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FEEDLOT PERFORMANCE AND CARCASS CHARACTERISTICS OF ZEBU CATTLE IN THE MALI SAHEL ZONE II. EFFECT OF UTILIZATION OF SUGARCANE TOPS (Saccharum officinarum) AS BASAL DIET

A feeding trial to evaluate the per­formance of finishing steers fed main­ly on sugarcane tops with or without cotton­seed and molasses was conducted in Niono, Mali during the dry season. 96 Zebu steers, weighing between 220 and 250kg were randomly alloted to four groups of twenty-four steers each The performance parameters compared were: feed intake, rate of gain, feed conver­sion and carcass characteristics. The diffe­rences observed for feed intake, rate of gain and feed conversion appear to be more related to roughage level rather than source. There were no nutritional disorders. Results from this initial feeding trial indicate that a sugarcane — derived feedstaffs can be used to constitute a major component of finish­ing steer rations particularly in the dry areas of the tropics where sugarcane tops are regarded as wastes.