Turning Trash Hauls Into Feed

[SeanKriger]

You need to look into black soldier fly production. Also duckweed.
As a side, I'm going to share my long term goal with you,
AQUAPONICS! You buy an IBC tote, cut the top off, put water and fish in, have the water routed through plants to clean it, get amazing plant growth and fresh fish for the family, and chickens! My goal is a small green house for this, filling with bluefin carp (cold resistant) with a secondary tank next to the first tank made from the top, much shorter, and fulled with shrimp and duckweed (which would also be added to the big tank occasionally) but with the tap to the original tank on full blast so any fry end up in the second "grow out tank", this is the tank that would empty into the garden beds and eventually be pumped back up into the main tank, after being naturally filtered by feeding your plants!
The best benefit of this is that between the black soldier flies, the chickens, and the carp you have a good source for any and all food waste you find to be turned into viable healthy food for you and the family. The carp get a full diet from BSF, duckweed, shrimp, and scraps. With the shrimp, duckweed, carp, and BSF you would basically have a complete chicken feed if you just add brown rice, greens and herbs regularly. (But you may want to look into other sources for amounts/balancing on that)
This might be more work than you want to do, but most found food i have stumbled across was on the edge of edible, so I wanted to share a more complete "upcycling" plan for it for you.

I'd love to chat about aquaponics. That was my original goal with the totes. I would really like to harvest small fish and ferment my own fish sauce eventually.

 

[NatJ]

My main concern has been the balance of energy and protein. How to turn greens into protein is my main focal point. It's gotta be worms or bugs somehow.

If you provide enough protein, the chickens can probably balance energy/protein for themselves.

If protein is the limiting factor, one option is to limit your flock of chickens according to the amount of protein you have available. Alternately, buy the highest-protein chicken food you can find, because that's the main thing you are supplementing. Do the arithmetic to find cost per pound of protein rather than cost per pound of feed, to see which type of feed actually makes sense from the available options. (Example: a feed with 20% protein by weight will have 20 pounds of protein in 100 pounds of feed. Two bags at 50 pounds each will make 100 pounds of feed, with 20 pounds of protein. So you take the cost of 2 bags of feed and divide by the 20 pounds of protein to get the cost per pound of protein.)

Feeding the game I trap is a fun idea. I actually have coyotes all over the place, but I built a chain link fence that is 6' tall with 19 gauge wire across the top and a 4' apron around it. Then I am trapping on all sides. It's a good idea to feed the chickens what I catch.

Yup, more protein
I didn't think you would want to eat the coyotes yourself, but the chickens won't mind!

If you butcher chickens, the rest of the flock will probably be happy to eat the parts you do not want (example: the guts.) That also provides some protein. If you find eggs that get frozen in the winter, the chickens can eat them too. If you incubate eggs to hatch, and candle after about a week to check for development, the infertile eggs can also be fed back to the chickens.

I do get some meat that I can feed the chickens, but typically try to reserve good meat for myself and donations. Might make sense just to throw some to them.

I agree about feeding meat to the people first. You get more food value by eating it yourself than by feeding it to a chicken and then eating eggs or meat from the chicken.

But if you have more meat than the people can reasonably eat, definitely give it to the chickens, unless you want to save it in your freezer to feed to people later.

And don't forget about dairy, beans, fish, and any meat that the people may not want to eat (Liver? Canned with too many spices to suit the people? Smells OK but you don't quite trust how old it is? Chickens are less picky than most people, and food usually becomes unappetizing to people before it becomes dangerous for people or chickens to eat.)

The composting inside of the run is an idea. I think what I will do is wood chip a giant fenced in section and let them rotate into it during the day. That's a nifty idea. I already have free wood being dumped on site. I will likely use a cast iron stove to cook certain foods, like potatoes, for the chickens.

Sounds like a good plan!

My main concern has been the balance of energy and protein. How to turn greens into protein is my main focal point. It's gotta be worms or bugs somehow.

Compost pile helps with that too. Rather than picking specific bugs or worms to raise, you have a selection of whatever shows up naturally and thrives in your conditions. With enough compost area & depth as compared with the number of chickens, they can get quite a few bugs and worms but cannot wipe out the population, so there are always more bugs and worms to be found.

 

[Sono]

Howdy!

This is going to be one of the craziest posts on the forum. I am a trash diver. I am so efficient at it that I can feed my family of 4 in about 20 minutes of work dumpster diving once a week and about an hour or two of cleaning the food (yes, I wash everything thoroughly). This provides a tremendous amount of food. Let me show you 3 hauls worth.

Pics!

https://imgur.com/a/QQ3s5Vz

The thing is, if I spent about 4 hours, two or three times a week, I could bring home 200-300lbs of scrap food every single week by hitting more locations. I am attempting to start a food share program where I am basically gifting some to people in need. But, that leaves a tremendous amount of vegetable product leftover in both scraps and just flat out stuff we won't eat. There are days when I could grab literally 100lbs of potatoes, bananas, apples, greens of all type, and more. I am genuinely not kidding when I say 100 lbs.

