Feed date Question

[Stepnout]

If the date isn't on the end of bag seal, or the guaranteed analysis tag, the manufacturer should be able to tell you from the lot#. The first 4 numbers on the tag could be a date. 5128 could be May 12, 2018.
The manager of the store where you got it should be able to provide it as well.
Purina usually has it on the seal. Nutrena and ADM have it stamped on the tag. ADM uses the Julian date.

Well I managed to get through to the mill, spoke to a helpful fellow. He answered a few questions.
No, they do not put dates on their products just lot numbers. he explained their products are fresh 3 months after production. I would have to call with the lot number to find out the production date. He also said that mill only makes chick grower in the spring/summer season. So all bags in circulation would be considered fresh.
When I change to Layer feed if worried I could call to confirm freshness.
Hmm I would prefer the mill be up front about the date, removing any question. So far I can not complain about the quality. The birds seem healthy. The feed smells very fresh.
He did supply me with a list of ingredients of the feed. with out % due to recipe protection.

 

[aart]

I would have to call with the lot number to find out the production date.

I would do that with the tags you have.

 

[Stepnout]

Thanks Steve really appreciate your help. I purchased the Nonmedicated feed lot numbers 5015850 and 5128291. Can you tell me the date of manufacture on these?
Thanks
Emailed the above last night

I would do that with the tags you have.

 

[Stepnout]

And the answer from the mill:
The first one was manufactured May 15th and the other on June 8th



They have a 6 month shell life of 180 days (6 months)

 

[aart]

And the answer from the mill:
The first one was manufactured May 15th and the other on June 8th
They have a 6 month shell life of 180 days (6 months)

Great you got a response.
Ridiculous that there's no logic.
Knowing the shelf life means nothing if you can't read the mfg date.
6 months is too long IMO....have had feed that old, they didn't want to eat it and production went down.
Not ranting at you stepnout...thanks for your efforts.

 

[Stepnout]

I was at the Shur-Gain feeds n Needs outlet where I purchased the feed. They told me they go through 2 pallets of layer feed every week. They receive 2 and sell 2. That’s pallets of 25 kg layer feed. That comes from the mill which is less than a 2 hour drive.
That seems to make sense for my chick grower dates. I got 6 pullets on the May 25 that bag I bought on the 20th manufactured on the 15th. The second bag is half gone that was manufactured on June 8th. They seem to be keeping the feed fresh.

 

[GC-Raptor]

6 months is too long IMO....

I agree. I had feed go bad just past 5 months from mill date that was stored in my house, it got a strong smell and egg production dropped.
I now buy feed in a smaller bag, as fresh as I can find. It means I'm not getting my preferred feed, but it's fresh and my hens like it. GC

 

[lazy gardener]

If you have lots of freezer space, that would be an option. Buy a bag, put 1/2 of it in an air-tight container or plastic bag and freeze it. When you remove it from the freezer, bring it to room temp before opening it up.

 

[Stepnout]

Lol forgot to say so far 3 of those pullets turned out to be roosters. The breeder already exchanged one and I am waiting for the replacements. None ready yet.

 

[Mossy Dell]

Does anyone know if Cargill uses the same date code as Nutrena, which is one of its subsidiaries? Cargill makes poultry feed for the big Southern States chain. If you google Cargill feed freshness codes, Nutrena comes up and so does a huge recall Cargill had due to too much mold in their corn used in various feeds. Oh well.

From BYC, I have learned that Nutrena's code is:
Plant, Year, Day of Year. A tag might be WB7121 or 567121, with the first two letters or numbers being the plant, then 7 for the year (2017), and then the 121st day of the year.

I found this tag (attached) on line for the Southern States 20% pellet I am interested in. It has a welter of codes on it. The most likely to me is 180303. If that's the date and it is the same formula as Nutrena's it would be Plant 18, Year 2020, and the 303rd day of the year.

The reason I am going through this is I am pellet shopping. I like the New Country Organics pellet I have been using, but getting it is complicated. I can order a 20% Nutrena All Flock pellet from TSC or order the 20% Flock Balancer Booster from Southern States. Neither place keeps the 20% on hand.

The Southern States has slightly higher levels of lysine and methionine, as well as animal protein, all of which should be slightly better to balance my mostly grain feed. I figure I will check the label once I get a bag, if I know the formula, and see what I got. Ditto for TSC. Then I'll talk to the manager, if need be, and/or try the other store.