Elephant grass is one of the most important fodder grasses for ruminants in the tropics, largely due to its high productivity. It can provide productive pasture, fresh cut-and-carry forage, hay or silage for cattle, buffaloes, sheep and goats. It is grazed, used for cut-and-carry, dried or ensiled (Moran, 2011). The high variability among cultivars may result in many differences regarding intake and animal performance (Islam et al., 2003). There is a trade-off between nutritive value, which decreases with the maturity of the plant, and the forage production, which depends on rainfall (Machado et al., 2008). Its feeding value declines with maturity, and young forage may also be limited by high moisture. Supplementation is commonly required for high milk yield or rapid growth. Cultivar, harvest age, forage form and the balance of the complete diet must therefore be considered together.
Palatability
Elephant grass is extremely palatable when young and leafy (Cook et al., 2005). However, it becomes coarse and less palatable when it matures (Cook et al., 2005; Moran, 2011). In a trial in Nigeria, fresh elephant grass cut during the dry season was less palatable to West African dairy goats than Guinea grass (Megathyrsus maximus), Gliricidia sepium, Leucaena leucocephala or Terminalia catappa (Babayemi, 2007). Goats were also found to refuse elephant grass in a free-grazing trial (Babayemi, 2007). Animals tend to select the most palatable and nutritive parts so that differences in quality are less important in the actual intake than in the offered feed, as was shown in a trial in Venezuela with sheep fed ad libitum elephant grass cut at different stages (Butterworth, 1965). For that reason, fresh elephant grass is often chopped to prevent animals from selecting the best parts (Moran, 2011).
Digestibility and intake
Elephant grass is rather low in energy and protein, due to its high cell wall content (Artus-Poliakoff et al., 1991; Krishnamoorthy et al., 1995). Elephant grass is sensitive to climatic conditions, maturity and regrowth age: crude protein declines and fibre increases, while in situ DM and cell wall degradability and in vivo digestibility decrease (Butterworth, 1965; Kaitho et al., 1998; Sarwar et al., 1999a; Sarwar et al., 1999b). Young elephant grass generally has a higher nutritive value than mature material (Butterworth, 1965; Kaitho et al., 1998; Sarwar et al., 1999a; Sarwar et al., 1999b). However, because its cell wall content does not increase with age as fast as in other tropical forages, such as kikuyu (Pennisetum clandestinum) and pangola grass (Digitaria eriantha), elephant grass retains a given level of digestibility for a longer period (Orodho, 2006). In Venezuela, OM digestibility measured on sheep ranged from 65% at 30 days of regrowth to 60% at 70 days (Butterworth, 1965). In Brazil, DM intake and OM digestibility measured in steers linearly decreased with days of regrowth: OM digestibility varied from 75% at 33 days to 56% at 93 days. The authors recommended using of elephant grass between 30 and 35 days of regrowth (Machado et al., 2008).
A comparison of grass species in Brazil found that elephant grass has an in vitro DM digestibility similar to signal grass (Brachiaria decumbens), but higher than Guinea grass (Megathyrsus maximus) with a lower insoluble potentially degradable fraction and a higher degradation rate for DM, crude protein and cell wall (Benedetti et al., 2008). Elephant grass harvested in Central Brazil during the dry season after 100 days of growth had a better nutritive value (gas production) than Bermuda grass (Cynodon dactylon), giant star grass (Cynodon plectostachyus) and koronivia grass (Brachiaria humidicola) due to its lower cell wall and lignin contents, and higher N content (Nogueira Filho et al., 2000).
When elephant grass is very young, its high water content might decrease voluntary intake due to a fill effect caused by water intake (Soares et al., 2009). Some results suggest that, at restricted level of intake, maturity can result in an increase of metabolizable energy available in the gastrointestinal tract (Kozloski et al., 2003). The duration of rumination and the transit time of feeds increased markedly with older grass, resulting in an increased digestive efficiency (Butterworth, 1965). In Pakistan, the use of N fertilizer increased the protein concentration of the elephant grass but could not reverse the adverse effects of maturity on nutrient digestibility in buffaloes (Sarwar et al., 1999a; Sarwar et al., 1999b).
