Layena vs Country Acres

[jomoncon]

I recently went to my local feed store to purchase my first bag for layer feed. I specifically asked for Layena & when they loaded it into the car, I saw it was Country Acres. The store manager said they were produced by the same company & that they were the same. I doubted that. Since I really needed the feed, I went ahead & purchased it.

Then I emailed Purina, asking if the two were the same. This was their reply:

SunFresh Layena is a premium feed that includes all of the calcium and grit your chicken will need per day. This feed contains natural plant proteins, essential amino acids and proprietary levels of Vitamin A & E which supports overall health, reproduction and healthy immune system. Exclusive levels of marigold extract for rich yellow yolks. Strong shells with fewer crack due to key levels of calcium and manganese.

Country Acres is an economy line of feed that does not contain the same nutrient value as SunFresh Layena. These diets are not the same and Country Acres does not contain Oyster Shell or grit in the feed. I have attached feed tags that list the ingredients and feeding recommendations.

Below is the comparison of the ingredients. I'm still trying to find a dealer that carries Layena. Is the difference in the 2 brands worth it? I can always add grit & oyster shell, but what about the marigold extract?


PURINA COUNTRY
LAYENA ACRES
CRUDE PROTEIN 16.00% 16.00%
LYSINE 0.55% 0.60%
METHIONINE 0.25% 0.30%
CRUDE FAT 2.50% 2.00%
CRUDE FIBER 7.00% 9.00%
CALCIUM (MIN) 3.25% 3.60%
CALCIUM (MAX) 4.25% 4.60%
PHOSPHORUS 0.50% 0.50%
SALT (MIN) 0.30% 0.80%
SALT (MAX) 0.80% 0.80%
SODIUM (MIN) 0.14% 0.20%
SODIUM (MAX) 0.19% 0.50%
MANGANESE 175 ppm 0
VITAMIN A 300 IU/LB 0
VITAMIN E 10 IU/LB 0

 

[Katy]

All the marigold does is make their yolks more yellow.

 

[speckledhen]

Country Acres is Purina's budget brand is all. I've used the starter when it was the only non-medicated I could find, but it was too powdery and too expensive. Country Acres used to contain animal protein, but since many have reformulated their feeds, it may be vegetarian just like Sunfresh. I don't buy vegetarian feeds if I can help it.

 

[Illia]

They sound the same to me. . . Commercialized vegetarian feed. Like speckledhen said, I'd skip the vegetarian if I could. All it is, is soy, corn, and wheat. The rest is filler amino acids, calcium, and a couple other things, and like Katy said - the marigold is just for the egg yolk. So in reality, you hens are not eating as healthy of diet as their egg yolks appear to say.