms of livestock farming have been introduced into production to create quality products, the difficulty for some farmers, especially those raising chickens and pigs using herbal methods, is currently the consumer market.

This year is the second year that Mr. Pham Duc Tam's family in Quy Khe village, Cam Hoang commune (Cam Giang) has raised chickens by mixing herbs as feed with a scale of 750 chickens/batch. Although the chicken meat is fragrant and delicious, when sold on the market, the price is not much different from that of chickens raised in the usual way. "Compared to before, the time to raise chickens with herbs is 20 days longer/batch but the value is only the same, so many farmers are not really interested. We hope to have attention from authorities at all levels in promoting the product to consumers," said Mr. Tam.

Some people raising pigs and chickens using herbal methods in Cong Hoa ward (Chi Linh) are also facing difficulties in output as their products are still sold on the open market and have not found a system of restaurants, supermarkets, collective kitchens, or schools that can provide stable supply, helping farmers feel secure in production.

According to Mr. Nguyen Van Binh, Director of Thuy Phat Organic Livestock Cooperative, to stand firm in the diverse and rich food market like today, herbal farmers must affirm the difference in product quality; at the same time, they need to proactively connect to bring products to restaurants, supermarkets... to be able to produce on a large scale.

Raising livestock by mixing herbs into the animal's diet brings many benefits. In addition to buying available raw materials, people can grow or find them easily, contributing to reducing costs in raising livestock. However, for the model to grow and be replicated, there needs to be more active attention from the authorities.