Chopping is a common method for improving the overall value of the crop (Moran, 2011; see Forage management). Further processing with a roller mill may increase forage intake due to the higher rate of rumen digestion of the fibrous material through a greater cell wall surface area available for digestion by rumen microbes. Increasing forage intakes will reduce total feed costs, and improve feed efficiency and hence farm profits (Moran, 2011).
Fresh forage
Dairy cattle
Elephant grass is a popular forage in smallholder dairy farms in the tropics (Moran, 2011). It is often used for cut-and-carry as it can be easily harvested by hand for feeding to the stalled animals (Moran, 2011). In Kenya, it was suggested that elephant grass should be fed to dairy cows when it reaches a height of 55-60 cm (7-8 weeks) and 130-140 cm (9-10 weeks) in the medium and high rainfall areas (Muia et al., 1999). However, its low DM and high fibre content, as well as the physical nature of the crop, reduces the utilisation of freshly harvested elephant grass (Moran, 2011). As a sole feed or when supplemented only with leucaena, elephant grass will only support milk yields of 7 to 8 litres/cow/day (Muia et al., 2000b). Grass height (1 m vs. 1.5 m, i.e 4 to 6 weeks vs. more than 6 weeks) significantly affected daily DM intake (9.3 and 6.8 kg), total daily DM intake (10.5 and 7.9 kg), daily live-weight losses (165 and 490 g) and daily milk yield (8.6 and 6.9 kg/d, respectively) by cows fed ad libitum for 14 weeks from week 3 of lactation (Muinga et al., 1992).
A basal diet of elephant grass generally requires supplementation with a legume forage, an energy source or suitable by-products to achieve adequate dairy performance (Muinga et al., 1992; Muinga et al., 1995; Muia et al., 2000a; Muia et al., 2001; Shem et al., 2003). In a small grazing experiment, unsupplemented cows grazing Pioneiro elephant grass produced milk with a favourable fatty-acid profile. The 120-cm pre-grazing height with 50% removal proposed by the authors is study-specific because intake and milk-yield responses were not established (Dias et al., 2019).
Table 2. Effect of supplementation on performance of dairy cattle fed a basal diet of elephant grass
| Country |
Animals |
Diet |
Results |
Reference |
| Brazil |
Holstein and crossbred (Holstein × Jersey) mid-lactation cows,
20 kg/d |
Elephant grass pasture + concentrate (8.7% protein) |
Met protein requirements, highest efficiency of nitrogen utilisation. |
Danes et al., 2013 |
| Brazil |
Lactating Holstein × Zebu cows |
Elephant grass pasture + chopped sugarcane with 1% urea |
Minimized the effects of the low pasture intake during the dry season. |
Lopes et al., 2004 |
| Kenya |
Mid-lactation Jersey cows |
Elephant grass pasture + 3 kg maize bran + 8 kg fresh Clitoria ternatea or Mucuna pruriens or Gliricidia sepium |
Similar dairy performance for all legumes. |
Juma et al., 2006. |
| Kenya |
Ayrshire/Brown Swiss × Sahiwal cows |
Elephant grass ad libitum + 0, 4 or 8 kg fresh Leucaena leucocephala |
Increased daily DM intake, reduced daily liveweight loss and increased daily milk yield (7.3, 7.7 and 8.3 kg, respectively). |
Muinga et al., 1992 |
| Kenya |
Ayrshire/Brown Swiss × Sahiwal cows |
Elephant grass ad libitum + 1 or 2 kg leucaena or 2 kg leucaeana + 1 kg maize bran |
Supplementation with maize bran and leucaena increased DM intake and allowed a higher milk yield than elephant grass alone or supplemented with leucaena. Maize bran increased energy utilization. |
Muinga et al., 1995 |
| Kenya |
Dutch Friesian cows |
Mature elephant grass ad libitum + 3.65 kg DM sunflower meal or sun-dried poultry litter |
Increased milk production but cows fed 2 months or 15 weeks elephant grass lost weight. Supplementation with sun-dried poultry litter is suitable for low to medium producing cows whereas supplementation with sunflower meal is to be preferred for high production. |
