• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Livestocking

  • HOME
  • ANIMAL
    • Poultry
      • Chicken
      • Turkey
      • Guinea Fowl
      • Quail
      • Ostrich
      • Incubator & Egg
      • Coop
    • Pig
    • Ruminant
      • Cattle
      • Goat
      • Sheep
    • Micro-Livestock
      • Grasscutter
      • Guinea Pig
      • Honey Bee
      • Rabbit
      • Snail
    • Guinea Pig
  • MANAGEMENT
    • Health
    • Agribusiness
    • Nutrition
  • SHOP
  • ABOUT
    • About Livestocking
    • About Author
  • CONTACT
  • PRIVACY

[DIY] How to Easily Formulate Feeds for Poultry Birds

by Akinbobola A. 17 Comments


poultry growers mash feedExcept for a few feed manufacturers who keep to the standards in poultry feed formulations, many feed companies in Nigeria make very poor quality feeds, a situation which has resulted in huge losses. Poor quality feeds lead to slow growth in chickens, low egg production, diseases, and death. Formulating your poultry feeds on the farm is one of the best ways to maintain quality and cut the cost of production.

The common feed ingredients are whole maize, cotton seed cake, soya beans, sunflower or fish meal. In addition, farmers need to add several other feed additives (micronutrients, minerals and vitamins) to ensure that their chickens have a balanced feed that meets their daily nutrient requirements.

Livestock feed materials are available cheaply, especially after the harvesting season. Depending on the costs of the raw materials, farmers who make their feeds at home save between 30% to 50% for every 70kg bag of chicken feed, depending on the source of their raw materials.


Due to government regulation, major feed companies have reduced the standard quantity of feed 25kg per bag, but the price of feed still remains almost the same. This means that farmers who can make their own feed make great savings on feeds which take up to 80 percent of the production costs.

To formulate livestock feeds, farmers have to use the Pearson Square method. In this method, the digestible crude protein (DCP) is the basic nutritional requirement for any feed preparation for all animals and birds.

Assuming that a farmer wants to make feed for his/her chicken using this method, he/she has to know the crude protein content of each of the ingredients to be used for making the feed.

ALSO READ:  Top 3 Should-Have Android Apps for Poultry Farmers

The following are the DCP values for each of the common ingredients used in feed making:

Whole maize—8.23%

Soya—45%

Fishmeal—55%

Maize bran—7%

Sunflower—35%

Each class of chicken has its nutritional requirement. For example, if we want to make feed for layers, the feed should have at least 18% crude protein.

To formulate feed for layers, then you would have to calculate the percentage of DCP in each of the ingredients you want to use to ensure that the total crude protein content is at least 18%.

Therefore, to make a 50kg bag of feed for layers, a livestock farmer would require the following quantity of ingredients:

24.3kg of whole maize = 24.3kg

8.6kg of soya = 8.6kg

5.7kg of fishmeal= 5.7kg

7.1kg of maize bran= 7.1kg

4.3kg of limestone (as a calcium source) = 4.3kg

To find out if all the above ingredients meet this standard of 18% crude protein, a farmer can do a simple calculation as follows:

Whole maize — 24.3kg x 8.23 ÷100 = 2.0%

Soya — 8.6kg x 45kg ÷ 100 = 3.87%

Fishmeal — 5.7kg x 55kg ÷ 100 = 3.14%

Maize Bran— 7.1kg x 7kg ÷ 100 = 0.5%

Lime — 4.3kg x 0 kg ÷ 100 = 0.00%

Total % of crude protein = 2.00 + 3.87 + 3.14 + 0.5 + 0 = 9.51%

To get the total crude protein percentage of all these ingredients in a 50kg bag of feed, the farmer should take this crude protein content of the combined ingredients, divide by 50kg and multiply by 100,

Thus; 9.51 ÷ 50 × 100 = 18%.

ALSO READ:  Nutritional difference between white maize and yellow maize and the effect on poultry birds

This shows that the crude protein content of the above feed formulation is 19%, which is quite adequate for layers.

To ensure the chicken to get all they need in terms of nutrients such as vitamins, minerals and amino acids, you need these additives in their standard quantities.

Digestible Crude Protein requirement for:

Layers chick—18-20% CP

Growers—16% CP

Layers—18% CP

Broilers—22-24% CP

  • The feed should contain calcium for the formation of eggshells. Laying hens that do not get enough calcium will use the calcium stored in their own bone tissue to produce eggshells.
  • Layer feed should be introduced at 18 weeks.
  • Farmers who have more than 500 chickens, it is advisable to make 1 tonne of feed at once
  • Ensure that all the feed you make will last for one month and not longer. This ensures that the feed remains fresh and safe for chickens. Any feed that lasts more than one month may deteriorate in quality and can affect your chickens.

Daily feed requirements for each growth stage

Farmers should maintain the right feed quantities for chicken at each stage of growth as shown below:

  • An egg-laying chicken requires 130-140g of feed per day.
  • A chick requires a minimum 60g per day. If they finish their daily rations, give them fruit and vegetable cuttings to ensure they feed continuously.
  • Young chickens (or pullets) which are about to start laying eggs should be fed 60g for 2 and ½ months and then put on layer diet (140g per day). Supplement the feed with vegetables, edible plant leaves and fruit peelings in addition to their feed rations.
  • Broiler chicks require 67g per day. Broiler finishers require 67g of feed per day to the day of slaughter.
  • Chickens are very sensitive to aflatoxins- never use rotten ingredients while making feeds.
ALSO READ:  Poultry Diseases that are Rampant in the Cold or Wet Season

Where to buy ingredients

Farmers who need raw materials for feed making including feed additives (pre-mixes and amino acids) can order them from a reputable feedmill nearest to them.

