Is smelly feed safe?

[backyardfarmgirl]

I just bought my second bag of "Nutrena NatureWise Chick Starter/Grower 18% crumbles" at Tractor Supply the other day and it SMELLS! The first bag was fine. Has anyone else experienced this? It smells like chemicals or something, not like grain at all and the smell is strong! I contacted TS about it and they said I could exchange it for a new bag. I'm just worried the new bag will smell bad too! If the smell is normal and the food is safe then I'll just keep it.

By the way, I ferment my feed. I added the new feed to the ferment last night so we'll see if the chickens will eat it this morning.

Any thoughts?

 

[RollTideChicken]

Chickens will eat anything. If you have any inclination that the feed is bad I would not chance it.

 

[IdyllwildAcres]

Bring it back.

Gary

 

[backyardfarmgirl]

Well, it doesn't smell rotten or anything, it just smells like chemicals or maybe tractor grease or something. TS said they don't ship or store tractor grease or anything like that along with the feed, so it shouldn't have taken on the smell of it.

 

[backyardfarmgirl]

I ended up taking it back and I'm glad I did! That stuff seriously didn't smell right. It did NOT even smell like grain! I'm thankful Tractor Supply refunded my money. I don't think I'll go with that brand again (Nutrena), especially after I was reading their website and they stated clearly that they use GMO grains and were trying to convince the reader that GMO grains are normal.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I agree with taking it back. Feed shouldn't ever smell like chemicals and petroleum!

 

[Folly's place]

Call Nutrena and tell them about that bag of feed. If there's a problem with contamination, they need to hear about it.
Do you always check the mill date on each bag of feed before buying it? You should! I won't buy anything older than four weeks, and use it up within another two or three weeks at most. Old feed isn't better!
Was there oil or something on the bag itself? Maybe a problem in shipping or storage? Or insecticide sprayed on the bag somewhere? Again, Let the company know about it.
Mary

 

[Akrnaf2]

I just bought my second bag of "Nutrena NatureWise Chick Starter/Grower 18% crumbles" at Tractor Supply the other day and it SMELLS! The first bag was fine. Has anyone else experienced this? It smells like chemicals or something, not like grain at all and the smell is strong! I contacted TS about it and they said I could exchange it for a new bag. I'm just worried the new bag will smell bad too! If the smell is normal and the food is safe then I'll just keep it.

By the way, I ferment my feed. I added the new feed to the ferment last night so we'll see if the chickens will eat it this morning.

Any thoughts?

No

 

[sylviethecochin]

they stated clearly that they use GMO grains and were trying to convince the reader that GMO grains are normal.

Not looking to start a fight or anything...but GMO grains are pretty standard for animal feed, and I'm glad the company was brave enough to say so on their website. If you see feed that doesn't say "non-GMO," it's GMO. In the states, that's practically guaranteed, with our 88% GMO corn.

If it smells bad, definitely get rid of it!

 

[Folly's place]

I agree. Grain genetics isn't the issue here; it's about freshness or contamination of this bag of feed. Finding fresh and nutritious is more important, and in some markets, adding more requirements concerning the ingredient list, or organic or not, makes it extremely difficult to find anything.
Mary