Livestock Nutritionist Ashraf Alkhtib (PhD), has been named as a finalist for his abstract titled, ‘Effect of olive tree pruning by-products on intake, digestibility, growth performance and blood parameters of Shami goats’, for the BSAS Industry Prize Award 2020.

BSAS is a charity that works to improve the understanding of all aspects of animal science and to ensure research and knowledge has a practical and beneficial application.

BSAS work with science and industry specialists to provide improvements in the welfare and productivity of farmed animals to help produce quality, safe and environmentally sustainable food. They also work to provide overall improvements to animal health and welfare; and the care of equine, companion and zoo animals.

“I submitted this work to BSAS 2020 and it was awarded the industry prize. I think that was because it introduced a new feasible concept to the agricultural sector in developing countries”, Ashraf told us.

Ashraf’s project is about using olive leaves and branches, after urea and molasses treatment, as goat feed. He went on to tell us a little bit more about what he did.

“Mediterranean basin counties, including Syria, plant the majority of olive trees in the world. Annual pruning of an olive tree generates 25 kg of twigs and leaves. Syria had a wide gap in the feed budget and introducing olive twigs and leaves to goat feed has contributed to filling the feed gap” Ashraf said.

Ashraf concluded his project to say, “Olive twigs treated with 4% urea and 10% molasses could replace up to 48.5% of conventional diets for growing Shami goat kids without negative effects on growth performance or health. This potentially reduces fattening costs for farmers in olive-livestock mixed systems by 20%”.

“I am so proud of winning this prize and that encouraged me to submit the work for the consideration of a high quality journal”.