I have a flock of 24 birds. I have been feeding them scraps from my hauls on a treat basis. Albeit, probably more than I should, but the majority of their diet is feed. I want to figure out a way to turn large quantities of food scraps into legitimate substitutes for feed where I can cut back their store-bought feed to only 20-30% of their total feed. Granted, I will still supplement with calcium and grit as needed.

A couple of avenues here. Any feedback is great.

I can put rotting meat scraps into a 50 gallon drum, let flies infest it (or I purchase some type of bug that would infest it- any ideas?), cut holes in the bottom, and let the bugs come out into the coop and get eaten all but immediately.

I would use an industrial apple crusher to grind products into much finer "chips". I add them to 275 gallon totes to create worm towers. Where I am stuck here is the labor involved in getting the worms to the chickens. Reproduction speed isn't the issue. I could have 10-20 of these totes and just let it go slowly but surely. It's how to transfer the worms efficiently and then also the time to harvest the casings. All of these products I can sell, but really I am just after quickly turning food scraps into protein and this seems like alot of work.

What else am I missing. Has anyone tried to harvest significant amounts of trash to supplement feed? I am also going to have rabbit hutches which seem easier to substitute feed, but I sure do like eggs and chickens. Also, I should mention that production volume is of virtually no importance in this system. The trash is basically a free byproduct for me. I'd rather have 1/2 egg production and not use any feed if it were possible.

Interested in where you dive for ideas to find food. Ive been to the local food pantries around us and the veggies and stuff are already rotting... basically giving out trash for us to throw away, although it doesnt go to waste as I feed it to the chickens.... but prices are crazy high here ( high taxes ) and being the only income on disability doesnt go far.

 

[SeanKriger]

Interested in where you dive for ideas to find food. Ive been to the local food pantries around us and the veggies and stuff are already rotting... basically giving out trash for us to throw away, although it doesnt go to waste as I feed it to the chickens.... but prices are crazy high here ( high taxes ) and being the only income on disability doesnt go far.

I live in Oklahoma City. We have Sprouts, Homeland, and even Aldi's. It really depends on the day. If the store has a trash compactor it's a bust, but most of the stores around me have just dumpsters in the back. Winter is a better time (cold preserves the food). But also, you just gotta get a rhythm and feel for it.

 

[Judy Todd]

Howdy!

This is going to be one of the craziest posts on the forum. I am a trash diver. I am so efficient at it that I can feed my family of 4 in about 20 minutes of work dumpster diving once a week and about an hour or two of cleaning the food (yes, I wash everything thoroughly). This provides a tremendous amount of food. Let me show you 3 hauls worth.

Pics!

https://imgur.com/a/QQ3s5Vz

The thing is, if I spent about 4 hours, two or three times a week, I could bring home 200-300lbs of scrap food every single week by hitting more locations. I am attempting to start a food share program where I am basically gifting some to people in need. But, that leaves a tremendous amount of vegetable product leftover in both scraps and just flat out stuff we won't eat. There are days when I could grab literally 100lbs of potatoes, bananas, apples, greens of all type, and more. I am genuinely not kidding when I say 100 lbs.

I have a flock of 24 birds. I have been feeding them scraps from my hauls on a treat basis. Albeit, probably more than I should, but the majority of their diet is feed. I want to figure out a way to turn large quantities of food scraps into legitimate substitutes for feed where I can cut back their store-bought feed to only 20-30% of their total feed. Granted, I will still supplement with calcium and grit as needed.

A couple of avenues here. Any feedback is great.

I can put rotting meat scraps into a 50 gallon drum, let flies infest it (or I purchase some type of bug that would infest it- any ideas?), cut holes in the bottom, and let the bugs come out into the coop and get eaten all but immediately.

I would use an industrial apple crusher to grind products into much finer "chips". I add them to 275 gallon totes to create worm towers. Where I am stuck here is the labor involved in getting the worms to the chickens. Reproduction speed isn't the issue. I could have 10-20 of these totes and just let it go slowly but surely. It's how to transfer the worms efficiently and then also the time to harvest the casings. All of these products I can sell, but really I am just after quickly turning food scraps into protein and this seems like alot of work.

What else am I missing. Has anyone tried to harvest significant amounts of trash to supplement feed? I am also going to have rabbit hutches which seem easier to substitute feed, but I sure do like eggs and chickens. Also, I should mention that production volume is of virtually no importance in this system. The trash is basically a free byproduct for me. I'd rather have 1/2 egg production and not use any feed if it were possible.

I thin what you are doing is amazing. We as Americans should be ashamed of the food we waste. I agree, if I could do this, I would be satisfied with less egg production. Could I ask , do you just go behind restaurants or grocery stores. I dont waste much food as, I have cickens and a compost pile. I also put most leftovers in the freezer and pull out to make soup, which I then freeze in small portions. Cannot add anything to your plan , but sure admire you.

 

[Nek]

Howdy!

This is going to be one of the craziest posts on the forum. I am a trash diver. I am so efficient at it that I can feed my family of 4 in about 20 minutes of work dumpster diving once a week and about an hour or two of cleaning the food (yes, I wash everything thoroughly). This provides a tremendous amount of food. Let me show you 3 hauls worth.

