DIY Chicken Feed

[Sylver Queen]

Hi all,

I am trying to find a budget-friendly recipe for a DIY hen feed. Any suggestions or recipes would be very helpful. Thanks!

Kuritsa

I know this is about a year old, but in case it wasn't said thought I'd add that depending on what land your birds are on another budget-friendly hack is to get Red Rangers or another chicken breed that is known to forage on the land for a larger portion of its calories. I've also heard that Leghorns have the highest feed conversion ratio and are therefore more efficient than larger breeds, and lay prolifically to help offset their costs.

Edit: As my intention is to help and not harm, I will clarify that choosing birds who are known to range more freely is only efficient and healthy for the birds if one has enough nutrient -rich and lush land to support the birds. It is also fairly well known that lighter breeds known for good feed conversion are more feed efficient than heavier breeds, regardless of your conditions. Happy flock raising to all. : )

 

[U_Stormcrow]

I know this is about a year old, but in case it wasn't said thought I'd add that depending on what land your birds are on another budget-friendly hack is to get Red Rangers or another chicken breed that is known to forage on the land for a larger portion of its calories. I've also heard that Leghorns have the highest feed conversion ratio and are therefore more efficient than larger breeds, and lay prolifically to help offset their costs.

That depends highly on the amount of land you have, the quality of your pasture, and the season of the year. I have terrible soils, many acres, and one of the longest production seasons / most forgiving, growing zones in the nation - zone 8a - with annual rainfall averaging about an inch a week. Best I've ever bent my cost curve is 40% in summer months, and that's not counting the costs of overseeding each year, or the equipment to maintain the pasture. My birds free range 24/7.

Its not nothing. But its not a panacea, either. Important to be realistic about expectations.

Yes, people can do better than I - that's why I have another $400 or so going into 2 acres of my pasture this year (lime, fertilizer, seed, fuel costs - I'm not counting my tractor note or amortizing the equipment costs) into improving the soil structure, improving the green diversity, attracting more insect proteins - but that's 3 months worth of feed for my animals as equivalent cost.

I see plenty of people making grand claims and dismissing "experts" (however that word is defined). I see very few of them with any record over time, hard numbers, pictures of the results. I see many of those same people advancing feed "recipes" and methods that would have been dismissed as simply ignorant back in the 60s by those that actually raised chickens in any quantity. I am NOT an expert. Merely a well read hobbyist who tends to comment when opinion and reality appear at odds.

There ain't no such thing as a free lunch.

 

[Sylver Queen]

That depends highly on the amount of land you have, the quality of your pasture, and the season of the year. I have terrible soils, many acres, and one of the longest production seasons / most forgiving, growing zones in the nation - zone 8a - with annual rainfall averaging about an inch a week. Best I've ever bent my cost curve is 40% in summer months, and that's not counting the costs of overseeding each year, or the equipment to maintain the pasture. My birds free range 24/7.

Its not nothing. But its not a panacea, either. Important to be realistic about expectations.

Yes, people can do better than I - that's why I have another $400 or so going into 2 acres of my pasture this year (lime, fertilizer, seed, fuel costs - I'm not counting my tractor note or amortizing the equipment costs) into improving the soil structure, improving the green diversity, attracting more insect proteins - but that's 3 months worth of feed for my animals as equivalent cost.

I see plenty of people making grand claims and dismissing "experts" (however that word is defined). I see very few of them with any record over time, hard numbers, pictures of the results. I see many of those same people advancing feed "recipes" and methods that would have been dismissed as simply ignorant back in the 60s by those that actually raised chickens in any quantity. I am NOT an expert. Merely a well read hobbyist who tends to comment when opinion and reality appear at odds.

There ain't no such thing as a free lunch.

It for sure does! We all keep chickens in such diverse climates and terrains. I do not know the OP's conditions so thought I'd put it out there. As someone who lives in different but tough conditions as well I am so aware how expensive it is to "terra form" as I call it, and sometimes it's a losing game regardless. Glad you are able to invest in your land and at least get something from it for your animals!

 

[veedabowlu]

Well,
as per ChatGPT...

A good, cheap homemade chicken feed recipe balances grains, protein, minerals, and vitamins. Here's an affordable mix:

Basic Cheap Chicken Feed Recipe (per 50 lbs)​

• 25 lbs cracked corn (main energy source)
• 10 lbs wheat or barley (adds variety and nutrients)
• 10 lbs oats or rice bran (fiber & additional protein)
• 3 lbs soybean meal or dried peas (protein boost)
• 1 lb fish meal or meat & bone meal (extra protein & minerals)
• ½ lb crushed eggshells or oyster shells (calcium for strong eggshells)
• ½ lb mineral salt or livestock salt (electrolytes & essential minerals)

Optional Additions (if budget allows)​

• Black oil sunflower seeds (BOSS) – adds healthy fats & protein
• Molasses – boosts energy and provides minerals
• Brewer’s yeast – improves digestion and egg production

Instructions:​

1. Mix all ingredients thoroughly in a large container or barrel.
2. Store in a dry place.
3. Feed about ¼ to ½ pound per chicken per day.

