Leon Kruger says they are investigating the viability of feed options ranging from agricultural or vegetable waste products such as potato peels to the use of indigenous tree leaves. He says in a water scarce country such as South Africa, farmers need to investigate every possible means of producing livestock sustainably and cost effectively.

“In one of the projects that were done, the student looked specifically at leaves. White stinkwood and the Karee. He took a look at the leaves, fed the leaves to animals, and compared the leaves in different seasons.

“White Stinkwoods lose their leaves in winter. He wanted to check specifically whether the dry leaves retain their nutritional value.”

He says the main aim is to help especially small farmers to use all available resources.

“We live in a country where conditions are not great for agriculture, we don’t have very good rainfall. The research is therefore largely aimed at ensuring we use each and every resource at our disposal.

“Especially for small farmers. So that you can tell small farmers ‘go and pick Karee leaves for your animals – prune the trees until they are so low that you can’t cut anymore but use those leaves for your animals’.

“You can then even use these leaves in a feedlot situation.”

- OFM News