The price of traditional sources of nutrients used in animal feed rations is increasing steeply in developed countries due to their scarcity, high demand from humans for the same food items, and expensive costs of raw materials. Thus, one of the alternative sources is coconut parts or coconut as a whole fruit. Coconut is known as the ‘tree of abundance’, ‘tree of heaven’, and ‘tree of life’ owing to its numerous uses, becoming a very important tree in tropical areas for its provision of food, employment, and business opportunities to millions of people. Coconut contains a rich profile of macro and micronutrients that vary depending on the parts and how they are used. It is frequently chosen as an alternative source of protein and fiber. Its uses as an antibacterial agent, immunomodulant, and antioxidant further increase its importance. Using coconut oil in ruminant feed helps to minimize methane gas emissions by 18–30%, and to reduce dry matter intake up to 4.2 kg/d. The aquaculture sectors also use coconut palm as an alternative source because it significantly improves the digestion, growth, lipid metabolism, health, and antioxidative responses. However, coconut is not widely used in poultry diets although it has adequate amount of protein and carbohydrate due to anti-nutritional factors such cellulose (13%), galactomannan (61%), and mannan (26%). This review considered the importance and potential of coconut usage as an alternative ingredient in feed and supplements in various livestock sectors as it has plentiful nutrients and functional qualities, simultaneously leading to reduced feed cost and enhanced production.

Carp farming is a popular aquaculture activity that provides affordable protein sources and job opportunities to many people worldwide. As carp farming intensifies, farmers face major issues such as rising feed costs and excessive antibiotic usage. Thus, there is an urgent need to explore alternative resources to ensure the sustainability of the carp farming industry. One of the most promising resources is phytobiotics that possess various properties beneficial for carp production. Furthermore, most phytobiotics are derived from agricultural waste that is abundant and cheap, but some phytobiotics are produced commercially and available in the market. The main topics of this review are highlighted sources, characteristics of phytobiotics, and the usefulness of phytobiotics in improving growth performance, feed utilization efficiency, antioxidant activity, and health of carps against diseases. Furthermore, in this review, recent methods of administration of phytobiotics such as through feeding, bathing, and intraperitoneal injection in carp farming are also discussed and summarised.

Spent coffee grounds (SCG) are the primary by-product of coffee production which still contains functional properties with high natural antioxidant components. It can be extracted using ultrasonic-assisted techniques and then integrated into baking products such as cookies. This research is aimed to measure the physicochemical and sensory acceptability of cookies incorporated with SCG extract. Extraction of SCG was done using water through ultrasonic extraction following incorporated SCG water extract into cookies. Six different formulations were developed using different amount of SCG extract (A-control 0%, B-0.27%, C-0.52%, D-0.80%, E-1.07% and F-1.33%). Physicochemical properties (antioxidant properties, colour profile, texture, moisture, sugar, fat, protein, ash, calorie and texture profile) and the sensory acceptability of SCG extract cookies was observed. Total phenolic content (TPC) was used to quantify the antioxidant content while the antioxidant activity was measured using 2,2-diphenyl-2-picrylydrazyl radical scavenging activity assay (DPPH) and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays. Results show that decreasing in lightness (L*) and yellowness (b*) with the increasing percentage of SCG extract were observed. In contrast with L* and a* value, the b* value of cookies was increased with the increasing percentage of SCG extract. Formulation E (1.07% SCG extract) showed the highest percentage in almost all proximate analysis such as 6.49±0.39 moisture, 2.11±0.22 ash, 20.42±0.74 crude fat, 8.13±0.05 crude protein and 4.37±0.04 crude fibre content. The highest amount of antioxidant content was depicted by the formulation D cookie (1.72±0.04 mg GAE/g). The best antioxidative activity was found in formulation E (7.80±0.27 DPPH inhibition and 0.02 abs by FRAP analysis). Sensory acceptance revealed that formulation E (1.33%) cookies were more accepted by the panellists. It is interesting to note that SCG can serve as one of the ingredients for cookie production that showed significant effects on the physicochemical and organoleptic properties of the final products.

The increasing demand in developing countries for alternative protein sources, coupled with the relatively high cost of importing protein, has led to the search for alternatives, particularly for novel legumes native to the tropics.Canavalia ensiformisor Jack Bean (Kacang Koro) could provide adequate protein sources for human consumption if the presence of various antinutrients can be reduced. The most cost-effective processing technique for the detoxifying method is the soaking process. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the effect on the nutritional, antinutritional and mineral content ofC. ensiformisof soaking time and fermentation. The samples were treated by soaking in 1% sodium bicarbonates (NaHCO₃) solutions for 12 h, 24 h and 36 h (at chilled temperature, 10 °C) and fermented (40 °C). The treated samples were analysed for their proximate values and antinutrient factors (hydrogen cyanide (HCN), phytic acid, tannin, saponin and oxalate content). The results showed that proximate values were not significantly affected by soaking treatment and fermentation. After 36 h of soaking in 1% of NaHCO₃solution, the HCN level inC. ensiformisand fermentation process, the HCN level to be reduced to 7.43 ± 0.76 mg/kg while phytic acid was reduced to 0.64±0.00, saponin to 1.27 ±0.01, tannins to 0.01± 0.001 and oxalate to 39.96 ± 5.85. These results suggest good prospects for substitutingC. ensiformisfor any existing protein source as the antinutrient factors could be reduced to an acceptable level. The soaking ofC. ensiformisin 1% NaHCO₃coupled with fermentation would also allow the use ofC. ensiformisin food production.

Keywords | Oil palm frond (OPF), Agricultural by-product, Pretreatments, Rumen degradability, Growth performance

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of urea molasses multi-nutrient mineral block (UMMB) and medicated urea molasses multi-nutrient mineral block (MUMB) supplemented group on milk composition and milk quality of Saanen lactating does. A 90-day feed trial was conducted at a dairy goat farm in Felda Kemahang, Tanah Merah, Kelantan, Malaysia. Twenty four (24) Saanen lactating does (average milk yield < 1 L/d) were randomly assigned to four groups with six (6) goats each. Animals fed a basal diet, which consisted of 3 kg Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum) and 1 kg commercial goat pellet as a control group. The experimental groups received equal amounts of basal diet with supplementation of UMMB and MUMB which were formulated using local agriculture by-products; and commercial mineral block (CMB), respectively. Milk samples were collected every two weeks for the analyses of milk composition, i.e., protein, fat, lactose, total solids, density, freezing point, pH, and temperature using EKOmilk analyzer. All results were analyzed using one-way ANOVA followed by Tukey’s test by SPSS software version 23. It was found that milk yield in the group supplemented with UMMB (1.52 L/d) was significantly higher (p0.05) on milk composition and total bacteria count. Meanwhile, iron milk content in goat supplemented with MUMB (1.46 mg/g) was significantly lowered (p<0.05), approaching the optimum value (0.36-0.75) compared to the control (4.08 mg/kg). In conclusion, UMMB and MUMB supplements had improved milk quality in terms of iron content and fatty acid concentration, which potentially can be utilized as feed supplements to increase the productivity of lactating goats.