The Department of Agriculture (DA) is seeking to bring down the cost of meat production by introducing processed seaweed as an inexpensive and abundant alternative fodder for livestock and other farm animals.

DA Undersecretary Deogracias Victor Savellano on Sunday said that seaweed is abundant in an archipelagic country like the Philippines, but is overlooked by local livestock and poultry raisers for its value as cost-efficient animal feed.

He explained that developing cheaper animal feed will likewise help lower the cost of producing food for people, which, in turn, will ease inflationary pressures in the country.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) reported that headline inflation rose to 6.1 percent year-on-year in September from 5.3 percent year-on-year in August, attributing price pressures this year mainly on food costs.

“Seaweed is in abundance in the Philippines’ coastal waters. Everyday tons of it gets washed up in our beaches, but people don’t realize its potential usefulness. It is a viable alternative to corn and other traditional animal feeds,” Savellano told the Philippine News Agency.

He disclosed that his office has sought the expertise of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) country representative, Lionil Henri Valentin Dabbadie, in undertaking a feasibility study on the industrial-scale processing of seaweed into animal feed.

Savellano serves as an oversight official for the DA’s livestock and poultry feeds development program.

The DA official said seaweed promises to provide a sustainable source of macronutrients and micronutrients to animal feed, while also supplying several antioxidants which can increase the animals’ longevity and may lower the risk of infections.

He explained that seaweed improves animal immune status, decreases microbial load in the digestive tract, and raise beneficial nutrient content on the meat and egg produced.

Savellano noted that the seaweed initiative is in line with the three marching orders of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to the different units of the DA.

Those marching orders include increasing food production five-fold, making food more affordable to consumers, and allowing food producers to make reasonable returns on their investments, he said. (PNA)