Feed particle distribution and nutritional variability of feed fines drives on-farm nutrient segregation

Pellets, fines, feed additives, and nutrients can segregate in poultry houses, ultimately impacting flock performance. Analyzing pellets and fines separately may provide a better understanding of bird response to on-farm nutrient variability. A five-day field study was conducted in a commercial broiler house with withdrawal feed to evaluate feed particle and nutrient distribution and their relationship with broiler growth performance. Feed samples were collected from three feed pan locations (FPL) at the front, middle, and back of the broiler house. All feed samples were sifted using a No. 6 ASTM sieve for pellet-to-fine ratio (P:F) determination. Complete feed (pellets and fines combined) was analyzed in Experiment 1 for crude fat, protein, phytase activity, and total amino acid concentrations. In Experiment 2, pellets and fines were analyzed separately. Feed bin inventories and broiler body weights (BW) were collected passively and extracted from the Intelia FarmHub system. In Experiment 1, the proportion of pellets in feed pans increased from the front to the back of the house (P<0.01). In Experiment 2, nutrient composition of pellets did not differ by FPL (P>0.05). On the other hand, fines varied in crude fat (P=0.04), lysine (P=0.04), and threonine (P=0.03) concentrations across FPL. Pellets contained greater concentrations of lysine (P=0.02), threonine (P=0.03), and valine (P=0.03) compared to fines. In conclusion, providing a standard-quality pelleted diet (65% pellets and 35% fines) led to feed particle and nutrient segregation, which may have contributed broiler performance.