What to feed to avoid corn

[rosawoodsii]

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Food would be cheaper if we used real money instead of the paper fraud that the Federal Reserve puts out. Cheap food is not cheap, btw, if it compromises your health.

 

[Hen_House_Rocks!]

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Thank you for pointing this out. Sometimes I think farmers need to get their message out there better. There is a reason for the GM grains and it isn't about control. It's about staying profitable and being able to keep your farm when input costs keep rising.

 

[Chris09]

Am I wrong but wouldn't Hybrids be considered "GM" (genetically-modified)?
These plants have been modified in the laboratory to enhance desired traits such as color, size of fruit, size of plant, longer storage, diseases, pests, etc.'

I believe like other on here that the American Farmer is getting a bad rap just for trying to make a living...
If it wasn't for the Farmer over 3/4 of the people here in the U.S. would die of starvation.

Chris

 

[weirdmuse]

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Wheat, oats, and barley are not (yet) developed and approved as GM crops. And no, organic crops do not and cannot use GM seeds and still be labeled organic.

Interesting comment about Roundup-ready crops. According to the latest data world-wide, they end up using four to five times as much pesticide as non-RR crops. Now if you're an advocate of cheap food, go for it. I'd rather spend my money on healthy food than on medical care for me or my critters. GM-fed livestock have a much higher abortion rate, birth defects, and illness. The research is out there if you want to take the time to google it.

And I do grow most of my own food. If I had the resources, I'd grow my livestock feed as well.

Not to derail any further (but I guess I am), I would be interested in seeing the studies that state RR crops end up using 4 to 5 times as much pesticide as non RR crops. I raise RR beans and it's been a godsend from the standpoint of much reduced spray and spray costs while maintaining a good yield.

 

[rosawoodsii]

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No, hybrids are not genetically modified, and they're not created in a laboratory. They're created by deliberate cross-pollination. That's quite a different thing.

GM crops are created by splicing bits of DNA from completely separate organisms into the cell nucleus of the recipient crop. So, Roundup Ready crops have a gene from a completely unrelated bacterium introduced into the genetic structure. There are other GM products that have animal DNA spliced in.

The first German farmer (sorry, I don't recall his name, but I have it in my files somewhere) who eagerly embraced GM corn several years ago was thrilled with the yield, fed the corn to his pregnant cows--and saw his herd devasted with abortions and gross birth defects. When he notified Monsanto, they denied responsibility. When he started talking to his neighbors and other friends in Germany, Monsanto went after him with a vengeance, seeking to shut him up. They never came and looked at his cows, never addressed the problem, they just went on the attack.

So far as the farmer is concerned, farmers have been sold a bill of goods, starting in the 1930's with the New Deal. The USDA made a policy decision that the U.S. needed only about 200 large farms to feed us all. BY POLICY DECISION, that meant putting the family farmer out of business and promoting agriculture as a corporate enterprise. But I digress. The links below will lead you to some information about GM crops. Monsanto is not your friend, and GM crops are a threat to you, your livestock, and the food you eat.

http://pameladrew.newsvine.com/_new...anto-roundup-ready-dna-found-in-food-soil-web
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/19/monsanto-gm-corn-causing_n_425195.html
http://www.naturalnews.com/026705_Monsanto_corn_GM_corn.html
http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/01/09/GM-Corn-Poses-Health-Hazard.aspx


Enough said. I'd still like to have an answer to my original question. Anyone got one?

 

[Wifezilla]

If you have a local feed store, they should have software to help you formulate a mix that would work for your birds. The only problem with using them is they will want you to buy 1000-2000 lbs at a time for a custom mix.

Freemotion posted on another forum that she basically let her hens tell her what to feed them. She put out different containers of different grains/proteins and noted how much of each was eaten in a specific time. This helped her come up with her own formula. She is a member here too, so try sending her a pm.

I want to feed this to my ducks, but can't get it here for some reason.
http://spicerbirdfarm.com/spicerfeed.html

From what is listed on the site, Alfalfa meal, fish meal and kelp meal are main ingredients.

 

[Zac S. Orig. 7 hatchery]

I do not see why you would like to avoid corn. This would be a danger to your flock if you live in a cold climate. I have a little over 100 chickens and corn is what keeps them alive during the MN winter. If I skip feeding corn for one day, the birds will shiver through out the night. With corn, the birds are entirely warm and comfortable. Corn generates nutrients, I am not a scientist or even very good on food nutrinets, but I can tell you that the reason I have not lost any of my birds through our -25 degree weather is no coincidence. 2 parts corn to 3-5 part layer is good, depending on your waether. Please reconcider not using corn!

 

[PaulaJoAnne]

Zac S. Orig. 7 hatchery :

I do not see why you would like to avoid corn. This would be a danger to your flock if you live in a cold climate. I have a little over 100 chickens and corn is what keeps them alive during the MN winter. If I skip feeding corn for one day, the birds will shiver through out the night. With corn, the birds are entirely warm and comfortable. Corn generates nutrients, I am not a scientist or even very good on food nutrinets, but I can tell you that the reason I have not lost any of my birds through our -25 degree weather is no coincidence. 2 parts corn to 3-5 part layer is good, depending on your waether. Please reconcider not using corn!

Ummm, I live in Alaska, and do not feed corn. Nor do many other people I know. No shivering, although we do provide a tiny bit of heat when it hits 20 below and lower, just to prevent frozen combs.
We do local Barley, local fishmeal and oyster shell, plus alfalfa and scraps.
Summer they free range mostly.​

 

[eggchel]

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Rosawoodsii, Did you look at the feed recipe posted above? It looks like a good feed mix recipe and also gives links to several other locations that have organic feed recipes.

I use purchased flock raiser for my waterfowl and pea fowl, but I mix it in thirds with red wheat and re-cleaned whole oats plus I use a floating waterfowl feed. I rarely give corn.

 

[Organics North]

OK,
What to use other than corn. That is the question. Here is what I am doing so far:
Oats, Wheat (Red Hard/Winter), Black Oil Sunflower seeds, Clover or Alfalfa seeds (All sprouted) Then the mash is chopped apples, or pumkins (Froze in fall from the yard.) This mixed with Alfalfa meal, Fish meal, Black jack molasses and Azomite, . Are all good as far as I can tell. (I use them as primary and then free choice with organic premix which does have corn and soy in it, which they eat very little of. (Trying to eliminate it totally.)

I have an interested in Flax, Quinoa and field peas to work into the mix. Also maybe look at Indian corn or some of the pop corns are not modified.
There are a fair amount of alternatives on this forum and on the net. Corn is really just a cheap filler. Carbs..

Personally, I try and use as little corn and soy as I can, (For me, my family and my chickens).... Way Way to much of both corn and soy in the American diet.

ON