| Summary: | An experiment was conducted to determine the effect of duration of storage and method of storage on the quality of complete calf starter pellet. Pelleting was done in order to facilitate the handling, storage, transport, and to improve the efficiency and palatability of feed. The calf starter ingredients were yellow corn (50%), soybean meal (24.5%), ricebran (25%), and premix (0.5%). The calf starter (65%) was them mixed with chopped corn straw (35%), and pelleted using expired milk powder as pellet binder to form a complete calf starter diet. Samples of the complete diet were stored in sealed polyethylene plastic bags, fibre sacks or plastic silos, and kept for eiher 0, 2 or 4 months before they were opened and analysed for proximate chemical composition, dry matter (DM), organic matter (OM), crude protein, ether extract, crude fibre and in vitro digestibility. The data were analyzed using a two-way ANOVA based on a 3� 3 factorial design. Statistical analysis of the data showed significant differences only for duration of storage effect (p<.05). The DM of complete calf pellet on 0, 2, 4 months of storage were 87.94%, 89.20%, 89.36%. The DM and OM digestibilities of complete calf pellet at 0, 2, 4 months of storage were 68.50%, 66.31%, 66.94% and 69.09%, 66.67%, 66.39%, respectively. The proximate composition, DM and OM digestibility were not significantly different (p>.05) on main effect of storage method . It can be concluded that the chemical composition of complete calf pellet increased from 0 to 2 months of storage, while the
digestibility of complete calf pellet decreased. The methods of storage (polyethylene plastic bag, fibre sacks, and plastic silo) had no effect on the quality of the complete calf pellet for at least 4 months storage.
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