Pigs play an important role in the livelihoods of the Lao people in rural areas, being a part of traditions and culture for a long time. In remote communities, at least two or three pigs are raised by most households, and they have an important role as a source of income as well as household insurance. Often in remote rural areas, pigs can account for more than 50% of household income. Current subsistence pig production is mainly based on the use of low nutrient content feeds, including rice bran, maize, cassava, household waste and wild tuber plants.The objective of this study was to examine the effects of the replacement of ground maize with dried cassava and Stylo (CIAT 184) for improving smallholder pig productivity. The on-farm research was carried out with 28 households in six villages, Ban Phonexay, Ban Haosaen, Ban Phiengngae, Ban Sobhao, Ban Na-on and Ban Phiengpheuang in Sobbao district, Houaphan province, Northern Lao PDR. Ninety Lao native weaned pigs aged between 3 and 6 months with body weights ranging 3.0 and 31.0 kg were involved in the study. Using a randomized complete block design (RCBD) experiment, the pigs were divided into three treatment groups with average live weights of 9.08 ± 0.87 kg (Group 1), 11.97 ± 1.48 kg (Group 2, and 9.09 ± 0.80 kg (Group 3). Group 1 animals were fed conventional feed arranged by farmers, the feed comprising a mixture of rice bran and edible household materials. Group 2 were provided with a feed mixture comprising 50% rice bran + 20% ground maize + 30% Stylo (CIAT 184), while for Group 3 the feed was a mixture of 50% rice bran + 20% dried cassava root meal + 30% Stylo (CIAT 184). The pigs were fed ad libitum twice daily, in the morning at 07:00 h and in the evening at 17:00 h. The feeding trial was conducted over a 120- day period between August and December 2016. The relative economic gain from the different feeding treatments was assessed in terms of growth performance and live-weight gain relative to feed costs The results were analyzed using the GLM option in the program of the Statistic Analysis System (SAS) version 6.12 ANOVA software. There was a significant difference  (P ˂ 0.001) in average daily weight gain (ADG) among the treatments, with 75.03 ± 4.82 g/h/d, 245.92 ± 18.46 g/h/d and 147.56 ± 7.16 g/h/d for Group 1, Group 2 and Group 3, respectively, indicating a superior ADG response of animals in the Group 2 treatment. Although the feed conversion ratio (FCR) was lower in Group 2 when compared with Group 1, there was no significant difference between Groups 2 and 3. The mean FCR for Groups 1, 2 and 3 were 9.29±0.63, 5.43±0.25 and 6.15±0.30 (P ˂ 0.01), respectively. The feed cost per kilogram of unit live weight gain was 18,500 ± 1,250 kip/kg, 8,250 ± 380 kip/kg and 9,350 ± 450 kip/kg for Groups 1, 2 and 3, respectively (P ˂ 0.001). Supplementing the local feed (based on ground maize and dried cassava meal) with Stylo (CIAT 184) significantly reduced the feed cost per kilogram of unit live weight gain by an average 55%, and 50% for Groups 2 and 3, respectively, when compared to pigs fed conventional feed in Group 1.In conclusion, the results of the study indicate that a diet based on a mixture of rice bran, ground maize or dried cassava meal, with a supplement of Stylo (CIAT 184), can potentially improve the productivity of pigs raised by smallholder farmers in Northern Laos (and probably elsewhere in Laos) through improving feed use efficiency.

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