THE NEED FOR TRANSITION FEEDS AMONG KENYAN FARMERS

Gagan Pathak is an Indian native and professional feeds consultant currently residing in Kenya. After a two year stint in the country offering consultancy services to farmers, Gagan noticed a gap - the lack of adequate transition feeds for farmers. Armed with the sheer will to address this deficit, coupled with his two decades worth of experience, Gagan founded Livestock Nutrition in Nakuru

Livestock Nutrition are experts in different species such as poultry, dairy, swine, aqua & pet animals and specialises in: least cost formulation, knowledge of all animal feed formulation software such as BRILLS, ECOMIX, BILLS, BESTMIX and many more. Their services extend the length of; training the sales team, training plant team, conducting plant operation audit, raw material procurement help and ensure profitability of overall business.

Kenya Daily Monitor caught up with Gagan during the first ever AKEFEMA Exhibition and Conference that took place in Nairobi where Gagan spoke at length about the unfortunate shortage of transition feeds amongst Kenyan farmers. 

“During my time here, I realised that something very key was missing amongst the farmers and that is when I decided to start my own company to bring the best feed formulations to Kenya and the transition feeds which are missing,” he asserted. 

By his account, transition feeds offer several advantages for young calves and other livestock, especially during their early days of life. He explained that transition milk for example, contains bioactive peptides, hormones, and nucleotides that aid in gut development, a function that cannot be achieved if the calves consumed normal feeds. 

Moreover, Insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) indirectly promotes intestinal growth and lead to enhanced nutrient absorption. Nutrients like proteins, fats, and immunoglobulins are still present in transition milk, benefiting the calf.

“Imagine a calf, wobbly on its legs. It’s just left the womb, its first meal matters. Colostrum—the golden liquid—provides immunity and energy. It would be very bad to feed such a calf the same meal you want to feed a grown lactating cow. That's why farmers need transition feeds,” he explained. 

In an illustrative fashion, Gagan took time to note how calves transformed into heifers, then cows, all the while stressing the need of having transition feeds in between the stages of development. He notes that transition feeds unlock the full potential of these animals and that is what his company set out to address. 

“At Livestock Nutrition, we have the right recipe for how to make these transition feeds. We can show the farmers how to customise the right formulations to make the best meals for their animals. Once they do that, the heifers bloom, milk flow in higher quantities, chicken lay regularly, yolks golden.” a visibly assured Gagan said. 

With operations across Africa and the middle east, Gagan noted that the robust introduction of transition feeds in Kenya will not only boost yields; they will also sow hope among farmers, nurturing Kenya’s soil and souls. 


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