Layena Sunfresh

[WV_Chicken]

I use this feed and it says that it is Certified Natural. I know that to be Certified Natural Farm you can't use GMO's, so am I correct to assume that Layena Sunfresh doesn't have GMO's?

 

[Cindy in PA]

As far as I know there is no standard for Natural in the US, so I would doubt GMO free. It actually says "certified natural"? It is probably just a nice term to get you to buy it. Haven't looked at a Purina bag lately though.

 

[A.T. Hagan]

You ask a good question so I just e-mailed Purina to ask. I'll let you know what they say.

 

[Fred's Hens]

Natural. Loosely defined marketing term. No raucous or toxic chemicals added, but hardly some carefully protected organic feed.

 

[WV_Chicken]

I just called them and was shocked because first, there was no answering machine press #1, then press #2, then press #1 again. The phone went straight to real life person. She was very friendly and said that Layena Sunfresh does contain soybean meal in it and they do not have a tracking system in place to know what meal is GMO and which isn't. She said the only guarantee is to go organic.

 

[savingdogs]

I use Layena and was wondering about that myself. I am deaf and could not have made the phone call, so I really appreciate that you shared that information. Thank you very much.

My flock also free ranges so I know they are getting a good percentage of their diet in an organic way. I wanted to use organic feed but the price would have made them mighty expensive eggs and that isn't really an option for me right now.

Another reason I chose Layena was because of the freshness factor. I see that it flies off the shelf at the feed store, people must like their results with it. I also use their Flock Raiser.

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Quote:
Was this the person you spoke with?

Q: What precisely does "Certified Natural" mean as regards your poultry feed? Certified by whom to be what? Thanks.

A: Alan,
The certification is part of our extensive and rigorous in-house Quality Control program. What is meant by all natural is that there are no animal products or by-products in the feed. The only certified non-GMO grains on the market are the certified organic grains. All other grains have no classification regarding whether they are GMO-derived or not. When you buy grain for a feed mill, non-organic corn, for example, is just corn. (There are other quality standards regarding foreign material, etc). Since we buy grain on the regular market for our plants, we have no way of knowing if it is GMO-derived or not. Since certified organic grains are much more expensive, the market for organic poultry feeds is pretty small. So we do not have available a organic line of feeds that is GMO free. But we are constantly evaluating this, and may do some sometime in the future. If you have more questions, please let me know.

Pat Herndon
e-Mail - [email protected]

Sort of answered a question I was not asking, but she did tell me what I wanted to know: What is meant by all natural is that there are no animal products or by-products in the feed.

I use their Flock Raiser regularly so it was all the same to me.

 

[WV_Chicken]

No sure who the person was. I was stunned the phone rang to a real person, that I don't recall her name. I think she just answered the phone as "purina" or purina feedmill or something like that. I actually paused because I was so expecting an automated system. Then I thought this is some secretary that wouldn't know anything about the product. They were actually pretty open with me and didn't seem offended by my question and were very friendly and helpful. She kinda said the same thing that natural means no animal by products

 

[JulyBlizzard]

I like what they are trying to do here but my big concern after the GMO part is this whole concept being floated out there that chickens don't need animal protein. A lot of this is merely derives from the whole mad cow crap. Well yeah because cows are ruminants. Chickens as you all know are like us--omnivores. So if they mixed in fish or some insects as a means of increasing the protein level I would take that in a second over soy. Even when you can find organic soy it is still a plant that isn't all that great for any animal in large amounts.

I am angry that it is so hard to find someone that doesn't raise there crops without using some crappy pesticides or gmos. The other problem to consider is that once grains are crushed they begin to oxidize and lose nutritional value. That said out of most of my current choices purina is it unless I want to not only pay a high price but also pay for the shipping. Over the summer I am going to try to figure out some ways to fix this and make as much feed as I can.

 

[jenX72]

Well, this is just for Alabama, but I am sure other states will have similar sites if you research. I found this link first http://www.eatwild.com/products/alabama.html
then, I went to
http://www.raisedonpasture.com/index.html
with the intent of buying farm raised meat. I sent them an email thanking them for the work they do etc...and told them that I knew even with my small flock of 23 chickens which are small animals, it is hard but rewarding work. So they then asked if I checked out on their page that they make and sell certified non GMO feed. It IS more expensive, and I do have to go pick it up at a little drive....but I think it will be worth it. I sell my eggs and just one of my customers consistently buys 4 dozen every week at $5 a dozen....so with her money alone, I will be able to afford 50 pounds of this organic feed. But now I worry about the scratch I give them. I don't know if we will ever know where everything comes from unless we just grow it all ourselves!