The Influence of Method of Crumbling Diets Containing Different Levels of Protein and Lysine on Chick Performance

IT IS standard practice to pellet and crumble chick diets before feeding. Such processing alters not only the physical form of the feed but often alters the performance of the birds receiving the processed feeds. The nature and extent of these changes depend on the type of feed and on the processing conditions used. Bearse et al. (1952) found that pelleting improved the nutritional value of feeds, particularly those with a high fibre level. Cave et al. (1965) found that the performance of chicks receiving a diet containing wheat bran was increased when the diets were pelleted. However, Jensen et al. (1965) found different effects of pelleting turkey grower rations depending on the protein content of the feed. Steam pelleting improved the performance on a diet with adequate protein levels but for diets with only marginal protein or lysine levels steam pelleting reduced performance. They suggested that pelleting had increased . . .