What do you pay for your organic feed?

[Jewelwing]

Wow that's twice what I pay!! What brand are you using? I pay around 27.00 for 50 pounds of USDA certified organic non soy, non GMO, feed with probotics.

That's about what I pay for the food, but then with $20 shipping, it's close to $50 for a 50lb bag. I buy Countryside Organics layer feed, and have it shipped to IL. I'd love to find an organic food that I could get for cheaper!!

I've heard great things about that feed. Can you link me to the ingredients? I would love to read about it? As for me I have no choice but to order my organic feed. I don't have the luxury of having a near by mill and our stores don't offer it.

Same here.

Here is the label from their soy- and corn-free layer feed, 18% protein:

http://www.scratchandpeck.com/wp-content/uploads/Naturally-Free-Layer-18-25lb1.jpg

Note that this particular label says 25lbs. I believe they mostly ship that size, but we get it in 40lbs bags from our local feed store.

They only ship in 25lb bags. I love Scratch and Peck, but can't afford it, with the shipping.

We use Hiland Naturals feed. They are based here in Ohio. We choose to use Non-GMO Soy-free feed primarily, but occasionally use their regular non-GMO feed for some batches of chickens. It is not USDA certified organic, but I am not tied to that label. They do have certified organic feeds, but not in the soy-free. One thing I appreciate about Hiland is that they use a variety of grains in their feeds, so even their feeds that contain soy have a diversity of other ingredients and do not rely as heavily on soy.

Current prices for 50 lbs layer (although I typically use grower all the time rather than layer):

Non-GMO (with soy): $20.60
Non-GMO (non-soy): $32.50
Organic (with soy): $36.50

I didn't see the non-GMO soy-free feed? The non-GMO ones have soy, and the non-soy ones don't say their corn is non-GMO. I'm actually fine feeding soy, but it seems that in foods that contain soy, there's no animal protein, which I thought was something that was best for chickens. Is that not true?

Our current suggested retail for Organic Soy-Free Layer Pellets is $24.30 (In the northeast).

Is your feed something I could order, or do you only sell to retail stores?

 

[cwalsh2]

I believe whole grains are organic. I feed mostly millet, bought in bulk from the feed store. The hens also have 16% layer available, but eat 80+ % millet. 1200 LBS cost me about 80 bucks, and they lay like crazy on it. I also have it available to the chicks from about 4 days on, and yes they do great. In the past I used a whole grain mix, with no processed food, and had healthier birds with higher hatchability of my eggs, but don;t like the hastle of opening all them bags. I dont buy hen scratch because it is often mostly milo when that is cheap, and my birds do much better on other grains such as millet, corn, oats, and a half scoop of black sunflower feeds and soybeans.. I like to soak oats till they expand and slightly sour, when I feed oats, but right now millet is cheaper, and is
a very good feed.

 

[phishintrip007]

So what are the reasons for not feeding soy? After reading this thread I quit buying the $80 bags of mypetchicken organic feed (no of fens but that is REALLY expensive) and found a local countryside supplier. I paid $37.50/bag. I'm not sure if it is soy free or not but I don't know why that is important or why people choose soy free.

 

[reggiechick]

So please forgive me. But I am new to the NYC and I have to ask, why no soy produces? A lady in my office says she feeds her chicken everything bit egg shells. She says that is because they might start to eat their own eggs. And is really okay to feed chicken scrambled eggs? Seems kinda Hanable Lecterish to me.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

So what are the reasons for not feeding soy? After reading this thread I quit buying the $80 bags of mypetchicken organic feed (no of fens but that is REALLY expensive) and found a local countryside supplier. I paid $37.50/bag. I'm not sure if it is soy free or not but I don't know why that is important or why people choose soy free.

Some people have soy allergies. Soy will be GMO so some people like to avoid that.
Other reasons could be that soy, although high in protein, is lacking some important amino acids. Those will be supplemented in the feed though.
Soy foods can cause deficiencies in calcium and vitamin D. Again, those will be supplemented in the feed. Animal studies show soy foods can cause infertility in animals.

$80, is that true?

So please forgive me. But I am new to the NYC and I have to ask, why no soy produces? A lady in my office says she feeds her chicken everything bit egg shells. She says that is because they might start to eat their own eggs. And is really okay to feed chicken scrambled eggs? Seems kinda Hanable Lecterish to me.

Well chickens eat eggs for the first 21 days of their life when they're embryos. So yes, eggs are good for them.

 

[pdirt]

So please forgive me. But I am new to the NYC and I have to ask, why no soy produces? A lady in my office says she feeds her chicken everything bit egg shells. She says that is because they might start to eat their own eggs. And is really okay to feed chicken scrambled eggs? Seems kinda Hanable Lecterish to me.

Unfermented soy is generally not healthy, at least for humans. It's debatable if it is healthy for other animals. I've read I think from Joel Salatin that while cows cannot properly digest soy, pigs and chickens can. Non-organic soy is generally GMO, which has it's own issues. Even some organic soy has been contaminated via cross pollination with GMO soy, but there's no way to tell without expensive lab testing. Hopefully someone will develop a simple and inexpensive home test kit for GMOs.

 

[ISA4Drew]

I managed to track down a family farm thats not too far outside Brantford into Organic Feed for Hens,turkeys pigs and cattle.
But for the Laying Hens i snagged a 50lb bag for $21.00 .

 

[OneMountainAcres]

I managed to track down a family farm thats not too far outside Brantford into Organic Feed for Hens,turkeys pigs and cattle.
But for the Laying Hens i snagged a 50lb bag for $21.00 .

that's awesome! We were lucky enough to run into someone on here whose neighbor runs a small organic mill. They hooked us up and even though it's a 2 1/2 hour drive, it's more than worth it to grab 500 lbs at a time. Can't beat $22 for 50 lbs organic and soy free

 

[fiddlebanshee]

I just found Nature Smart at a local feedstore (not agway). I paid $27 for 40 lbs and the guy even loaded it in my car!

I haven't fed it yet, as I am finishing the last of the blue seal that I got.

 

[Irishhenman]

I get organic feed here (Ireland) for €17.50 (US $ 24) for a 25kg (55 pound) bag of organic layers