Growth performance and ruminal fermentation characteristics of Thai-native beef cattle fed cassava pulp fermented with Lactobacillus casei TH14 and additives.

Raw cassava pulp is a low-nutritional agro-industry residue with a high moist content that is susceptible to rot. Biodegradation of cassava pulp by adding Lactobacillus spp. plus stimulants could boost bio-acidity to preserve cassava pulp as ruminant feed. This investigation assessed the effect of ensiled cassava pulp without or with Lactobacillus casei TH14 (LTH14), urea, and molasses on the intake, digestibility, rumen fermentation, and growth performance of native Thai beef cattle. Eight Thai-native beef bulls (170.3 ± 20.2 kg of initial body weight) were randomly assigned to two treatment groups in a completely randomized design: cassava pulp ensiled without additives (CPFNO; n = 4) and cassava pulp ensiled with the combination of LTH14 (2.5 g per ton of fresh material), urea (4% DM), and molasses (4% DM) (CPFWA; n = 4). The intake of the concentrate diet and ensiled cassava pulp did not differ (p > 0.05) between the CPFNO and CPFWA groups, including final body weight, average daily gain (ADG), and feed conversion ratio (p > 0.05). However, CPFWA affected higher rice straw intake compared to the CPFNO group (p < 0.05). The intake and digestibility of crude protein (CP) were greater for the CPFWA group at 43.86% and 30.87%, respectively, compared to the CPFNO group (p < 0.05). Ruminal ammonia-nitrogen (NH₃-N) and blood urea-nitrogen (BUN) were increased when animals were fed with CPFWA (p < 0.05). The average total volatile fatty acids (VFA) concentration of CPFWA was greater than that of CPFNO by 27.49% (p < 0.05). In conclusion, CPFWA supplementation can enhance rice straw intake, CP intake and digestion, total ruminal VFA concentration, and BUN levels, without adversely affecting growth performance.