Formation and Designing of “Least-Cost Ration Formulation Application of Cattle” Using Excel VBA

Abstract

The present study is focused on the development of Excel VBA application for minimizing the cost of ration for cattle livestock, based on linear programming model. This application is designed in such a way that common dairy farmers can also use it easily. A variety of software has been developed to deal with the nutrient requirement of animals and minimization of feedstuff cost. However, existing software has not been widely used by majority of small dairy farmers due to lack of awareness, availability and basic skills required for using. This application does not require any advanced software and expertise. To operate, only Microsoft Excel should be installed. The application requires some basic information as an input like weight and age of the cattle, milk yield, milk fat, feeds available, pregnancy status of the cattle. Based on this information, it will calculate the requirement of dry matter and energy, protein, calcium, etc., and after a single click on button “SOLVE”, it will show least-cost ration along with quantity and cost of each feed. In addition, it will also show whether there is a profit or loss. The solution obtained for the livestock formulation problem of cattle in a particular region of Karnataka is validated as per ICAR standards in discussion with experts from NIANP, Bangalore, and is found to be well acceptable.