American-Eurasian J. Agric. & Environ. Sci.

, 15 (4): 640-647, 2015

ISSN 1818-6769
IDOSI Publications, 2015
DOI: 10.5829/idosi.aejaes.2015.15.4.12600

A Study on Forage Sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.) Production in

Perspectives of White Revolution in Punjab, Pakistan: Issues and Future Options
1

Muhammad Aamir Iqbal, 2Bilal Ahmad, 2Muhammad Hussnain Shah and 3Kashif Ali
Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture,
Institute of Horticultural Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture,
University of Agriculture Faisalabad-38040, Pakistan
1

University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore-Pakistan

Abstract: Forage sorghum is considered to be the most heat and drought resistant summer forage with a fairly
high green forage yield. Forage sorghum is more economical to grow as compared to forage maize with fairly
high economic returns. The total area under forages in 2012 in Punjab was 1.82 million hectares with green
forage production of 38.8 million tons. The land area of Punjab under forage sorghum in 2012 was 0.588 million
hectares with production of 7.984 million tons. The average production of forage sorghum (13 t ha 1) in Punjab
province of Pakistan is much less as compared to potential of 50-70 t ha 1. Seed with low yield potential,
suboptimal plant population, drought, weeds infestation, suboptimal and unbalanced use of fertilizers, insect
pest attack and marketing problems are major constraints in forage sorghum production in Punjab. A
comprehensive breeding program to develop high yielding forage sorghum varieties and an extensive extension
program to bring modern production technology into the knowledge of farmers at their door steps is the need
of hour for sustainable milk and meat production to cater the needs of ever increasing population. The emerging
dooming water scenario and phenomenon of global warming has necessitated the introduction of forage
sorghum in irrigated tracks of Punjab and to develop modern production technology for rainfed areas. Forage
sorghum intercropped with forage legumes has the potential to provide abundant and nutritious forage to dairy
animals. Sorghum preserved as hay or silage may be fed to animals during forage scarcity periods to maintain
milk production and for this provincial agriculture department as well as livestock department should strive to
make farmers aware of fodder preservation technology to pave the way for a glorious white revolution in Punjab
through milk production according to known genetic potential of large and small ruminants.
Key words: Animal feed

Fodders and forages

Cereal forages

INTRODUCTION

Milk and meat

White revolution

happened between the fifth and twelfth centuries, but the

thirteenth to nineteenth centuries saw great advances in
forage crops. They contributed to the development of
mixed farming in the European agricultural revolution and
spread globally with the expansion of Europeans into
other continents. The mixed farming system works as
shock-absorber in the wake of crop failure as livestock are
comparatively less vulnerable to adverse climatic and
weather upheavals as well as marketing fluctuations as
compared to major and minor crops, along with
contributing 53% to Pakistans national agricultural GDP
[1]. Pakistan is endowed with 37.1 million cattle heads,
32.5 million buffaloes of precious breeds along with huge

The term forage entails the utilization of plants in

green succulent form for feeding domestic animals, while
fodders are crops that are harvested and cured as hay or
silage to feed during lean periods when there is scarcity
of green forage. The history of forage crops can be traced
back to about 1300 BC when alfalfa has been traced to
be cultivated in areas of modern Turkey. Relatively
widespread use of forage crops, however, appeared much
later, around the beginning of the Christian era, when
several species were cultivated in different continents,
mainly in the countries of Mediterranean Europe. Little

Corresponding Author: Muhammad Aamir Iqbal, Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture,

University of Agriculture Faisalabad-38040, Pakistan.

