Reminder: Inter-active seminar (workshop) on Animal nutrition and digestion: 21-22 Nov. 2012

http://www.irdnc.org.na/

Invitation to an

Inter-active seminar (workshop) on

Animal nutrition and digestion

The purpose and objective of this workshop is to enhance participants' knowledge of

• Bio-chemical processes in an animal's digestion (EXPLAINED IN A WAY THAT FARMERS CAN UNDERSTAND IT),
• Where acidic or alkaline conditions (the PH) in an animal's body come from,
• How the PH influences the body functions, livestock productivity and profitability,
• How planned grazing and herd management can be improved to help animals make better use of the grass that grows on your farm for free,
• The cost-benefit and practical aspects of various supplementation strategies (lick and feed) for your specific production goals and circumstances.

Presented by: 
Mark Bader, originator of Free Choice Mineral supplementation (USA) and
Ian Mitchell-Innes, highly successful livestock farmer and international speaker (South Africa) who has been visiting and consulting for both commercial and communal farmers in Namibia several times.

Date: 21 Nov (starting 14:00 to 17:00) and 22 Nov 2012 (8:00 to 17:00)
Venue:Polytechnic Hotel School (corner of Beethoven and Brahms Str, Windhoek West)
Participation fee: N$ 750 per person,including refreshments, one lunch and proceedings. 
Who should attend? 
Commercial and communal farmers, scientists, advisers, mentors and suppliers to the agricultural industry will benefit from easy to follow explanations of bio-chemical processes in soils, plants and animals. Practical management suggestions are based on the speaker's awareness of our local production conditions.

Registration by 16 November 2012 latest.

There is no registration form. Just contact Wiebke Volkmann at wiebke@mweb.com.na
or Tel or sms to 081 -127 0081 with all names of participants.
To confirm your participation please deposit the fee (N$ 750/person) into the following account: 
Account name: Namibia Centre for Holistic Management
Bank: Standard Bank of Namibia
Branch: Gustav Voigts Centre, code: 082772
Acc nr: 043132316 
Please state your name (and not just a telephone number) as the beneficiary reference when making a bank transfer and e-mail the deposit slip to  wiebke@mweb.com.na.

Provisional Program

21 November 2012 14:00 to 17:00
Illustrated lectures and subsequent discussion on:

• The bio-chemical processes of digestion and nutrient uptake in livestock
• Explaining the primary and secondary compounds in different kinds of forage and supplementary compounds and how these influence the PH of the rumen, the digestive tract and blood of the body.
• Understanding how the PH influences the nutrient uptake and general health and productivity of the animal

22 November 2012 8:00 to 17:00
Illustrated lectures and subsequent discussions on:

• The influence of grazing management on the quality and quantity of natural forage.
• The influence of farm management on the grazing patterns of animals and on the digestibility of forage.
• Identifying animal condition and production problems.
• Recognizing shortcomings AND opportunities in natural forage composition and how to optimize quality and quantity of forage.
• Understanding the principles of supplementary feeding of minerals and other elements to enhance natural forage digestibility and uptake of nutrients
• Understanding the different needs for optimizing animal digestion and forage conversion in different production conditions and goals (feed-lotting, free-range foraging, dairy, beef and breeding).
• Discussing practical/technical options and costs for feeding minerals and other nutritional compounds.
• Calculating the risks and the costs and benefits of strategic supplementary feeding.
• Related questions and answers.

The workshop is brought to you by

Namibia Centre for Holistic Management

Integrated Rural Development and Nature Conservation (IRDNC)

Polytechnic of Namibia Agricultural Economics Department