Millet as forage and silage in livestock farming

This abstract was an analysis of articles on the use of millet in animal nutrition, its fixed and variable production costs, and its development as a forage crop in the central-western region of São Paulo. In recent studies, millet Pennisetum glaucum has been a prominent alternative as a forage crop for improving degraded soils with low organic matter content. Its ease of direct planting has promoted its use by livestock farmers as a potential substitute for corn in livestock farming as a forage crop and in animal feed. Millet cultivation is positive due to its low fixed cost, being financially more viable due to its short cycle, greater adaptability, good germination in the high temperatures of the central-western region of São Paulo, low water requirements and greater resistance in the dry season, making it an excellent option for planting in the off-season (autumn and winter). With roots reaching 3 meters, it easily extracts nutrients from the soil, increasing the accumulation of calcium, potassium and nitrogen in the upper layer of the soil, reducing the application of agricultural inputs, which reduces the final cost of production. As silage, it does not have antinutritional effects, such as tannin, despite its high crude protein content and digestibility. Nutrients extracted from the soil remain in the straw as it decomposes, returning to the soil; high biomass in the foliage; high nutritional content of the seeds; high seed production; adaptability to different levels of soil fertility; resistance to diseases and pests; suppression of weeds by physical effects; longer-lasting straw. Due to the above, the use of millet as silage has shown advantages due to the multifunctionality of its use in livestock. Although its metabolizable energy content is equivalent to that of corn and sorghum, its low water and agricultural input requirements reduce the total cost of production, requiring only planning in cultivation and supply to animals.