How to cut the cost of feeding chickens?

[ShannonsChimkens]

Anyone have any pointers on how to reduce feed costs? I have a 1 acre city property and about 60 chickens and I buy organic at Tractor supply but I imagine there are other ways to do this. I have been reading about Fodder but any other tips out there?

I have 76 birds currently. Two of which are emu and eat a lot. My food bill for organic feed was $400+ per month from TSC. Not counting any bags of scratch I may buy, if any.

Try a co-op or a locally owned feed store. I switched to organic locally sourced starter/grower pellet (the pellet is a big thing as the crumble wastes a lot), now spend $265. That’s $150 or more in savings per month just in feed changes.

Not to mention that every time I would go to TSC they would be out of my feed! Where abouts are you located?

 

[cpagego]

Thanks, yes this is sort of what I was looking for. Fodder, cheaper feed, etc. I am not sure I want to get away from Organic although I really don't know the difference. My father in law, not the most educated person, is adamant about not giving the chickens "hormones" and unnatural stuff that he assumes is in every commercial feed. So his comments are in the back of my head. I like the idea of finding feed that is cheaper. I like the coop idea. I am in Arizona. The cheapest feed for me right now is at TSC but I recently googled and there are a lot of local mom and pop feed stores. I would love to find a local solution and I will keep looking. Maybe commercial feed is not all that bad but I have to do some research to see what I would be getting into if I moved away from organic.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I am not sure I want to get away from Organic although I really don't know the difference. My father in law, not the most educated person, is adamant about not giving the chickens "hormones" and unnatural stuff that he assumes is in every commercial feed.

I think you need to read up more on the difference between organic and conventional. Hormones have nothing to do with it - hormones have been banned in US poultry production since the 1950s!

I choose to feed my chickens organic and raise them (and my vegetables) as close to organic as I can because I choose to eat organic whenever possible, so eggs are obviously a big part of that.

 

[Ebony Rose]

I don't mind the 'dust' in the feed. I buy the highest protein feed that is available at the time (it fluctuates greatly). Sometimes the best I can get is 16%, and other times I can get as high as 22% protein feed. If needed, I reduce the protein intake for my chickens by offering them treats, fun for the flock and fun for me. I feed the whole pellets to my chickens and the remaining 'dust' to my quail. The quail would be hard pressed to gobble down the pellets without me processing them in some manner, but fortunately for me, there always seems to be enough dust in the bag or generated by my chickens as they pick through the feed. (Don't know why the chickens pick through it, it's all the same size, same shape, same color, same mix, but they still pick through it).
Hahahaha, just saying, want to utilize that dust? Get quail!

 

[Shezadandy]

Thanks, yes this is sort of what I was looking for. Fodder, cheaper feed, etc. I am not sure I want to get away from Organic although I really don't know the difference. My father in law, not the most educated person, is adamant about not giving the chickens "hormones" and unnatural stuff that he assumes is in every commercial feed. So his comments are in the back of my head. I like the idea of finding feed that is cheaper. I like the coop idea. I am in Arizona. The cheapest feed for me right now is at TSC but I recently googled and there are a lot of local mom and pop feed stores. I would love to find a local solution and I will keep looking. Maybe commercial feed is not all that bad but I have to do some research to see what I would be getting into if I moved away from organic.

Sorry if this is duplicate in any way - but depending on your local market ---- something that people have actual dietary needs to avoid are soy and corn - so if you're looking to distinguish yourself and tap into a higher price point, I would look into feed that excludes those two items.

In your area:

Home (phoenixorganicfeed.com)

We do Flock Raiser crumbles, 20% protein for everyone because we have a big mix of ages - always chicks running around somewhere.

I don't know if Tractor Supply has any kind of "local producer" discount you might be able to apply for - around here our local co-op offers a discount on all items if you spend more than 2000/year and have a certain quantity of livestock.

 

[Shezadandy]

Plus, technically you can’t just feed your chickens organic feed and sell your eggs as organic...there’s a certification process.

And 100% agree on switching off organic feed - should save what? $10 per 50 lb bag on average?

I remember looking into this and what it involved was ... nuts. I seem to remember "no pressure treated lumber" ... so here in the rainy NW I either have to make everything (coop, fencing etc) out of cedar or metal - just that alone was the big ole NOPE for us.

 

[EmmaRainboe]

Beyond going to non-organic feed, I think it’s all about the “F’s”:

• Free range
• Fermented Feed
• Fodder
• Food Waste

 

[JCaseyHammond]

Thanks, yes this is sort of what I was looking for. Fodder, cheaper feed, etc. I am not sure I want to get away from Organic although I really don't know the difference. My father in law, not the most educated person, is adamant about not giving the chickens "hormones" and unnatural stuff that he assumes is in every commercial feed. So his comments are in the back of my head. I like the idea of finding feed that is cheaper. I like the coop idea. I am in Arizona. The cheapest feed for me right now is at TSC but I recently googled and there are a lot of local mom and pop feed stores. I would love to find a local solution and I will keep looking. Maybe commercial feed is not all that bad but I have to do some research to see what I would be getting into if I moved away from organic.

Here’s my thought about hormones. Some hormones are ok, others not so much. Soy may contain excessive estrogen and Roundup may behave like hormones. Stress hormone is created not from food but in the body, called leptin. Try not to stress your birds. Make sure they always have food and water every morning. Freedom from predation. Space to forage and dust bathe. And chance to hatch a few eggs if they go broody. Flockraiser with water mixed in, then served on a shallow tray works well. I’ve got a 6 year old named Grandpa that was a Flockraiser baby and he’s doing fine! You’ll know you’re getting it right when you get eggs.

 

[Cindy in PA]

I have never done research of my own to support this claim but here goes:

My neighbor is a professor at a big agricultural university. He specializes in developing feeds for commercial facilities. He told me most grains grown for organic feeds are grown overseas and shipped to the states. This means the grains are often older, and have a much larger environmental footprint.

I used to feed organic too. I noticed sometimes the feed I used smelled funky and not a sweet-smelling grain smell that I am used too. I was also unhappy with the cost. After the neighbor told me about organic feeds, I stopped feeding them organic and switched to buying whatever non-organic feed is available with the most recent mill-by date. So the price I pay fluctuates between $12-$20 per 50 lb bag, but I feel I'm giving my girls the best feed for the least impact to my wallet and the environment. Besides, I couldn't justify charging people $4 for "organic" eggs when their primary desire was simply to have eggs from local chickens.

This is not always true. Know your source, not all organic feeds come from overseas. Some people like to feed organic & don't care that their eggs are not considered organic. Don't know why people always talk down organic, because THEY don't think it's worth it. The info on organic feeds is out there if you are interested. And the label natural means nothing.

 

[humblehillsfarm]

This is not always true. Know your source, not all organic feeds come from overseas. Some people like to feed organic & don't care that their eggs are not considered organic. Don't know why people always talk down organic, because THEY don't think it's worth it. The info on organic feeds is out there if you are interested. And the label natural means nothing.

I did say most, not all organic grains, and indicated I'm going off of what an experience feed professional in the field stated. I am fully aware other people have differing opinions, and I was just sharing mine. It is absolutely true of many organic products, even grown in the US, that the environmental footprint is larger. It's far more labor intensive to manage weeds and pests. For example, enormous quantities of plastic are wasted annually because plastic is the most common method of weed management for commercial crops. It's also true that many non-organic grains exceed FDA requirements for allowable amounts of chemicals remaining in the grains when laboratory tested. What it comes down to is what matters to you. I share my opinion to add to the conversation, not to disagree.