HOME GROWN FODDERS 201 



4 Ib. of mixed linseed and cotton cakes, costing 

 last autumn 4^., could be replaced by 2 Ib. of 

 ground-nut cake costing 2^., and n Ib. of swede 

 turnips costing about \d. This resulted in a saving 

 of if*/, per day on each bullock, which would in- 

 crease as the ration was raised and fattening pro- 

 ceeded. The total saving would have amounted 

 to about 25^. on each bullock fattened. 



If the writer has succeded in his object, it will 

 be realized that in many branches of the science 

 of nutrition our knowledge is sufficiently exact to 

 enable us to assist the farmer in feeding his animals 

 with benefit to his pocket and ultimate profit to 

 the nation. 



But in our knowledge there are many gaps, 

 some of which the staff of the Institute were at- 

 tempting to fill when the war interrupted their 

 work. Perhaps the most serious need at the pre- 

 sent time, especially from the point of view of 

 immediate utility, is fuller information as to the 

 composition and digestibility of British fodders. 

 This need is most felt in the case of coarse fodders 

 such as hay and straw whose composition and 

 digestibility vary greatly according to variety, cul- 

 tivation and harvesting. It is obviously most 

 unsatisfactory that farmers should have to rely on 

 German figures for information as to such materials. 

 To provide the necessary information a routine sur- 

 vey of British fodders is required, and such a survey 

 is in progress in Cambridge. A survey of the com- 



