Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Agricultural Excellence Award promotes modern agricultural practices

ABU DHABI, 4th January, 2026 (WAM) — The Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Agricultural Excellence Award organised a scientific seminar yesterday evening at its pavilion within the Sheikh Zayed Festival in Abu Dhabi, titled “Basics of Livestock Nutrition, Feed Quality, and their Impact on Animal Production”.

The initiative forms part of a series of awareness and guidance programmes implemented by the Award to promote modern agricultural practices and support breeders in adopting scientific methods and advanced technologies. These efforts aim to enhance production efficiency, rationalise resource use and strengthen sustainability.

The Award stressed that building breeders’ knowledge capacity is a core pillar in developing the livestock sector and achieving sustainable food security, in line with the UAE’s national strategies to boost local production and ensure the sustainability of food supply chains.

The seminar highlighted the “Feed Market” for livestock breeders, launched by the Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority (ADAFSA) in 2023, which stands as the first and largest feed market in the Middle East, serving approximately 40,000 breeders nationwide and meeting the needs of over 5 million head of livestock.

Discussions also addressed the market’s role in supporting the UAE’s feed trade, which totals around 3 million tonnes annually, with a value exceeding AED4.5 billion.

Presented by Dr. Ahmed El-Issawi, Animal Production Specialist at ADAFSA, the seminar examined the direct impact of proper nutrition on increasing meat and milk productivity and improving the quality of local products, thereby enhancing consumer confidence and supporting relative self-sufficiency.

The sessions reviewed the latest scientific concepts related to ruminant nutrition, emphasising that a balanced diet is essential to achieving optimal growth rates and strengthening animal immunity against diseases.

The presentation also outlined different types of feed, highlighting the importance of diversifying nutritional sources to ensure economic viability for breeders.

The seminar further outlined strict feed quality standards, including physical, chemical and biological assessments such as protein, energy and fibre levels, as well as moisture content, while ensuring feeds are free from toxins and contaminants.

It also noted that the calculated use of concentrated feeds rich in protein and energy plays a significant role in increasing fertility rates, supporting normal foetal growth and raising birth weights, ultimately enhancing productivity in later stages.