Poultry feed & feeding practices

Introduction

Poultry nutrition is not only about feeding the animals, but more about how the birds can utilize the feed, what are the contents of the feed and what can the animal produce with the feed.

In animal production, feed is required for: 

   -maintenance (healthy animals);

   -growth (development of the body);

   -production (eggs and meat);

   -reproduction (sperm/egg cells);

Demand and supply

For production, animals demand nutrients:

proteins,fat, carbohydrates

Vitamins and minerals

water.

The feeding value of a feed stuff should indicate how far a feed stuff can satisfy the demands (requirements) of an animal in relation to its production,

Not only the chemical composition of feed stuffs is important also other characteristics like the energy-value, palatability, the physical structure are important.

Terminologies

Feed stuffs: Materials to be used as animal feed: single materials (no mixture), but they can be utilized to make mixed feeds or referred as raw materials or feed ingredients.

Nutrients: The chemical components, which are indispensable   for life and play an essential role in the metabolism of animals.

The term used for the components of the feed capable of being utilized by animals. 

Ration: the feed allowance of one animal for one day

Compound feed: a mixture of various different feed stuffs, supplemented with minerals, vitamins and/or other additives.

Concentrate: a feed stuff rich in nutrients; low in fiber (<18%) and high in energy; might be either a single feed stuff or a mixture of various different feed stuffs.

Balancer: can be either a single feed stuff or a compound feed to be mixed and/or added to other feed stuffs so that the whole (mixture) meets the requirements of a particular class of animals.

Premix: refers to a mixture of various different minerals and/or vitamins meant to be mixed with one or more feed stuffs in order to balance the mineral and vitamin supply with the requirements of a particular class of animals.

Balanced feed=complete feed: a feed consisting of various different ingredients which are mixed in such rations that they (all together) meet the requirements of a particular class of animals. A ‘balanced feed’ is a compound feed. A ‘compound feed’ is not necessarily a balanced feed.

Type of feed and feed structure

Meal: the product after grinding one single raw

material.

Mash: the product after mixing several meals.

Pellets: the product after pressing the mash into bigger parts

Crumbs: the product after pressing mash into pellets and then a special way of breaking the pellets

Ø to increase the feed intake and growth of young and also sometimes grown up birds.

Ø to avoid feed wastage and de-mixing of a feed

Raw materials for compound feed

Ø Raw materials for feed or feed ingredients are the building stones of a compound feed

Ø Before attempting to formulate a balanced, compound feed for poultry we need to pay attention to the ingredients

The following will be dealt with:

Identify and recognize the different ingredients: Use your eyes, your nose, your touch. Do not taste!

Know their origin: what product are they or from what processes are they the (by)product?

v Look for their strong and weak properties, the effect they have on the feed, the animal and its performance.

v To what extent can we use them in the different feeds?(inclusion rates)

                 Energy source feed ingredients

Cereal grains and cereal grain by-products

oThey are food for humans as well as feed for animal production.

e.g. Maize, sorghum, wheat, barley,  oats, millet and rice.

vEnergy can also be found in cereals crop by-products after the starch is removed for human consumption.

By products are : Rice bran, wheat bran, millet bran, maize bran.

Or byproducts of a 2nd polishing like wheat middling ,maize germ meal.

Another energy source is all kinds of root crops like cassava, sweet potatoes, and Irish potatoes.

vPure cassava meal has good nutritional value, but low-quality products occasionally occur.
Potential problems:
1. High moisture content: facilitates growth of fungi and make the quality drop. Moisture content should not be higher than 13%.
2. High ash content: mainly from too much sand.
3. High CF: possibly from too much peelings and other vegetable material.

Oil seeds and their by-products

Predominantly grown for their oil, mostly to be used for human consumption.

Contain 20-60% oil, many of the remainders, by-products, 

contain good quality protein, and are of great value for animal nutrition.

The nutritional value of these by-products depends verymuch on being fully or partially

dehusked.Particularly in by-products from cottonseed, soybeans and sunflower seeds, peanuts the husks can have a negative influence  on the digestibility and nutritional value.

Products with high CF have likely a low protein content and a low nutritional value.

The more oil remains in the by-product, the lower its protein content, but a much higher energy level.

