In order to determine the effect of weeds on artificial pastures, a study was conducted in central Côte d’Ivoire, on an artificial pasture of Panicum maximum C1 invaded by weeds. The flora of the pasture was determined from the floristic survey, and the degree of soiling and degradation was subsequently assessed from the weeds list and their cover. The feed ration for the cattle on this pasture was determined using the «shepherd’s collection» method. Pasture productivity was assessed by the full mowing method on plots previously protected. The results showed that the pasture studied was clean, composed of eight weed species, but very heavily degraded. The degree of degradation was 0.85. The cattle ration was composed mainly of grasses (94.5%), followed by legumes (5.4%). The specific contributions of Panicum maximum C1, a planted species, were 14.8% and 58.8%, respectively in the pasture and in the cattle diet. The species most appreciated by cattle remained Panicum maximum C1, with a selection index of 7.76. The potential forage productivity of the pasture was 5.73±0.08 tons of dry matter/hectare/year. This productivity rose to 10.35±0.11 tons of dry matter/hectare/year when the pasture was weeded and fertilised. The results obtained testify to the need to properly maintain and manage an artificial pasture.

The feeding practices and socio-economic characteristics of small ruminant farms in the periurban area of Bouaké were analyzed through a field survey of breeders. Over a period of 45 days, this survey was carried out on sheep and goat farms within a radius of around twenty km from the city center. It involved 26 goat breeders and 78 sheep breeders. The results obtained indicate that 84.6% of goat breeders are Muslims compared to 15.4% Christians and their main activity is breeding with 46% and 23% for commerce. In sheep farms, similarly, 97.4% of breeders are Muslim compared to 2.6% Christian and their main activity is dominated equally between breeding and commerce with 34 and 35% respectively. Production costs for males ready for sale vary from 17,450 FCFA to 45,245 FCFA depending on the breed and species. As for the selling price of animals, it essentially depends on the breed, age and sex, and varies from 20,000 FCFA to 600,000 FCFA. For feeding, natural pasture is the most used with 92.3% for goats and 53.8% for sheep. Goat breeders don’t practice fattening, however 41% of sheep breeders do. Breeders use crop residues for 61.5% and 97.4%, for goats and sheep respectively to compensate for the grazing deficit. Production costs for males ready for sale vary from 17,450 FCFA to 45,245 FCFA depending on the breed and species. As for the selling price of animals, it essentially depends on the breed, age and sex, and varies from 20,000 FCFA to 600,000 FCFA.

A study was carried out to evaluate the effect of cashew apple in feed on the zootechnical performance of broiler chickens in the finished phase. It involved 180 broiler chicks, of the « HUBBAR » strain, distributed in 12 experimental units according to a completely randomized device comprising 4 treatments and 3 replicates each. It is a control feed (PC0) containing maize as the main source of energy and three experimental feeds containing respectively 15 % (PC15), 30 % (PC30) and 45 % (PC45) respectively of cashew apple. At the end of the finishing phase, it was observed that the growth performances of the animals fed with the feeds PC0, PC15 and PC30 are superior to the weights of those fed with feed PC45 (p <0.05). The feed consumption and feed conversion index are identical for the PC0, PC15 and PC30 treatments. However, they increase with 45 % inclusion. The feeds PC15 and PC30 had the lowest production costs per kilogram of live weight. Concerning the characteristics of the chickens’ carcass, cashew apple powder had no effect on the carcass yields of animals fed the different types of feed (p> 0.05). In the finishing growth phase, a 30 % inclusion rate of the cashew apple powder in the feed produces chicks with comparable zootechnical performance to a ration containing exclusively maize as the main energy source.