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treasure of small ruminants (28 million sheep and 68

million goat populations) with 50.9 million tons of gross
milk production annually [1]. The major feed stuffs include
residues of different crops particularly of cereals (44%)
grazing in pastures and canal banks (28%) forage and
fodder (15%) and concentrates (energy rich and protein
rich) (3%) [2]. The matter of grave concern is that
digestible protein and digestible nutrients are deficient by
33% and 24% respectively [3]. Since immemorial times,
livestock has been providing milk, food security and daily
cash income to small farmers in Pakistan and especially in
Punjab province of Pakistan. Forages are the most
palatable animal feed resource for livestock, however,
forage shortage is increasing with each passing year and
2% land area under forage crops is skipping after each
decade [4]. Pakistan witnesses two periods of forage
scarcity (June-July and November-December), during
which performance of the livestock particularly of dairy
animals is hit the hardest [5, 6]. Due to greater number of
animals of superior breeds, though Pakistan has attained
3rd position globally in terms of milk production but huge
funds are going down the drain due to the bulk imports of
dry milk in order to cater the needs of expanding
population [7]. Livestock productivity is improved if
forages in adequate quantities and with acceptable quality
tag are being fed to animals [8, 9, 10]. In Pakistan, forage
crops occupy 2.7 million hectares with a production of
53.5 M tons of green forage [11]. Average forage yield per
hectare is about 19.4 tons. Despite the fact that cattle and
buffalo breeds are known globally because of their
superior potential for milk, there is a shortage of milk and
other products which are processed from milk such as
butter and cheese. In Pakistan, per capita meat
consumption is just over 5 kg annually, while total daily
protein consumption is hovering around 45-46 g [12].
Among forage crops in Pakistan, sorghum and maize
constitute as major summer season forages, while some
forage legumes as cowpea and cluster bean are also
grown as an intercrop with sorghum and maize. Winter
season in Punjab witnesses more forage production as
compared to summer season because of more production
potential of berseem and lucerne [13]. Sorghum (Sorghum
bicolor L.) is one of the oldest cultivated cereals, having
its origin in Africa [3]. Sorghum forage is usually grown in
areas which witness extraordinarily higher temperatures
with scarce rainfall and severe water deficiency [14].
More land area is under sorghum in Punjab which is the
largest province of Pakistan in terms of population and
also has the largest and fastest growing economy in the
country compared to other provinces and administrative

units. Punjab inhabits more than 64 million heads of

Animals and forage sorghum fulfills 50% of Punjab rainfed
areas feed requirement [13]. Sorghum is becoming an
increasingly important forage crop in many regions of the
world [8]. It has a good potential to tolerate adverse
environmental conditions which makes it a suitable crop
for semi-arid areas. Its rapid growth and high biomass
production helps to overcome unfavorable environmental
conditions [15] and the short maturity period favors
successful cultivation of the crop on marginal soils with
low soil moisture in temperate, tropical and sub-tropical
climates [16]. Thus forage sorghum holds key in bringing
white revolution in Pakistan by bridging the gap between
availability and requirement of forages for milch animals.
This forage crop holds the potential to be cultivated in all
tracts of Punjab despite the extreme temperatures and
severe deficiency of water. The present study has
provided an assessment of area, forage yield and
constraints of forage sorghum cultivation in Punjab
province of Pakistan.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
In this case study, the data related to the cultivated
area of Punjab under summer as well as winter forages,
green forage production and yield of forage sorghum were
collected and adapted from Economic survey of Pakistan
[1], Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) [12], Punjab
development statistics [13] and different related published
and unpublished scientific articles. Interviews with
farmers, dairy farmers, forages seed wholesalers and
retailers were conducted purposively during April 2012 to
July 2013 in Pakpattan, Okara, Sahiwal and Faisalabad
districts.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
Area, Production and Green Forage Yield of Summer and
Winter Forages: Forages to feed domestic milch animals
are grown by farmers throughout the Punjab province.
The highest land area of Punjab under forages was
recorded during 2006, when an area of 2.04 million
hectares (winter + summer) was under forage crops
(Fig. 1). This area was decreased to 1.87 hectares in 2011
and 1.85 million hectares during 2012. This shows an
immense shifting from forage crops to other crops by
farmers from 2005 to 2012. Total green forage production
in Punjab during 2005 was 43.3 million tons and it
increased to 45 million tons during 2006. Total green
forage production in Punjab during 2012 was reduced to
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Fig. 1: Total land area (million hectares) of Punjab under forage crops [13]

Fig. 2: Total green forage production (million tons) in Punjab [13]

Fig. 3: Punjab land area (million hectares) under summer forages as sorghum, maize and various forage legumes [13]