Muia et al., 2000a; Muia et al., 2001 |
| Tanzania |
Crossbred dairy cows (Bos taurus x Bos indicus) 400 kg,
9 kg/d milk |
Elephant grass ad libitum + Gliricidia sepium + cottonseed meal |
1.6 kg/d of cottonseed meal gave the highest milk yield but the best economic return was obtained with 0.5 kg/d DM cottonseed meal and 1.3 kg/d DM Gliricidia. |
Shem et al., 2003. |
| Brazil |
Lactating cows in a small grazing study |
Pioneiro elephant grass pasture; 120-cm pre-grazing height and 50% removal |
Milk had a favourable fatty-acid profile; intake and milk-yield responses were not measured. |
Dias et al., 2019 |
| Ethiopia |
8 lactating Fogera cows |
TMR with 70% elephant grass-grass hay and 30% concentrate vs. natural-pasture hay at the same ratio |
elephant grass hay increased DMI from 6.21 to 8.10 kg/day and increased milk yield by 52.9%. |
Mekuriaw et al., 2020 |
| El Salvador |
18 lactating Holstein cows |
Diet DM: 30% elephant grass silage + 10% maize silage vs. 40% maize silage; 8% fresh elephant grass common to both diets |
elephant grass substitution increased DMI and microbial protein synthesis while maintaining milk yield and composition. |
Corea-Guillen et al., 2025 |
Growing cattle
Elephant grass forage is able to support high animal production in tropical environments. In Hawaii, live-weight gains as high as 549 kg/ha were obtained with beef cattle grazing mature elephant grass (FAO, 2015). Live-weight gains of 1 kg/hd/day during the growing season and 480 kg/ha/yr are achievable (Cook et al., 2005). Supplementation improved performance particularly when growing cattle received mature elephant grass (Kaitho et al., 1998; Kariuki et al., 1999b; Neumann et al., 2005). In Kenya, elephant grass, Rhodes grass and brachiaria grass supported similar live-weight gain in steers and methane yield per unit intake, while the greater forage yield of elephant grass increased animal output per unit land (Korir et al., 2023). In Brazil, limited daily access to forage peanut increased intake and live-weight gain of steers grazing dwarf elephant grass without significantly increasing methane yield per unit intake .(Andrade et al., 2016).
Table 3. Effect of supplementation on growth performance of growing cattle fed a basal diet of elephant grass:
| Country |
Animals |
Diet |
Results |
Reference |
| Kenya |
Growing Friesian heifers |
Fresh elephant grass (0.5 m, 6 weeks growth) ad libitum |
Average daily gain 0.5 kg/d, similar to that obtained with fresh sweet potato vines, but lower than with alfalfa hay (0.68 kg/d). |
Kariuki et al., 1998 |
| Kenya |
Growing Friesian and Sahiwal heifers |
Fresh elephant grass (0.5 m, 6 weeks growth) ad libitum alone or with fresh Desmodium intortum (intercropped) or with Desmodium hay or alfalfa hay |
Average daily gains were 0.41, 0.45, 0.52 and 0.42 kg/d respectively but the diet with intercropped Desmodium gave the best economic returns. |
Kariuki et al., 1999a; Snijders et al., 2011 |
| Kenya |
Growing Friesian and Sahiwal heifers |
Fresh elephant grass (6 or 12 weeks growth) ad libitum alone or with alfalfa hay (1.5-3.5 kg) |
Supplementation increased DM intake and average daily gain, from 0.32 kg/d to 0.65 kg/d in the case of 12-week grass. |
Kariuki et al., 1999b |
| Kenya |
Growing Friesian heifers |
Fresh young elephant grass (7 weeks growth) ad libitum alone or old elephant grass (16 weeks) + 25% fresh Desmodium intortum (intercropped), Calliandra calothyrsus or Sesbania sesban |
Average daily gain of 1.0 kg/d with young elephant grass. Old elephant grass supplemented with Desmodium, Calliandra and Sesbania allowed adequate daily gains of 0.64, 0.73 and 0.61 kg/d respectively. |
Kaitho et al., 1998 |
| Kenya |
Growing Friesian steers |
Fresh elephant grass (8 weeks growth) ad libitum alone or + 10-30% (DM) of fresh Desmodium intortum or sweet potato vines |
Supplementation increased OM and protein intake, DM degradation and rumen fermentable OM. |
Kariuki et al., 2001 |
