— 108 — In 1912 a contract for the supply of green lubia fodder to the Municipal Dairy at Khartoum was obtained. The price agreed upon was 60 milliemes per kantar, and the supply was to continue uninterruptedly for twelve months.

The average yield per feddan, over three years, was 130 kantars. This shows a return of £E. 7.800 per feddan, while the cost of production was only £E.2.708.

As the trade in export cattle and sheep grows, so will the demand for fodder of this description. It must be baled, however, as in any other form it is costly and wasteful to handle on trains, ships, etc.

The profits to be made from growing the crop for seed are uncertain, depending, as they do, on the fluctuations of local market prices. Another watering would have to be given, thus increasing the cost of production to £E.2.885. Cost of picking is about the same as for cutting. The market price for seed ranges between 100 milliemes and 750 milliemes per kantar. During 1913, 7,856 rotls were collected from an area of five feddans. This at 250 milliemes per kantar is equivalent to £E. 19.640, or £E.3.930 per feddan.

That the fattening of sheep for sale is a profitable undertaking has been demonstrated earher in this report. Whether or not it would pay at the present time to grow extra food for them remains to be proved.

Increased competition among sellers and greater discrimination among buyers of this type of stock will naturally cause more attention to be paid to the feed, and no better feeding crop than lubia afin is to be found in the Sudan.