Community of natural lactic acid bacteria and silage fermentation of corn stover and sugarcane tops in Africa

Abstract

Objective: To effectively utilize crop by-product resources to address the shortage of animal feed during the dry season in Africa, the community of natural lactic acid bacteria (LAB) of corn stover and sugarcane tops and fermentation characteristics of silage were studied in Mozambique.Methods: Corn stover and sugarcane tops were obtained from agricultural field in Mozambique. Silage was prepared with LAB inoculant and cellulase enzyme and their fermentation quality and microbial population were analyzed.Results: Aerobic bacteria were the dominant population with 10<sup>7</sup> colony-forming unit/g of fresh matter in both crops prior to ensiling, while 10<sup>4</sup> to 10<sup>7</sup> LAB became the dominant bacteria during ensiling. <i>Lactobacillus plantarum</i> was more than 76.30% of total isolates which dominated silage fermentation in the LAB-treated sugarcane top silages or all corn stover silages. Fresh corn stover and sugarcane tops contain 65.05% to 76.10% neutral detergent fiber (NDF) and 6.52% to 6.77% crude protein (CP) on a dry matter basis, and these nutrients did not change greatly during ensiling. Corn stover exhibits higher LAB counts and watersoluble carbohydrates content than sugarcane top, which are naturally suited for ensiling. Meanwhile, sugarcane tops require LAB or cellulase additives for high quality of silage making.Conclusion: This study confirms that both crop by-products contain certain nutrients of CP and NDF that could be well-preserved in silage, and that they are potential roughage resources that could cover livestock feed shortages during the dry season in Africa.

Enzyme additives influence bacterial communities of Medicago sativa silage as determined by Illumina sequencing

“…RDA results showed that some bacterial genera were correlated with the fermentation indices, such as the positive correlation of Lactobacillus with lactic acids, Caeciella and Enterococcus with pH, propionic acid and butyric acid, and Pediococcus with acetic acid. Lactobacillus is the genus that is typically present in the highest abundance in silages treated with LAB, and it contributes the most to the production of lactic acids and the decline in pH during fermentation (Li et al 2019 ; Zheng et al 2017 ; Ni et al 2017 ; Cai et al 2020 ; Keshri et al 2018 ). Furthermore, the correlation between Lactobacillus and lactic acids has been in other studies (Yang et al 2019 ; Su et al 2019 ).…”

Exploring microbial community structure and metabolic gene clusters during silage fermentation of paper mulberry, a high-protein woody plant

“…In tropical regions, livestock farming often exceeds forage availability, especially in the dry season, leading to pasture degradation (1). The most important factor limiting livestock productivity is the seasonality of food supply in terms of pasture quantity and quality (2). Generally, less forage is produced in the dry season.…”

“…Generally, less forage is produced in the dry season. Limited access to high-quality roughage reduces milk and meat production in ruminants (2), which can damage the health and welfare of animals and increase the incidence of diseases (3).…”

Exploring the microbial community structure and metabolic gene clusters during silage fermentation of paper mulberry, and developing the high-protein woody plant as ruminant feed

“…Microbial additives, including lactic acid bacteria (LAB) inoculant and cellulase enzymes play an important role in improving silage fermentation and nutrient utilization for ruminants (2). Adjustment of the moisture content, water-soluble carbohydrate (WSC) content, and epiphytic LAB of forage also directly influences bacterial activity during the fermentation stage.…”