Fermenting Feed

[FamFarmer]

I'd like to read that study. It seems *unlikely*, given the margins in the egg business. If rate of lay could be improved 10% by fermentation, then every egg laying commercial operation would be doing it. Historically, they operate at margins under 7% - having 10% more product for the same inputs would more than double their profitability.

 

[Debbie292d]

This was very informative. We only raise silkies so eggs aren't why I ferment, but for the nutritional boost and probiotics/prebiotics. This touched on added nutrition, but mostly on the increased egg production of 9% and the flavor of the eggs with fermented feed.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Study here.

https://projects.sare.org/wp-content/uploads/Foothills-Farm-study_Full-report.pdf

Would like to see that in a larger study. Some of the results don't make sense, and may be an artifact of the nature of scratch & pck whole grain feed itself (as the study authors concede.) Its also conrary to other study findings.

Similarly, would like to see comparisons of different feeds being feermented to isolate whether fermented feed was of greater effect in this study to due some limiting property of the scratch & peck made more biovailable via fermentation.

But yes, interesting enough to be worth more study.

 

[Some Old Guy]

I watched that video some weeks ago, and it helped to convince me that I wanted to feed FF. My birds are at 13 weeks, and I've been fermenting for almost 3 weeks now. I still don't have it down to a science, but all the birds except the ducks wolf the FF down when I give it to them in the evenings. It seems that I'm doing something right.