        Sugar crops

Molasses:

Ø The by-product of raw syrup and sugar, made from sugar beets and sugar cane.

Ø Contain 45% sugar. Too much ash or moisture will lower the sugar proportion.

Ø Minerals: Rich in potassium, and together with the sugar, potassium causes wet manure.

Ø Used for not only for its nutritional value but also to bind the feed components for pelleting.

    Protein source

Plant origin protein sources;

soybeans, peas, cow peas or soybean meal, nugseed cake .

Leaves of several plants. You can think of cassava leaves, cowpea leaves or legumes like alfalfa or leucaena leaves.

Also crop by-products of oil production like cottonseed cake, coconut cake or copra cake or groundnut cake.

Animal origin protein sources

vProtein coming from animal protein sources are also very important like fishmeal, bloodmeal, meat and bone meal, insects or termites.

The nutritional quality of animal protein is higher than that of plant protein.

Rich in minerals and vitamins.

Feeding method – Feed quantity

Recommended nutritive value of feeds

Ingredients maximum inclusion level

Ingredients maximum inclusion level

Ration  Formulation

o Refers to the exercise of determining volumes of  ingredients and additives to blend in order to  create compound feeds that meet the known  nutrient requirements of targeted species and  achieve production goals at an optimized cost.

Feed costs account for 50-80% of the total costs in  animal production, over 70% in poultry production.

Therefore  procedures that  reduce feed costs  are likely  to  increase net incomes  in  animal agriculture.

Ration formulation is one of the areas that one can  use to reduce on the cost of feed.

Several methods have been used in formulating  and balancing rations.

the Pearson Square, simultaneous equations,  trial and error and linear programming (LP).

In the modern era of technology,computer assisted formulation in reasonable  sized  feed qmills is common practice.

Factors to be considered

The species, the age and physiological state  of animal

The animals nutrient requirement

Available ingredients and price

Chemical composition of the feed ingredients

Requirements

The technical tool must be mastered by all  nutritionists in order to introduce the best  feed to the animals for optimum production,

Right formulation can ensure availability of  essential nutrients to the animals,

Formulation must take into account the right  balance between nutrients,

Once  energy  requirement  is  met,  animal  stops eating.

When energy is too low, animal eats more to  compensate for the low energy

If energy is too high, the farmer spends more  on other ingredients

To  have  a  balance, calorie-protein  ration  is  used.

Ingredients used in feed formulation can  be classified as:

Πprotein sources (including amino acids)

 energy sources (COH)

Ž lipid sources (also essential fatty acids)

 vitamin supplements/premixes

 mineral supplements/premixes

‘ growth/pigment enhancers

’ ingredients improving palatability

“ ingredients improving preservation/storage

Computer Assisted Feed  Formulation

How to formulate step by step

Step 1: Take up 3% of an ingredient, containing more than 20%  Ca only in layer and broiler/layer breeder feed. For all other feeds  skip step 1.

Step 2: Reserve 2% or less according to the recommendations  for mineral- and vitamin additions, vitamin/trace-element premix,  common salt etc).

Step 3: Include any ingredient of which you want to have a minimum percentage in the ration (absolute minimum %).

Step 4: Include 30% of those ingredients which have an  energy-value higher than the required level of the ration you  want to prepare (less than 30% if you included a minimum of an  energy- rich ingredient in step 3). Take those which have the  lowest “energy-price“, but not more than a safe maximum for  each ingredient.

Step 5: Use protein-suppliers to bring the feed to 50%, use  those protein-sources that contain more protein than you need in  the feed. Choose those with the lowest “protein price” but not  more than a safe maximum for each ingredient.

Step 6: Add the “percentage”, the energy-values, the  quantities of the various nutrients and compare this sub-total of  50% with the requirements. Select and add 10% of an ingredient  “cheaply” providing the nutrient(s) you lack most and evaluate  now the 60% with requirements. Add another 10% and continue  to do so until you reach 90%. Avoid exceeding maximum  inclusion rates.

Step 7: At this point evaluate: ‘what is still missing?’ Possibly you  need additional Ca or Phosphorus-sources. Add them and after  that finish the feed by filling up to 100%.

Starter ration

Finisher ration

Egg laying chicks feed formulation

Egg laying growers feed formulation

Egg laying chickens feed formulation kg in 100kg