| Brazil |
Charolais, Nellore and crossbreed steers and heifer calves |
Elephant grass pasture + concentrate at 0.5, 0.75, 1.0 and 1.25% of body weight |
Liveweight gain increased with the level of supplementation from 0.56 to 0.85 kg/d. |
Neumann et al., 2005 |
| Brazil |
12 Charolais steers |
BRS Kurumi pasture alone or with 5 h/day access to forage peanut |
Forage-peanut access increased DMI from 6.7 to 7.8 kg/day and ADG from 0.70 to 0.97 kg/day; methane yield per unit DMI was unchanged. |
Andrade et al., 2016 |
| Thailand |
8 Thai native beef bulls |
Dwarf elephant grass hay vs. silage offered ad libitum with the same concentrate allowance |
Hay increased DMI and apparent DM digestibility; no growth endpoint was measured. |
Mapato et al., 2018 |
| Mexico |
5 rumen-cannulated crossbred heifers |
Low-quality elephant grass progressively replaced by 0-80% Leucaena foliage in diet DM |
Methane production declined as Leucaena increased, but high replacement also reduced digestibility. |
Piñeiro-Vázquez et al., 2018 |
| Kenya |
18 yearling Boran steers |
Sole-grass diets of elephant grass cv. Kakamega 1, Rhodes grass or a Brachiaria hybrid |
DMI, ADG and methane yield were similar; greater elephant grass biomass increased animal output per unit land. |
Korir et al., 2023 |
| South Africa |
24 Sussex steers |
Feedlot TMR containing 0, 300 or 600 g/kg elephant grass replacing weeping lovegrass |
The 300 g/kg diet maintained performance; 600 g/kg reduced intake, growth and carcass weight. |
Rabatseta et al., 2024 |
Sheep and goats
Sheep and goats raised for meat or milk can be fed fresh elephant grass, usually in zero-grazing systems (Brown et al., 1988; Chandra et al., 2012). Supplementation with protein-rich foliage or energy sources improved growth, nitrogen use or dairy adequacy in several trials (Van Eys et al., 1987; Johnson et al., 1989; Mpairwe et al., 2002; Kahindi et al., 2007). The following table summarises trials carried out with or without supplementation. In forage-only cut-and-carry diets, the dwarf cultivars Mott and Taiwan A-146 2.37 supported greater intake and live-weight gain than the tall cultivars Elephant B and IRI-381. Another genotype comparison showed that the most digestible material did not provide the greatest digestible DM intake because voluntary intake was low (Silva et al., 2021a; Souza et al., 2017). Fresh CT-115 at 30% of diet DM increased intake but reduced apparent digestibility without significantly affecting growth, slaughter weight or carcass yield in lambs (Escalante et al., 2026).
Table 4. Performance of small ruminants fed a basal diet of elephant grass with or without supplementation:
| Country |
Animals |
Diet |
Results |
Reference |
| Indonesia |
Javanese Thin-tail lambs and crossbred kids |
Elephant grass ad libitum + up to 50% (DM) cassava-urea |
Maximal average daily gain, feed efficiency and carcass weight at 30% cassava for sheep and 40% for goats. |
Van Eys et al., 1987 |
| Indonesia |
Javanese Thin-tail lambs and Kacang kids |
Elephant grass + tree legume foliage or wilted cassava leaves |
Increased average daily gain up to 50 g/d for lambs and 20 g/d for kids. Faster gains were obtained with higher intakes of tree legume foliage, or with combinations of higher-energy supplements such as rice bran, cassava meal and molasses. |
Johnson et al., 1989 |
| Mexico |
Pelibuey male lambs |
Elephant grass ad libitum alone + 20 or 30% (DM) duckweeds (Lemna sp. and Spirodela sp.) |
Improved nutrient digestibility, nitrogen retention and rumen ammonia concentration. |
Zetina-Cordoba et al., 2013 |
| India |
Sikkim goats (meat) |
Elephant grass ad libitum |
Elephant grass fed alone could support the energy requirements of meat goats at maintenance. |
Chandra et al., 2012 |
| Kenya |
Kenya Dual-Purpose male goats |
Elephant grass + pasture grass + Neonotonia wightii or Leucaena leucocephala (30% requirement) |
Increased average daily gain, particularly with leucaena. |