This mix is cheaper than store-bought feed and keeps your chickens healthy and laying well.

Thoughts?

 

[nuthatched]

Well,
as per ChatGPT...

A good, cheap homemade chicken feed recipe balances grains, protein, minerals, and vitamins. Here's an affordable mix:

Basic Cheap Chicken Feed Recipe (per 50 lbs)​

• 25 lbs cracked corn (main energy source)
• 10 lbs wheat or barley (adds variety and nutrients)
• 10 lbs oats or rice bran (fiber & additional protein)
• 3 lbs soybean meal or dried peas (protein boost)
• 1 lb fish meal or meat & bone meal (extra protein & minerals)
• ½ lb crushed eggshells or oyster shells (calcium for strong eggshells)
• ½ lb mineral salt or livestock salt (electrolytes & essential minerals)

Optional Additions (if budget allows)​

• Black oil sunflower seeds (BOSS) – adds healthy fats & protein
• Molasses – boosts energy and provides minerals
• Brewer’s yeast – improves digestion and egg production

Instructions:​

1. Mix all ingredients thoroughly in a large container or barrel.
2. Store in a dry place.
3. Feed about ¼ to ½ pound per chicken per day.

This mix is cheaper than store-bought feed and keeps your chickens healthy and laying well.

Thoughts?

Unfortunately, that's an awful recipe.
I wouldn't recommend chatgpt for anything of any value.

 

[NatJ]

Well,
as per ChatGPT...
...This mix is cheaper than store-bought feed and keeps your chickens healthy and laying well.

Thoughts?

My first thought: run the numbers before you assume that recipe is cheaper than store bought feed. Don't trust any AI or anyone giving advice over the internet to know the prices YOU would pay for the ingredients and the prices YOU would pay for store-bought feed.

For the prices available to me, that would be more expensive. Which says nothing about what it would be for anyone else.

Whether it's nutritionally adequate is another question, that I'm going to mostly leave for other people who know more than I do. I have seen worse chicken feed recipes (the grain-only ones that forget about protein), but that doesn't tell whether this one is actually good or is merely less bad.

@U_Stormcrow What does your feed calculator spit out for that recipe? At least it is in pounds instead of "cups" or "scoops."

 

[FrostRanger]

Just looking at the list, the fact that it includes oyster shell in the feed rather than on the side makes me doubt the recipe's quality. Never mind the fact it has so much oats. Chatgpt is generally not a reliable source of information. Yes, it can be s good starting point for many things, but it's not the be all end all

 

[NatJ]

Just looking at the list, the fact that it includes oyster shell in the feed rather than on the side makes me doubt the recipe's quality.

That is not enough oyster shell for a layer feed. It might be right for an all-flock feed or a chick starter. At that level, mixing it in probably is a good idea, and then offer oyster shell on the side for the birds who need more.

The rate of oyster shell in a layer feed is about 10% by weight (10 pounds of oyster shell per hundred pounds of feed.) The recipe from chatgpt makes 50 pounds of feed, so it would need about 5 pounds of oyster shell if it was going to be a layer feed. It actually has half a pound of oyster shell.

Chatgpt is generally not a reliable source of information. Yes, it can be s good starting point for many things, but it's not the be all end all

I definitely agree there!

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Well,
as per ChatGPT...

A good, cheap homemade chicken feed recipe balances grains, protein, minerals, and vitamins. Here's an affordable mix:

Basic Cheap Chicken Feed Recipe (per 50 lbs)​

• 25 lbs cracked corn (main energy source)
• 10 lbs wheat or barley (adds variety and nutrients)
• 10 lbs oats or rice bran (fiber & additional protein)
• 3 lbs soybean meal or dried peas (protein boost)
• 1 lb fish meal or meat & bone meal (extra protein & minerals)
• ½ lb crushed eggshells or oyster shells (calcium for strong eggshells)
• ½ lb mineral salt or livestock salt (electrolytes & essential minerals)

Optional Additions (if budget allows)​

• Black oil sunflower seeds (BOSS) – adds healthy fats & protein
• Molasses – boosts energy and provides minerals
• Brewer’s yeast – improves digestion and egg production

Instructions:​

1. Mix all ingredients thoroughly in a large container or barrel.
2. Store in a dry place.
3. Feed about ¼ to ½ pound per chicken per day.

This mix is cheaper than store-bought feed and keeps your chickens healthy and laying well.

Thoughts?

My thoughts are that you shouldn't trust ChatGPT for medical or health advice - ChatGPT is only as educated as the average user of social media (not very). When taking about chicken feed, its their health on the line.

That's not cheaper, its not healthy, and its a list of ingredients that many can't pick up off the shelf in their local farm store.

