What’s important to you about feed?

[TwistedTayy]

I feel like cost is going to be something important for a lot of us but I’m curious. Post why it’s important, the brand you feed, etc. I’ve seen a lot of breeders emphasizing what they feed in order to sell their birds/hatching eggs so I’m curious what everyone thinks is actually important.

 

[Weeg]

In the poll, I chose No corn, no soy, non GMO, higher protein and organic. I think it is incredibly important.

I highly prioritize organic feed since corn is the most heavily sprayed crop in the US. The plant and corn its self is sprayed in pesticides, and RoundUp which contains glyphosate and causes cancer. Absolutely not something I want to be feeding my chickens.
RoundUp is sprayed on corn to increase the growth rate and production of crops, commonly right before harvest on plants that are not genetically engineered to dry out the crop so it is ready sooner than if left to dry naturally.
Not only are pesticides horrible for the consumer, but its horrible for the environment. Sprays will the soil ecosystem, and destroy whole point of a functional farm. With organic farming, this is avoided.
https://www.ewg.org/news-insights/news/glyphosate-contamination-food-goes-far-beyond-oat-products

Its a ton of nasty, I would absolutely never want to be giving my birds a direct dose of glyphosate in their food.

Non-GMO is important to me because GMO products are also heavily sprayed. That is the point really, to create a crop that will not be affected by herbicides, pesticides, and RoundUp for more efficient growing. Not something I want to give my chickens.
I choose no corn and soy since they are the two most heavily sprayed crops. Even organic feeds are not 100% organic, or are heavily spraying with organic pesticides. Not interested.

Protein is important to me because my birds do a lot of free ranging, and I prefer a higher protein to make sure they are not deficient. I also prefer to not have to switch feed in the winter, during molt, etc, etc.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

That it first fits their nutrition needs. Then I get as much protein as possible in it (usually between 22 and 26 percent).

I give oyster shell, so I don't worry about calcium in the feed apart from for the quail

 

[AnnPann]

In the poll, I chose No corn, no soy, non GMO, higher protein and organic. I think it is incredibly important.

I highly prioritize organic feed since corn is the most heavily sprayed crop in the US. The plant and corn its self is sprayed in pesticides, and RoundUp which contains glyphosate and causes cancer. Absolutely not something I want to be feeding my chickens.
RoundUp is sprayed on corn to increase the growth rate and production of crops, commonly right before harvest on plants that are not genetically engineered to dry out the crop so it is ready sooner than if left to dry naturally.
Not only are pesticides horrible for the consumer, but its horrible for the environment. Sprays will the soil ecosystem, and destroy whole point of a functional farm. With organic farming, this is avoided.
https://www.ewg.org/news-insights/news/glyphosate-contamination-food-goes-far-beyond-oat-products

Its a ton of nasty, I would absolutely never want to be giving my birds a direct dose of glyphosate in their food.

Non-GMO is important to me because GMO products are also heavily sprayed. That is the point really, to create a crop that will not be affected by herbicides, pesticides, and RoundUp for more efficient growing. Not something I want to give my chickens.
I choose no corn and soy since they are the two most heavily sprayed crops. Even organic feeds are not 100% organic, or are heavily spraying with organic pesticides. Not interested.

Protein is important to me because my birds do a lot of free ranging, and I prefer a higher protein to make sure they are not deficient. I also prefer to not have to switch feed in the winter, during molt, etc, etc.

100% all of this ^

 

[K0k0shka]

I'm not a food snob for either the humans or the animals in my family, so I'm not picky about chicken feed (and wouldn't look down on a breeder simply because of what they feed their birds). GMO isn't evil, the label "organic" has been abused to the point where it doesn't mean much anymore, etc. so those things are not important to me. If it meets their nutritional needs, and won't bankrupt me, it's totally fine. There are two things I do watch out for though - I don't like feeds with added calcium, because I like to let my chickens regulate themselves, so I don't use layer feeds. I provide calcium on the side, and let the chickens decide how much they need. And the chickens seem to strongly prefer crumble over pellet, so I humor them. I have a no-waste feeder, so the texture doesn't matter to me. They can have what they like. I use Purina Flock Raiser and everybody is healthy and happy!

 

[TXchickmum]

-always fed my flock Nature Smart organic layer crumbles. (then, I was unable to get it in my location) I feed Nature's Best organic layer crumbles. -also, supplement with oyster grit, and give the girls extra veggies/fruit from the garden. They eat bugs/grass from the lawn. (We do not use any pesticides on our lawn or garden.) - prefer everything as nature intended without interference/chemicals. -just my preference.

 

[Weeg]

In the poll, I chose No corn, no soy, non GMO, higher protein and organic. I think it is incredibly important.