Fig. 4: Summer forages production (million tons) in Punjab [13]

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Fig. 5: Punjab land area (million hectares) under winter forages such as oat, berseem, lucern [13]

Fig. 6: Winter forages production (million tons) in Punjab [13]

38 million tons (Fig. 2) and it was due to reduction in area
under forages and ultimately there was much less green
forage production in Punjab during 2012 as compared to
2006. The total area under summer forages in Punjab in
2005 was 0.93 million hectares (Fig. 3), which decreased to
0.90 million hectares in 2012. The largest area under
summer forages in Punjab was recorded during 2006 when
there were more than 1 million hectares under summer
forages such as sorghum, maize and various forage
legumes. The highest green forage production of summer
forages was recorded during same year and it was 12.7
million tons and it was decreased to 11.7 million tons
during 2012 (Fig. 4). A variety of winter forages such as
oat, maize, berseem, lucern etc. are grown in Punjab to
sustain livestock production. The highest area of Punjab
under winter forages was witnessed during 2006 that was
1.4 million hectares and it decreased to 0.91 million
hectares in 2012 (Fig. 5). The reduction in area under
winter forages from 2005 to 2012 was about 0.120 million
hectares which speaks volume of immense shifting of
farmers to other crops. Total production of winter forages
in 2005 was 31.5 million tons and it was decreased to 29.8
million tons in 2012 (Fig. 6) and it was due to immense

reduction in area under winter forage crops and ultimately

much reduction in winter forages production was
recorded.
Area, Production and Green Forage Yield of Forage
Sorghum: Generally forage sorghum is being grown
throughout the Punjab province but significantly higher
area under forage sorghum and green forage yield is
recorded in irrigated plains of Punjab rather than arid
areas of Punjab. The maximum area under forage sorghum
(0.62 million hectares) in Punjab was recorded during 2006
and it was decreased to 0.60 million hectares in 2012
(Fig.7), while the forage sorghum production of 0.8 million
tons was recorded during 2005 and it was increased to
0.81 million tons during 2012 (Fig. 8). The increased
production of forage sorghum despite reduction in land
area under forage sorghum was probably due to more
advanced production technology and the use of forage
sorghum varieties with more forage potential. As
Figure 9 showed that sorghum green forage yield in
2005 was 13.04 t ha 1 and it was increased to 13.58 t ha 1
despite the fact that area under forage crops is decreasing
with each passing year.
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Fig. 7: Area (million hectares) under forage sorghum in Punjab [13]

Fig. 8: Forage sorghum production (million tons) in Punjab [13]

Fig. 9: Forage sorghum green forage yield (tons hectare 1) in Punjab [13]
Economics of Forage Sorghum and Maize Production:
Forage sorghum is more economical than forage maize
because its seed is much cheaper than that of maize and
it requires less fertilizers as well as irrigation. The net
income given by forage sorghum is higher (Rs.7500) as
compared to forage maize (Table 1) and this is due to fact
that there is less expenditure incurred on forage sorghum
as compared to forage maize. Forage maize seed is much

costlier in comparison with forage sorghum seed. Forage

maize requires more fertilizers particularly urea while
forage sorghum has the potential to give a reasonably
high green forage yield with fewer use of fertilizers.
Forage sorghum requires less number of irrigations than
forage maize. Forage sorghum has more water use
efficiency than forage maize because it allows
comparatively less transpiration due to the presence of
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Table 1: Economics of growing forage sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.) and maize (Zea maize L.) on per hectare basis in Punjab (Pak. Rupee)
Items

Forage Sorghum

Forage Maize

Land Preparation
Seed
Fertilizers
Irrigations
Harvesting & Transport
Total Expenditures
Green Forage Yield (t ha 1)
Gross Earning
Net Earning

1200
50100 = 5000
4200+3200=7400 (Urea 2 bags + DAP 1 bag)
12004= 4800
3000
21400
14
314000= 42000
42000-21400=20600