Best case, after correcting for likely water content, that's about 12% Crude Protein (way too low), about 4.5% fiber, around 3.5% fat (those are both fine). it will be slightly low Lysine, and inadequate levels of Methionine, Threonine, and Tryptophan. It doesn't have enough calcium to support even the maintenance needs of adult non-laying hens. Mineral Salt and Livestock salt provide the sodium, sure, but no guiarantees of trace minerals - that's mostly formulated for cattle.

Wheat and barley aren't directly interchangeable. Subbing in barley, apart from adding some additional antinutricive concerns, dropps crude protein slightly, improves lysine (slightly) and threponine (slightly), and further reduces tryp. Soybeans and Peas aren't interchangeable, either. Dried peas have about half the priootein of soy meal, more antinutritive factors (tannins, particularly also lectins, less than half as much Methionine, slightly more than half as much Lysine, roughly half as much Threonine, and less than 1/3 as much Tryp. Meat and bone meal has less protein, more fat, and is significantly lower in key AAs acruss the board - more than its Crude Protein difference alone might suggest.

Make all the suggested substititons and the feed calculates closer to 11% CP, 5% fiber, 3.5% fat, and offers only about 2/3 of the needed Met, Lys, Thre, half the Tryp.

In spite of that, largely because of the corn content. that's a moderately high energy feed - meaning if the birds eat until their crude protein levels are met, they are consming far more energy (think "calories") than they need, and increase you feed rate of consumption.

Typical feeds are formulated to provied a specified amount of energy and certain nurtitional targets, on eht easumption that a productive hen will eat 1/4# per day (roughly).

At your local feed store (assuming you aren't in a high priced area - NYC, Chicago, much of California, Seattle, the "tri-State area",etc) you can likely pick up a bag of nutritionally adequate feed for between $18 and $23 per 50#, providing an assumed 200 hen days worth of food.

The above recipe's cheapest ingredient is corn. $10-13 / 50#. That's half the recipe content. Wheat? cheapest I can find in bulk is about $23/50#, or $0.46/lb. Oats? $30-38/50#. Soybean meal, highly variable - $19-32/50. Fish meal is $4-5 per pound. I'm going to assume the oyster shell is free, and your livestock mineral adds $0.20 to the cost of the mix for 1/2#.

Best case, that's $16.81 / 50 lb, which sounds very competive on a cost basis compared to the nutritionally superior "shelf stuff". Only the crude protein is about 3/4 the mimimum. Your birds will have to eat at least 33% more to make up for that (and get fat!). $16.81 x 1.33 = $22.34/50lb. More than I pay for a 50# bag of 20% CP All Flock type feed with vastly superior nutrition.

Obviously, if you pay any shipping at all on those ingredients, or have to buy at more than best price, it becomes even more unaffordable.

Once again, the crowd (ChatGPT in this case) has managed to produce an inferior product at inflated price.

 

[veedabowlu]

And then...

Budget-Friendly High-Protein Chicken Feed (50 lbs)​

• 25 lbs cracked corn (cheapest energy source)
• 10 lbs wheat or barley (buy in bulk, cheaper than oats)
• 5 lbs rice bran or wheat bran (cheap fiber & minerals)
• 5 lbs dried split peas or lentils (cheaper than soybean meal)
• 3 lbs cooked & dried beans (pinto, black, or kidney, NOT raw!) (cheap protein)
• 1 lb crushed eggshells or oyster shells (free if using your own eggs)
• ½ lb mineral salt or livestock salt (cheap essential minerals)
• ½ lb brewer’s yeast (boosts B vitamins & digestion)

then I asked for its nutritional breakdown...

Here's the estimated nutritional breakdown for the budget-friendly high-protein chicken feed recipe (50 lbs total):

Ingredient	Protein (%)	Fat (%)	Fiber (%)	Calories (kcal/lb)	Amount (lbs)
Cracked Corn	8.0	3.5	2.0	1600	25
Wheat or Barley	12.0	2.0	5.0	1450	10
Rice Bran or Wheat Bran	14.0	3.5	12.0	1200	5
Dried Split Peas/Lentils	24.0	1.0	8.0	1500	5
Cooked/Dried Beans	22.0	1.5	10.0	1400	3
Crushed Eggshells/Oyster Shells	0.0	0.0	0.0	0	1
Mineral Salt	0.0	0.0	0.0	0	0.5
Brewer’s Yeast	40.0	1.5	0.0	1200	0.5

---

Final Nutrition Analysis (Approximate)​

• Total Protein → ~16–18%
• Total Fat → ~3–4%
• Total Fiber → ~6–8%
• Calories → ~1500 kcal/lb average
• Calcium → Enough for layers if eggshells/oyster shells are available free-choice

How This Compares to Store-Bought Feed​

• Cheaper than commercial layer feed (~$15–20 per 50 lbs)
• Higher quality than basic scratch grains
• Adequate protein for layers (~16%)
• Can be improved for meat birds by adding more legumes (peas, beans, mealworms, or fish meal if budget allows)

I have used ChatGPT for lots of various things with great results