<![CDATA[Production and Economic Analysis of Bali Cattle Using Feed of Palm Frond During Dry Season, West Sumatera. Problems of cattle feed during dry season could be solved by additional of palm frond without adversely affected the cattle production. The aim of this research was to determine body weight gain and to conduct the economic analysis of Bali cattle which was fed palm frond during dry season. The design of the experiment was Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with four treatments and three replications in each treatment. The total of 12 Bali cattle on the age of 1,5-2 year old and the average body weight 170kg were used in this study. The treatments were R0 (grass + concentrate), R1 (grass + 3kg palm frond + concentrate), R2 (grass + 4 kg palm frond + concentrate) and R3 (grass + 5 palm frond + concentrate). Grass was given ad-libitum, while concentrate was given 1,5kg/day consisting of 40% rice brand, 14% corn, 30% palm oil meal, 7% soybean meal, 5% fish meal, 3% mineral dan 1% salt. The parameters observed were average daily gain (ADG), return over cost ratio (R/C) and net income value. The results showed that the performance of Bali cattle had significantly different (P<0,05) on average daily gain compared to other Bali cattle that was not fed palm frond. Bali cattle by R2 had average daily gain of 0.54 kg/day higher than others by R0, which had average daily gain of 0.42 kg/day. The economic analysis showed that Bali cattle by R2 had R/C of 1.39 and net income value of 3.6 times higher than those by R0 which had R/C of 1.11. Thus, it can be concluded that palm frond for Bali cattle feed could substitute grass up to 30 percent, increase farmer income and also solve the problems to find grass during dry season. Key words: Bali cattle, dry season, palm oil frond, growth, economic analysis Masalah pakan sapi di musim kemarau yang sulit diperoleh diharapkan dapat diatasi dengan pemberian pelepah sawit tanpa menyebabkan dampak buruk terhadap produktivitas ternak. Penelitian bertujuan untuk mengetahui pertambahan bobot badan dan analisa ekonomi sapi Bali yang diberi pakan pelepah sawit pada musim kemarau. Penelitian menggunakan Rancangan Acak Lengkap (RAL) terdiri dari empat perlakuan dan tiga kali ulangan. Sebanyak 12 ekor sapi Bali jantan umur 1,5-2 tahun dengan bobot badan rata-rata 170 kg digunakan dalam penelitian ini. Sapi tersebut dibagi menjadi empat kelompok dan diberikan perlakuan pakan R0 (rumput+konsentrat), R1 (rumput+3kg pelepah sawit+konsentrat), R2 (rumput+4kg pelepah sawit+konsentrat) dan R3 (rumput+5kg pelepah sawit+konsentrat). Rumput diberikan secara ad-libitum, sedangkan konsentrat sebanyak 1,5kg/hari yang merupakan campuran dari 40% dedak halus, 14% jagung halus, 30% bungkil sawit, 7% bungkil kedelai, 5% tepung ikan, 3% ultra mineral dan 1% garam. Parameter yang diukur meliputi pertambahan bobot badan harian (PBBH), return over cost ratio (R/C) dan nilai keuntungan bersih (NKB). Hasil penelitian menunjukkan pemberian pakan pelepah sawit memberikan pengaruh yang nyata (P<0,05) terhadap pertambahan bobot badan sapi Bali. Pemberian pakan pelepah sawit R2 pada sapi Bali menghasilkan PBBH 0,54 kg/hari lebih tinggi dibanding sapi Bali yang diberikan pakan R0 tanpa pelepah sawit dengan PBBH 0,42 kg/hari. Analisis ekonomi sapi Bali yang diberi pakan pelepah sawit R2 memperlihatkan nilai R/C 1,39 dan nilai keuntungan bersih 3,6 kali lebih tinggi dibandingkan pakan tanpa pelepah sawit R0 dengan nilai R/C 1,11. Berdasarkan hasil penelitian disimpulkan bahwa pemberian pelepah sawit terhadap sapi Bali mampu menggantikan rumput hingga 30% kebutuhan konsumsi bahan kering dan bisa mengatasi masalah kesulitan memperoleh rumput di musim kemarau. Kata kunci: Sapi Bali, musim kemarau, pelepah sawit, berat badan, analisis ekonomi]]>