Important tips on feed preparation

  • When making feed rations yourself, it is important to do experimental trials, by isolating a number of chickens, feeding them and observing their performance. If the feed rations are right, the broilers will grow fast and layers will increase egg production (at least 1 egg after every 27 hours).
  • Buy quality fishmeal from reputable companies. If fishmeal is used, the farmers must be sure of its quality; most of the fishmeal in the markets is contaminated. Farmers are advised to go for soya meal if they cannot get good quality fishmeal.
  • Always mix the micronutrients first before mixing them with the rest of the feed.
  • For mixing, farmers are advised to use a drum mixer. Using a shovel to mix feed is not recommended because the ingredients will be unevenly distributed.

Related Posts

  • Sample Feed Formula for Turkey
  • Nutritional Requirements of Broilers
  • Nutritional Requirements of Chicks, Pullets & Layers
  • Feed Formula Sample For Broiler Starter Mash
  • Feed Formula Sample for Chick Mash
Share5
Tweet
Pin
WhatsApp
5 Shares

CLICK HERE TO JOIN LIVESTOCKING WHATSAPP & TELEGRAM GROUP

BUY LIVESTOCKING FEED FORMULATOR. CLICK FOR DETAILS


Filed Under: Nutrition, Poultry Tagged: feeds and nutrition, poultry, poultry feeds

About Akinbobola A.

I am a young entrepreneur, certified animal scientist, consultant and blogger. You can follow Livestocking on Facebook and Twitter. Click Here to E-mail me

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Olasunkanmi Mojeed says

    October 11, 2016 at 6:03 pm

    I must commend your good work here, i have been blessed with resourceful information on feed formulation. thank you and may God bless you real good.
    NB: I am planning to set up a small feed mill venture and your enlightened write-up has help a lot.

    Reply
    • Akinbobola A. says

      October 12, 2016 at 7:05 am

      Thank you Sunkanmi. God bless you too!

      Reply
  2. Victor Pellet Mill says

    May 2, 2018 at 8:49 am

    your ingredients are very greatful,it must be a big helpful to the ones who want to make his own feeds
    ,but equipment making feed is also very important.

    Reply
    • Akinbobola A. says

      May 4, 2018 at 3:41 pm

      Thanks for your comment!

      Reply
  3. Abigail says

    June 10, 2018 at 7:09 am

    Thanks for the enlightenment. Pls I hv 300 birds and want to make my own feed for at least two weeks.
    Pls how do I mix the ingredients

    Reply
    • Akinbobola A. says

      June 11, 2018 at 1:29 pm

      Use a motor feed mixer or spread the ingredients on the floor and use shovel to mix them thoroughly, like you’re mixing cement, sand and water together.

      Reply
  4. Olabanji Nurudeen says

    June 20, 2018 at 4:22 pm

    thanks for the information. pls i have a question? can we include granite in the chicken feed. as i read somewhere that its help chicken digest food better.

    Reply
    • Akinbobola A. says

      June 22, 2018 at 12:11 pm

      Yes, you can. It increases feed digestion.

      Reply
  5. Aisha says

    June 27, 2018 at 12:18 pm

    Very comprehensive

    Reply
    • Akinbobola A. says

      June 28, 2018 at 7:18 am

      Thank you!

      Reply
  6. queen says

    July 22, 2018 at 8:26 am

    Comment: Pls how do I start mixing the feed and what will I use to measure the right percentage….. and where can I get these ingredients???

    Reply
    • Akinbobola A. says

      July 23, 2018 at 6:27 pm

      Use a weighing scale. The ingredients can be purchased from reputable commercial feedmills.

      Reply
  7. Domingo Adenuga says

    January 8, 2019 at 3:09 am

    Hi Mr Akinbolaa, You are doing a good job. I learnt a lot today May God bless you.
    Hope to get back to you as soon As I come back from Germany

    Reply
  8. Alabi says

    May 14, 2019 at 4:07 pm

    Thank you for your information. I want to set up small feed mill firm how would l go about it.

    Reply
  9. weng says

    May 30, 2019 at 8:53 am

    pls can you add me to any poultry and piggery what’s app group you belong to?
    my number 07036445372

    Reply
  10. Fajoye Olaniyi says

    July 22, 2019 at 9:53 pm

    Good orientation, highly appreciated. Thanks

    Reply
  11. Abraham says

    September 12, 2019 at 4:29 pm

    Good one,God bless u sir. Keep up.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Buy Day Old Chicks Online

Buy Chicks Online

Recommended Articles

  • How to Fumigate a Brooding House & Pen
  • Names of Sexes, Young and Act of Giving Birth of Livestock Species
  • How to Defeather Chickens Using Plucking Machines
  • Feed Formula for Grasscutter (Cane Rat)
  • Download Livestocking Feed Formulation Software

BEST SELLING PRODUCTS

  • A Simple Guide on Raising Broilers for Household and Commercial Purposes ₦5,000.00 ₦4,999.00
  • local chicken farming ebook Comprehensive Local Chicken Farming Ebook ₦5,000.00 ₦4,999.00
  • Livestocking Feed Formulator ₦20,000.00 ₦10,000.00

FOLLOW LIVESTOCKING

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Footer

Afrimash Affiliate Disclosure

“We are a participant in the Afrimash Affiliates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn commissions by linking to Afrimash.com and affiliated sites.”

DISCLOSURE

Some of the links on this page may contain affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, i will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. This way i can continue to produce high-quality content and keep Livestocking.net running.

Copyright © 2019 by Livestocking · All rights reserved

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy
  • Advertise
  • Amazon Associates Disclosure
  • Submit Guest Posts
  • Sitemap