Njarui et al., 2003 |
| Uganda |
3-4 months kids |
Elephant grass ad libitum + 300 g of either gliricidia or gliricidia with leucaena or gliricidia + leucaena + maize bran |
Increased average daily gain. |
Mpairwe et al., 2002 |
| Kenya |
6 months old East African goats |
Elephant grass ad libitum + sun dried leaves of Pithecellobium dulce (22.5 g DM/kg LW0.75) |
Increased DM intake, OM digestibility, N retention and average daily gain. |
Kahindi et al., 2007 |
| Malaysia |
Growing Boer x local female goats |
Elephant grass ad libitum + molasses, palm kernel meal and soybean waste or + commercial concentrate (1% liveweight) |
Higher growth performance with palm kernel supplementation than with commercial concentrate. |
Rahman et al., 2013 |
| Kenya |
Lactating Toggenburg dairy goats |
Elephant grass (7 weeks growth) ad libitum |
Elephant grass fed alone could support the energy requirements of dry and pregnant goats, but not of lactating goats even if they are able to choose the most nutritive parts. |
Brown et al., 1988 |
| Brazil |
24 young male sheep |
Fresh dwarf Mott and Taiwan A-146 2.37 vs. tall Elephant B and IRI-381 as sole forage |
Dwarf cultivars increased DMI and supported gains of 69.0-72.6 g/day; sheep on tall cultivars lost weight. |
Silva et al., 2021a |
| Brazil |
20 Santa Inês sheep |
Four elephant grass genotypes harvested after 55 days and fed as sole fresh forage |
The genotype with the highest DM digestibility had the lowest intake and digestible DM intake. |
Souza et al., 2017 |
| Mexico |
36 lambs |
Concentrate-only diet vs. diets containing 30% fresh CT-115, Maralfalfa or Mombasa grass on a DM basis |
CT-115 increased DMI but reduced digestibility; growth and carcass yield were not significantly affected. |
Escalante et al., 2026 |
| Ghana |
20 Djallonké ewes |
Elephant grass supplemented with Oxytenanthera abyssinica or Bambusa balcooa leaves |
Oxytenanthera supported greater intake and ADG than Bambusa; there was no unsupplemented treatment. |
Antwi et al., 2023 |
| Brazil |
8 cannulated adult wethers |
BRS Kurumi hay combined with 0, 33, 66 or 100% pinto-peanut hay in forage DM |
Legume inclusion increased OM and N intake; 33% increased digestible OM intake, but higher inclusion reduced OM digestibility. |
Dall-Orsoletta et al., 2017 |
| Brazil |
24 male kids |
Spineless-cactus diets containing 35% elephant grass hay vs. sugarcane bagasse |
Growth was similar; elephant grass hay reduced apparent digestibility but increased carcass weight and yield. |
Campelo-Lima et al., 2022 |
| Brazil |
24 crossbred male lambs |
Mott, IRI-381 or Elephant B silage as sole roughage at about 50% of diet DM |
Intake, slaughter weight, carcass yield and meat quality did not differ among cultivar silages. |
Soares et al., 2023 |
| Colombia |
10 lambs |
Sole elephant grass silage vs. 67:33 elephant grass:Tithonia diversifolia mixed silage |
The mixed silage increased intake, gain and carcass weight; lambs receiving sole low-protein silage lost weight. |
Huertas-González et al., 2023 |
| Thailand |
9 lactating Thai-native × Saanen goats |
Maize silage vs. conventional or anthocyanin-rich elephant grass silage |
elephant grass silages reduced DMI but maintained milk yield; antioxidant responses varied with sampling day. |
Chaokaur et al., 2024 |
| Thailand |
18 Saanen-crossbred goats |
Pakchong 1 silage replaced by 0, 50 or 100% purple elephant grass silage in TMR diets |
Milk yield was maintained; full replacement reduced somatic-cell count and changed antioxidant indicators. |
Onjai-uea et al., 2024 |
Hay
Elephant grass can be used as hay, though this is less common than feeding it fresh (Mannetje, 1992; FAO, 2015).
Dairy cattle
In Ethiopia, a TMR containing 70% elephant grass hay increased intake, apparent digestibility and milk yield relative to a TMR containing natural pasture hay at the same roughage-to-concentrate ratio (Mekuriaw et al., 2020).
