On Sunday March 12th, East Caribbean Feeds, manufactured and distributed by East Caribbean Group of Companies (ECGC), hosted its inaugural Farm Management town hall at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre in Barbados.
Close to 50 livestock farmers had the opportunity to learn about Livestock Management, Animal Nutrition, and On-Farm Best Management Practices from veterinarian and expert Technical Product Manager at ECGC, Dr. Tahomma Richards.
East Caribbean Feeds created this town hall session to educate livestock farmers and engage in collaborative discussions about practical and easy to implement biosecurity guidelines. She discussed the importance of dedicated farm clothing and shoes as well as constant sanitizing, and the washing of hands and feet, which are effective in limiting the transmission of harmful diseases.
Dr Richards, also a trained Zootechnician, further advised farmers on best practices related to animal feeds and water. She discussed the importance of scheduled timely feeding and the nutrition derived from feeds. She mentioned that East Caribbean Feeds boasts a variety of over 26 different types of feeds for animals such broilers, layers, pigs, ruminants including the black belly sheep, horses and rabbits. She explained that East Caribbean Feeds are nutritiously balanced to support best yields and animal health, use top quality grains and have no antibiotics, hormones, or animal by-products, therefore providing maximum nutrition for animals.
Distributor of East Caribbean Feeds Garry Corbin of Walkes Spring Feeds, (right) with Farmer receiving a bag of feeds as a reward for her participation (left).
Farmers were educated on the importance and often overlooked necessity of securing clean water supply for animals. If you wouldn’t drink the water, then it may not be good enough for your animals. She shared tips such as providing shade for the animal water supply and even adding buckets of ice to the water to keep it cool during the especially hot summer months. Animals need to keep cool and heated water does not support healthy animals.
Farmers used the opportunity to network and share ideas on the main challenges faced on their farms. They capitalized on accessing one-on-one sessions with Dr. Tahomma to field specific questions and receive answers about their animals and farms.
Dr. Tahomma Richards, Veterinarian and Expert Technical Product Manager, ECGC (right), with Farmer receiving a bag of feeds as a reward for his participation (left).
Farmers left with increased knowledge on Farm Management, brochures and well received gifts such as farm aprons, raincoats and East Caribbean Feeds courtesy of Distributor Garry and Joshua Corbin of Walkes Spring Feeds in St. Thomas.
East Caribbean Feeds will continue to host these Farm Management town hall sessions throughout this year to support the development of livestock farmers and food sustainability across the OECS and Caribbean. (PR)