Pics!

https://imgur.com/a/QQ3s5Vz

The thing is, if I spent about 4 hours, two or three times a week, I could bring home 200-300lbs of scrap food every single week by hitting more locations. I am attempting to start a food share program where I am basically gifting some to people in need. But, that leaves a tremendous amount of vegetable product leftover in both scraps and just flat out stuff we won't eat. There are days when I could grab literally 100lbs of potatoes, bananas, apples, greens of all type, and more. I am genuinely not kidding when I say 100 lbs.

I have a flock of 24 birds. I have been feeding them scraps from my hauls on a treat basis. Albeit, probably more than I should, but the majority of their diet is feed. I want to figure out a way to turn large quantities of food scraps into legitimate substitutes for feed where I can cut back their store-bought feed to only 20-30% of their total feed. Granted, I will still supplement with calcium and grit as needed.

A couple of avenues here. Any feedback is great.

I can put rotting meat scraps into a 50 gallon drum, let flies infest it (or I purchase some type of bug that would infest it- any ideas?), cut holes in the bottom, and let the bugs come out into the coop and get eaten all but immediately.

I would use an industrial apple crusher to grind products into much finer "chips". I add them to 275 gallon totes to create worm towers. Where I am stuck here is the labor involved in getting the worms to the chickens. Reproduction speed isn't the issue. I could have 10-20 of these totes and just let it go slowly but surely. It's how to transfer the worms efficiently and then also the time to harvest the casings. All of these products I can sell, but really I am just after quickly turning food scraps into protein and this seems like alot of work.

What else am I missing. Has anyone tried to harvest significant amounts of trash to supplement feed? I am also going to have rabbit hutches which seem easier to substitute feed, but I sure do like eggs and chickens. Also, I should mention that production volume is of virtually no importance in this system. The trash is basically a free byproduct for me. I'd rather have 1/2 egg production and not use any feed if it were possible.

I feel as bad for your kids as I do for your chickens. Dumpster diving to feed your family is just sad. I can’t imagine how embarrassed your family is. Judging by the garage that you’re showing the food and you’re not poor so I don’t understand why.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

I feel as bad for your kids as I do for your chickens. Dumpster diving to feed your family is just sad. I can’t imagine how embarrassed your family is. Judging by the garage that you’re showing the food and you’re not poor so I don’t understand why.

You’ve obviously never worked in the food service industry. The stuff I would take home from catering jobs, restaurant work and working produce at a grocery store that would have otherwise gone in a dumpster is insane. Dumpster diving has a stigma, sure, but that’s only because we are an extremely wasteful society.

 

[Judy Todd]

Did want to add, that I have a huge garden, and grow extra kale and swiss chard, also lots of potatoes along with the normal veggies. You can freeze your over thehill veggies for the chickens or for soup, just a thought. I also save seeds and small
potatoes to plant next year. Have not bought seed potatoes for 15 years. Same for heirloom beans, the dry kind. I also put the chicken coop floor cover into the outside pen for them to dig through when I clean twice a year. Don't know if I can dumpster dive, at 87 years old, but sure would like to try it. Time for all of us to be more frugal with our food costs, it is not going to bet better in the next few years.

I feel as bad for your kids as I do for your chickens. Dumpster diving to feed your family is just sad. I can’t imagine how embarrassed your family is. Judging by the garage that you’re showing the food and you’re not poor so I don’t understand why.

Wow, very judgmental, shame on you. I have seen the food thrown out, and 90 percent of the time it is just fine. Don't want to judge why she does this, don't know her circumstances, but I would do it if I were not so old.

 

[CraziChknLady]

Wow, very judgmental, shame on you. I have seen the food thrown out, and 90 percent of the time it is just fine. Don't want to judge why she does this, don't know her circumstances, but I would do it if I were not so old.

Yes we are very wasteful as a society. And not just with food. It would great if places could donate to food banks or non profits before throwing food out. But I do understand places like restaurants have laws in which they may not be able to do that. Each states policies and laws are different.

Someone could always try speaking to the store or produce manager and may be able to get the extra food before it's thrown in the dumpster.
Or maybe work with food banks to take the less desirable items for the chickens leaving the rest to the food bank or non profit.

If you do dumpster dive, just be extremely careful. Technically it is considered trespassing. And sharp objects, glass, etc could be present.

We never know anyone's situation.

 

[Judy Todd]

You’ve obviously never worked in the food service industry. The stuff I would take home from catering jobs, restaurant work and working produce at a grocery store that would have otherwise gone in a dumpster is insane. Dumpster diving has a stigma, sure, but that’s only because we are an extremely wasteful society.

Thank you, I, also sent a word of praise for the dumpster diver. Yes, I saw the waste is the grocery and restaurant business, we Americans will ot buy an apple with a tiny scratch or bruise. We, as a whole have never gone hungry or had a war in our front yard. I applauded her, as I said in my message. Might just check it out myself, even at the age of 87. The only reason the restaurants do not give this food away is because they are afraid of being skewed by the legal system.