The feed industry in Indonesia is still faced with the dynamics of the availability of seasonal and unsustainable feed raw materials. The condition of the COVID-19 pandemic is increasingly adding to the chaos, especially in the availability of local and imported raw materials.
In response to this, PT Buana Karya Bhakti together with IPB University tried to provide a solution to the dynamics of the national feed industry. The solutions offered include the utilization of Palm Kernel Meal (PKM) as an alternative feed ingredient for energy and protein sources.
PKM is a byproduct of the palm oil processing industry with very high availability in Indonesia. PKM is expected to provide solutions for the availability of quality and sustainable feed raw materials at competitive prices. Thus, this innovation can have a significant impact on the advancement of the feed and livestock industry.
PT Buana Karya Bhakti together with IPB University wanted to introduce Palmofeed as a superior product through a webinar "Reviewing Processed Palm Kernel Meal Innovation (Palmofeed) as a Functional Feed Material for Energy and Protein Sources" which was held at Hotel Santika.
Prof. Arif Satria, Chancellor of IPB University said that he was very proud of Prof. Nahrowi as a researcher who developed palm oil by-products as animal feed. Palmofed breakthrough as a quality functional feed can increase the ability of farmers in their productivity. He also believes the research results can be developed for the fisheries sector which is also experiencing dynamics in its operational costs.
"If we are able to improve in terms of food self-sufficiency in terms of feed, then our livestock industry will grow rapidly. Because after all Indonesia is faced with efforts to increase the fulfillment of protein from our society," he said.
He further explained, meat consumption is still relatively low compared to other countries so that it needs to be continuously encouraged so that the adequacy of animal protein increases. "So the feed from PKM is an innovation that many people have been waiting for," he said.
Prof. Nahrowi, Professor of IPB University from the Department of Nutrition and Feed Technology (INTP) of the Faculty of Animal Husbandry (Fapet) as well as a Palmofed expert, conveyed the results of PKM's innovative research for animal feed. He highlighted palm oil cake which was not utilized optimally for local feed ingredients. Information regarding the use of palm oil cake is also unclear. Generally, palm oil cake is only used as a filler of up to three percent.
In fact, said Prof. Nahrowi, when viewed from its availability compared to other feed ingredients such as corn, palm oil cake is available in all seasons. The technology used has also been established, although the quality still varies so it still needs to be addressed.
He believes that when talking about the quality of feed ingredients, this is not the responsibility of the feed industry but the palm oil producers. Palm oil producers are considered to be lacking in attention so there is no effort to improve the quality of the oilcake which still varies. Therefore, he is trying to partner with PT Buana Karya Bhakti so that producers are aware that palm oil cake cannot be used for poultry yet, so it needs a touch of technology. According to him, if the upstream has been mastered, then the downstream will be easy to manage.
Furthermore, Prof. Nahrowi explained, the main concern besides various qualities, the content of mycotoxins or non-starch polissacharydes is also a concern for researchers. The content of mannan oligosaccharides which is 20 times higher is also not recommended for poultry feed.
However, overall Palmofed has better chemical quality, especially with a much lower fiber content than raw PKM. In addition, Palmofeed has also pocketed several patents and based on cost analysis, the price per gram of protein is relatively cheaper compared to other feed ingredients. He hopes that Palmofed can be used by breeders nationally.
"I have high hopes for nutritionists and formulators who have the courage to develop the best rations using palmofed. I also hope that my friends in the field can use this feed ingredient optimally,