Buffaloes
In Egypt, lactating buffaloes received elephant grass hay replacing 37% of a diet (55% concentrate, 30% clover hay, 15% rice straw, DM basis). There was no effect on milk and milk fat yields, though milk fat content was slightly changed, and milk protein and solid not fat (SNF) content increased. However, 66% substitution decreased yields, solid non fat and milk protein. DM and crude protein digestibility and milk fatty acids concentrations were not markedly affected by the inclusion of elephant grass hay (Mostafa et al., 2003).
Sheep
In Brazil, with lambs fed dwarf elephant grass hay cut at 30, 50, 70 and 90 days of regrowth, aging resulted in a decrease in NDF intake and DM, OM and NDF digestibility. Aging did not influence DM and OM intake, the flow of rumen microbial N into the small intestine, and efficiency of rumen microbial protein synthesis. Nitrogen intake was minimum at 70 days while N digestibility and retention were maximum at the same age (Kozloski et al., 2005). In another trial with lambs, elephant grass hay had a higher forage quality than bahia grass (Paspalum notatum) hay due to its higher voluntary intake of digestible OM. Sheep chewed elephant grass hay at a greater rate than bahia grass hay and spent less time ruminating, due to its less fibrous leaf structure and more readily digested leaf epidermis (Flores et al., 1993). In feedlot sheep, elephant grass supplemented with 30% concentrate allowed an average daily gain of 95 g/d, comparable to that obtained with buffel grass (Cenchrus ciliaris), Panicum molle and Urochloa mosambicensis (Camurca et al., 2002). Combining BRS Kurumi hay with pinto-peanut hay increased organic-matter and nitrogen intake in wethers, but inclusion above 33% reduced overall organic-matter digestibility and no production response was measured (Dall-Orsoletta et al., 2017).
Goats
In Brazil, chopped elephant grass hay (60 d regrowth) fed to goats resulted in DM intake and OM digestibility (61%) comparable to those obtained with pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum) and Sudan grass (Sorghum × drummondii) hays, and higher than those obtained with forage sorghum hays (Aguiar et al., 2006a). With growing goats fed a concentrate and elephant grass hay, the inclusion of 60% and 45% hay resulted in the best cost/benefit ratio for male and female goats, respectively (Medeiros et al., 2007). In balanced spineless-cactus diets for growing goats, 35% elephant grass hay supported similar growth and heavier carcasses than sugarcane bagasse, despite slightly lower apparent digestibility. This result does not apply to elephant grass hay fed alone (Campelo-Lima et al., 2022).
Silage
Nutritive value of elephant grass silage is dependent on the forage value at ensiling and is lower when old grass is used, compared to younger material Sources of readily fermentable carbohydrate such as molasses or sugarcane can improve the fermentation and feeding value of elephant grass silage (Yokota et al., 1991; Yokota et al., 1992; Cavali et al., 2010). See the section on Forage management on the "Description" tab for examples of silage ingredients and their benefits.
Dairy cattle
In San Salvador, replacing 75% of the maize silage component with well-prepared elephant grass silage increased DMI and microbial protein synthesis while maintaining milk yield and composition (Corea-Guillen et al., 2025).
Buffaloes
In China, a 75:25 fresh matter mixture of sugarcane tops and Guimu-1, an elephant grass-derived hybrid, improved fermentation, intake and apparent digestibility (Xie et al., 2023).
Sheep
In Brazil, silages of elephant grass cultivars Mott, IRI-381 and Elephant B used as the sole roughage at about 50% of diet DM produced similar intake, carcass yield and meat quality in lambs (Soares et al., 2023). In Colombia, a 67:33 elephant grass:Tithonia diversifolia mixed silage fed to lambs increased intake, gain and carcass weight relative to sole elephant grass silage containing only 6.5% crude protein (Huertas-González et al., 2023).
Goats
Conventional and anthocyanin-rich elephant grass silages maintained milk yield in dairy goat studies. Intake was lower than with maize silage in one trial, while purple elephant grass changed somatic-cell count, milk-quality or antioxidant indicators in another; these responses were cultivar- and study-specific (Chaokaur et al., 2024; Onjai-uea et al., 2024).
