Hydroponic green forage an alternative for feeding animals of zootechnical interest on a small and medium scale

The cost of feeding represents the largest item in the production of animals of zootechnical interest, in this sense, recent research has focused on the use of alternative foods that can compete with conventional raw materials in quantity, quality and price. The objective of this work was to analyze scientific information on the current situation of the use of hydroponic green forage for feeding animals of zootechnical interest on a small and medium scale. The present investigation was exploratory and was based on an updated bibliographic compilation. The introduction of hydroponic green forage of sorghum, corn, wheat and barley in the diet of pigs, poultry, rabbits, guinea pigs, allows to reduce the cost of feeding, it is easy to produce, it is grown all year round, it requires little space, it presents high nutrient utilization coefficients. In addition, it allows to achieve a significant increase in the increase of weight, consumption, weight gain and feed conversion of the animals. The production of hydroponic green forage is an easy technique to apply and does not require a high initial investment for its implementation in the feeding systems for animals in small and medium scale farms.