Chicken feed contains protein, vitamins, and minerals for healthy chicken growth.
Cereal grains form the backbone of most chicken feed, such as wheat, oats and barley. To combat anti-nutrient factors in these whole grains, they’re usually mixed with cultured yeast, fish meal, kelp meal and salt to produce a nutritionally balanced feed for chickens.
Contents
Protein
Protein provides energy for the body and plays a crucial role during molting season for chickens. Most commercial layer feed contains 16% crude protein content.
Feed manufacturers choose ingredients to tailor their formulas according to the specific nutritional needs of poultry types. For instance, chick feed contains more protein to promote growth compared to egg laying feed.
Cereal grains such as wheat, sorghum and barley provide high energy and protein content in feed for animals. Furthermore, cereal byproducts such as wheat middlings or kamut meal can be added for additional protein boost.
Soybean meal is often included in most poultry feeds due to its high protein content of 44-48% and excellent amino acid profile that complements corn as the primary energy source for chicken feeds. Rendered hog or beef fat may also be added in order to bind nutrients together and provide energy while providing essential fat-soluble vitamins.
Fiber
Fiber has quickly become one of the primary topics within the feed industry, with new scientific evidence showing its beneficial impacts on gut microbiome health, blood glucose regulation, and other aspects of health. However, it’s important to keep in mind that “fibre” can refer to various substances based on chemical structure and physical properties – its actual function depends on which definition applies in each instance.
Wheat midds is an abundant source of fibre in poultry feed, produced as a by-product from processing cereal grains like corn, rye and wheat. Wheat midds contain high levels of energy and protein for optimal feed pellet formation with minimal dust or fines accumulation.
Fibre sources include non-starch polysaccharides (NSPs) such as non-starch polysaccharides and lignin. Both sources provide energy and help increase digestibility of chicken feed ingredients, similar to what wild chickens eat – insects, grubs, seeds fruits vegetation that provide essential amino acids such as lysine and methionine that helps turn feed into energy and eggs. Black soldier fly grubs are an excellent source of protein as well as essential amino acids lysine and methionine that help convert feed into energy and eggs – black soldier fly grubs provide essential amino acids like these essential for energy production and eggs from feed materials used within chicken feed ingredients.
Vitamins & Minerals
A chicken needs vitamins and minerals in its diet daily in order to survive, from immune system support, digestive aid and nutrient absorption, healthy egg production and more. Vitamin supplements play a significant role in these areas.
Minerals such as calcium, phosphorous, sodium, iron and potassium can often be found in cereal byproducts like wheat, barley, rye and corn middlings. Cereals also serve a number of other purposes within chicken feed such as providing flavor or energy sources.
Good quality commercial complete feed will contain all the vitamins and minerals a chicken needs for survival, while those feeding their birds on scraps from your kitchen or foraging in your yard or garden may require supplementation with vitamins and minerals from outside sources, to get exactly the amounts they require – too much will end up excreted through their feces if too much supplement is given; pre/probiotics with enzymes like phytase will increase absorption through digestion.
Fat
Chickens need fats and oils as part of their dietary energy source to digest and absorb fat-soluble vitamins. Furthermore, they help reduce grain dust during feeding time and give their feed a smooth texture that ensures optimal performance.
Cereal grains form the bulk of any poultry feed formula, with variations depending on what types of poultry require their nutrition. Flocks designed for laying hens will require different ingredients than flocks designed to raise chicks or meat birds.
Feed producers consider several factors when choosing which ingredients to include in their formulas for poultry feed production, such as price, availability and nutritional requirements of their target poultry population. A typical cereal blend typically consists of wheat, rye, barley and corn with byproducts from milling or brewing added as byproducts.
