What are the correct methods for feeding rice bran to chickens?
Rice bran is the main by-product of rice processing and is generally used as feed for poultry and livestock, so what are the methods for feeding rice bran to chickens?
1. What is rice bran?
Rice bran is the material milled off during the whitening of rice. Today's rice bran is mainly made from the pericarp, seed coat, outer endosperm, aleurone layer and embryo. Rice bran is rich in various nutrients and physiologically active substances. It can be used as feed and can also be further processed into edible rice bran.
Medical research shows that rice bran oil can remove cholesterol from the blood, lower blood lipids and promote human growth and development. It has a certain medicinal value and is recognized at home and abroad as a nutritious and healthy oil 5; rice bran oil is easy to absorb, with an absorption rate of more than 90% after eating.
2. Methods for feeding rice bran to chickens
Rice bran can be mixed with feed and water to feed chickens. When feeding chickens, the amount of rice bran should also be noted. Generally, in the daily ration of adult chickens, a rice bran amount of 10% or less is more suitable, while in the daily ration of chicks, a rice bran amount of about 5% is more suitable.
Rice bran used in animal husbandry generally mainly includes full-fat rice bran and defatted rice bran. Defatted rice bran refers to rice bran after the fat in the rice bran, namely rice bran oil, has been extracted, generally to reduce rancidity of rice bran fatty acids and prolong the storage period. Rice bran is rich in nutrients and is a relatively good energy feed, and its price is lower than corn and wheat bran.
Research suggests that for broilers aged 21-49 days, when the amount of rice bran used in the diet is less than 20%, feed intake is not significantly affected; while in some other trials it was found that for broilers aged 10-49 days, when the rice bran content in the diet was in the range of 0-53.9%, feed conversion ratio did not change significantly, but growth rate slowed markedly.
When the rice bran amount reaches 38.5%, compared with the diet group with a rice bran amount of 18.5%, although the crude protein level is the same and the energy is slightly higher, indicators such as egg production and egg weight of laying hens all decrease markedly.
Therefore, when using rice bran to feed chickens, be sure to pay attention to the amount used.