Availability of animal feed is one of the greatest constraints to the expansion of the livestock industry in developing countries. Apart from the high and fluctuating costs and some of the ingredients used in mixed feeds, notably cereal grains are in high demand for human consumption (Oguntimein, 1988). The cassava products and by-products can be good alternative source of carbohydrate and protein for conventional feed ingredients.
In Mozambique cassava roots and leaves are widely grown mainly as a staple food. The main cassava products are the green leaves used as vegetable; the roots used fresh or dried for flour, roasted as a gari or for beer brewing. Cassava supplies roughly 30% of all calories consumed in Mozambique, making it the Country’s most important food security crop (Donovan et al., 2011). In northern Mozambique, cassava commercialization centers on trade in dried flour, while in the south a prepared cassava-based convenience food called rale accounts for the bulk of marketed cassava product.
Due to the high productivity of cassava, either per unit of land or unit of labor, its products are generally priced lower than most crops. In Mozambique the price of cassava averages at around 55% of the cost of wheat and 60% of the cost of maize (Donovan et al., 2011). The relatively low cost of cassava makes it an attractive crop with a lot of potential in the livestock feed industry. Although there is scientific evidence that support the potential of cassava as an important livestock feed, it use as such is not fully exploited (Anjos, 2007). It is estimated that only 4% of total cassava output is used as a livestock feed resource. The aim of this paper is to explore the potential use of cassava as a substitute for maize in dairy rations.