Effects of iso-nutritive creep-feeding formulations on nutrient digestibility, growth performance, and economic returns of Madura beef calves under smallholder conditions

Context Feeding locally designed creep feeds to Madura calves presents a viable opportunity for adoption by smallholder farmers. Aim This study evaluated the effects of iso-nutritive creep-feeding formulations on feed intake, nutrient digestibility, growth performance, feed efficiency and economic returns of Madura beef calves reared under smallholder farm conditions. Methods Twenty-four calves aged of 4–5 months (average initial weight 101.08 ± 7.2 kg) were assigned to four iso-nutritive creep-feed treatments (≈18% crude protein, ≈70% total digestible nutrients) that differed only in ingredient composition. Each calf received 500 g/day of creep feed in addition to ad libitum native grass for 84 days. Data on nutrient intake, digestibility, average daily gain (ADG), feed conversion ratio (FCR) and income over feed cost (IOFC) were analysed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), with initial bodyweight as a covariate. Key results No significant (P > 0.05) differences were observed among treatments for nutrient intake, dry-matter and organic-matter digestibility, ADG, FCR, and IOFC. The ADG ranged from 0.64 to 0.71 kg/head.day, FCR from 4.25 to 4.67, and IOFC, in Indonesian rupiah (IDR) 20,934–22,688/head.day. Conclusion The results demonstrated that iso-nutritive creep feeds produced comparable biological and economic outcomes, while allowing flexibility in ingredient substitution on the basis of local feed availability. Implications This finding supports the adoption of compositionally adaptable creep-feeding strategies for sustainable beef production in tropical smallholder systems.