Feeding Leucaena leucocephala to piglets as feed to address the ecological harm of this invasive alien species

Leucaena is an internationally recognized terrifying invasive species, and many plants avoid it at all costs, but some animals are overjoyed to see it, because leucaena is rich in protein and was a superior livestock feed decades ago. In Tianliao, Kaohsiung, one pig farmer has revived the old farming method, hoping to wipe out the invasive species with mouths.

Piglets solve the invasive species with their mouths

In the article "A Good Taste in a Remote Place: The Meat-Eating Culture of Tianliao", Hsieh Sheng-yu and Yu Fu-chun, founders of "Good Food Machine Agricultural Food Integration," introduced us to the traditional free-range pig farming method. Now they have a new idea: to work with pig farmers to restore the form of pig farming from thirty years ago, when every household fed pigs with leucaena.

Leucaena is one of the world's 100 worst invasive alien species for ecology published by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). In southern Taiwan, China, it has already conquered territory and taken over the ground of many native plants. However, the vigorous leucaena also has a natural enemy. "Leucaena can survive in badlands, but it cannot withstand the mouths of animals," said Hsieh Sheng-yu. Leucaena is rich in crude protein and is a very good feed for raising livestock. It can increase the lean meat rate of piglets, making pork more tender and delicious, and piglets love to eat it very much.

At a pig farm in Tianliao, Kaohsiung, as soon as thirty or forty freshly picked tender leucaena branches were thrown down, ten piglets immediately swarmed over, stepped on the branches with their front feet, and dug open the pods with their mouths, nimble and deft. In just twenty minutes, like a locust plague passing through, only leucaena branches and empty pods were left.

Although the whole leucaena plant can be eaten, picky piglets usually eat only tender stems and pods. However, farmers have differing views on how to use leucaena. Some believe the whole plant should be dried and then ground into powder with a machine, while others argue it can be eaten directly without any processing, or that it should be blanched in hot water. At present, Good Food Machine's farmers take the direct-eating approach for convenience. Hsieh Sheng-yu speculates that grinding into powder may be for long-term storage, because leucaena sheds its leaves in winter. However, there is still no unified method or research report, and they can only try and see as they go.