1200
80100 = 8000
6300+3200=9500 (Urea 3 bags + DAP 1 bag)
12006= 7200
3000
28900
14
314000= 42000
42000-28900=13100

thick cuticle on leaves as well as stem. Forage sorghum

has the potential to sustain drought periods that makes it
one of the most suitable option to be grown in irrigated
tracts of Punjab on wide scale in the wake of emerging
dooming water scenario. This is despite the fact that
current production of forage sorghum in Punjab province
of Pakistan is much less than the potential of forage
sorghum, that is in the range of 50 to 70 t ha 1.

one or more steps involved in conventional breeding

methods. These techniques save time and energy required
for conventional methods. Genetic mapping and gene
tagging in forage species have not been attempted much.
Our markets including Sahiwal, Okara and Faisalabad are
infested with Indian verities of forage sorghum that have
not been thoroughly investigated for their response to
local soil and climatic conditions and their rates are much
high in the range of Rs. 50-70 and give low yield as
compared to local verities such as Hegari, JS-88 and
JS-263. Natural constraints such as drought in arid areas
as well as in irrigated plains of Punjab have hindered
forage production. Poor plant stand of forage sorghum
reduces green forage yield to a great extent and ultimately
results in loss of precious soil as well as environmental
resources. The water availability in Pakistan at the time of
partition in 1947 was 5600 m3 person 1 year 1 which has
decreased to about 1066 m3 person 1 year 1 in 2012 [18].
So irrigation water shortage and its high price have forced
the farmers to shift to other cash crops and let their
livestock to feed on grazing alongside canal banks and
already overused pastures. The extension services of
Punjab agriculture department are directed and focused
on the major crops such as wheat, rice, cotton and
sugarcane and farmers are not being trained about the
latest production technology and techniques of growing
forages. The major disease that inflicts the forage
sorghum in Punjab is red leaf spot which reduces the
green forage yield as well as quality of forage. The
shoot-fly and borer also attack the crop near heading
stage and cause a serious loss the sorghum forage yield
and quality. The lower number of animals also forces the
farmers to purchase forage and opt to shift to cash crops.
The large dairy farmers tend to grow forages but not small
farmers having one or two heads. More competition with
staple crops particularly with rice makes the forage
sorghum out of competition in irrigated plains of Punjab,
but in arid region of Punjab, farmers tend to grow forage
sorghum and there is a sharp decrease in area under

Forage Sorghum Seed Production and Sites of

Production: The availability of quality seed is one of the
major factors which ensures successful cultivation and
adoption of any crop in any region. There is a severe
dearth of improved seed of forage sorghum for rainfed as
well as irrigated tracts of Punjab [17]. The very reason is
the least priority that has been conferred on forages by
researchers and multinational seed companies. The
vacuum created due to non-availability of certified forage
sorghum seed, imported seed with unknown genetics has
manifested local markets. Total forage sorghum seed
production in Pakistan is about 7000 tons year 1 which is
much less than the requirement. Main areas of forage
sorghum seed production in Punjab are Sahiwal, D.G.
Khan and Bhaker.
Constraints of Forage Sorghum Production in Punjab:
The matter of fact is that there is a severe dearth of forage
sorghum quality seed because there is no wide scale
genetic program on forage sorghum and neither has it
seemed to be the priority of researchers. The improvement
of forage crops through biotechnological approach has
started in late eighties has made remarkable headway at
the global level. The various biotechnological tools
include molecular techniques for understanding the
genetic structure of the plants, inserting foreign genes
directly into the plant genome, in-vitro regeneration of
plants from any plant part. A number of techniques such
as embryo rescue, micro-propagation androgenic haploid
plant production and creation of novel variations help at
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sorghum from production to marketing is drastically
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Future Strategies and Research Trends in Perspectives

of White Revolution: The need of hour is to develop a
comprehensive breeding program to develop forage
sorghum varieties having fairly high potential for green
forage yield and well suited to climatic and soil conditions
for better utilization of soil and environmental resources.
It is worth mentioning that future of white revolution in
terms of milk production in Pakistan is closely and tightly
bound with increased forage sorghum production in
Punjab province of Pakistan, particularly in the wake
current and emerging water scenario where irrigation
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good and sustainable forage supplies throughout the
yeas amount to a heft challenge to agronomists and
researchers to cater the milk and meet demands of
skyrocketing population.
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