I highly prioritize organic feed since corn is the most heavily sprayed crop in the US. The plant and corn its self is sprayed in pesticides, and RoundUp which contains glyphosate and causes cancer. Absolutely not something I want to be feeding my chickens.
RoundUp is sprayed on corn to increase the growth rate and production of crops, commonly right before harvest on plants that are not genetically engineered to dry out the crop so it is ready sooner than if left to dry naturally.
Not only are pesticides horrible for the consumer, but its horrible for the environment. Sprays will the soil ecosystem, and destroy whole point of a functional farm. With organic farming, this is avoided.
https://www.ewg.org/news-insights/news/glyphosate-contamination-food-goes-far-beyond-oat-products

Its a ton of nasty, I would absolutely never want to be giving my birds a direct dose of glyphosate in their food.

Non-GMO is important to me because GMO products are also heavily sprayed. That is the point really, to create a crop that will not be affected by herbicides, pesticides, and RoundUp for more efficient growing. Not something I want to give my chickens.
I choose no corn and soy since they are the two most heavily sprayed crops. Even organic feeds are not 100% organic, or are heavily spraying with organic pesticides. Not interested.

Protein is important to me because my birds do a lot of free ranging, and I prefer a higher protein to make sure they are not deficient. I also prefer to not have to switch feed in the winter, during molt, etc, etc.

Adding to this.

Its also important to me that the feed is not a layer feed. I have roosters, older hens, and young birds. Any birds that are not laying for one reason or another, or not laying every single day don't need the extra calcium. When fed long term it can cause kidney damage. My birds are pets and I plan to keep them for as long as possible, there for layer feed is not something I want to feed.

Another thing on the list that I saw interested me, pre/probiotics. Yes, pre and probiotics are very very beneficial for chickens. They're immune boosters, and help digest the foods they eat and use the nutrients. Very beneficial for all species. But in chicken feed, no, its not important to me at all, not in any animal feed honestly. Why? Because pre and probiotics are very sensitive to heat. If they even survive the processing of the feed, then storage, shipment, etc, are all factors and wether or not they actually make it the chicken alive. I can't imagine that a lot of the pre and probiotics added to feed live to be beneficial to the bird eating it.
Similar situation with antioxidants. Very heat sensitive, and most antioxidants added to pet food are synthetic, and actually added to preserve the feed, not benefit the animal. But the company still advertises it.

 

[K0k0shka]

Because pre and probiotics are very sensitive to heat. If they even survive the processing of the feed, then storage, shipment, etc, are all factors and wether or not they actually make it the chicken alive. I can't imagine that a lot of the pre and probiotics added to feed live to be beneficial to the bird eating it.
Similar situation with antioxidants. Very heat sensitive, and most antioxidants added to pet food are synthetic, and actually added to preserve the feed, not benefit the animal. But the company still advertises it.

In the tech world, that’s called feature bloat. You stuff a product full of questionably useful features of marginal value, which nonetheless catch the attention and look good on a list, so the user/customer who’s not deeply familiar with them, will be impressed and will pay a higher price for the product, thinking they’re getting a good deal. That’s why I’m suspicious of those fashionable “health foods” for both chickens and humans. Often, they are packed full of buzzwords and care more about presentation and marketing, than the actual health of the target audience.

 

[TwistedTayy]

In the tech world, that’s called feature bloat. You stuff a product full of questionably useful features of marginal value, which nonetheless catch the attention and look good on a list, so the user/customer who’s not deeply familiar with them, will be impressed and will pay a higher price for the product, thinking they’re getting a good deal. That’s why I’m suspicious of those fashionable “health foods” for both chickens and humans. Often, they are packed full of buzzwords and care more about presentation and marketing, than the actual health of the target audience.

This is kind of why I wanted to do the poll and get a discussion going about this. It’s the same with pet food but I have more years of experience buying dog food than chicken food. I follow the idea of buying the best quality you can afford BUT it’s hard to know what’s best or worth spending the extra money on. That’s what I love about BYC… people have actual experience.

 

[Weeg]

In the tech world, that’s called feature bloat. You stuff a product full of questionably useful features of marginal value, which nonetheless catch the attention and look good on a list, so the user/customer who’s not deeply familiar with them, will be impressed and will pay a higher price for the product, thinking they’re getting a good deal. That’s why I’m suspicious of those fashionable “health foods” for both chickens and humans. Often, they are packed full of buzzwords and care more about presentation and marketing, than the actual health of the target audience.

Yep, this exactly.
I just add my own antioxidants and pro and prebiotics. I don't trust any fancy labeling like that. Even plants, or herbs listed on the label and blow up to the size of a football aren’t added in large enough amounts that they’re beneficial. It’s like a sprinkle in a bag if feed.