Good pellet quality is essential for optimum feed conversion in poultry—broiler chickens, ducks, and turkeys—and swine. Compared to mash feed, pelleted feeds reduce the time and energy needed to digest feed resulting in improved feed efficiency. This leaves the animal with more energy available for growth. In addition, less time eating means that there is more feeder space available for the rest of the flock insuring the birds grow uniformly.
Science clearly indicates that pellet quality is important, but ingredient consistency and formulation can have an effect on the feed’s ability to form a good pellet. Diets with coarsely ground corn can be difficult to bind. A feed manufacturer’s goal should be to produce a quality pellet regardless of formulation, ingredient consistency, or equipment.
Pellet Durability Index (PDI)
Our Quality Assurance Department tests the PDI of feeds according to a fixed schedule and shares those results with each mill location. “Our goal is to engage mill personnel and mill maintenance by sharing our findings and soliciting their ideas for improvement,” noted Kevin Herkelman, Technical Services Manager. In addition, a pilot program for a faster on-premises PDI test is currently being developed.
1/8 Inch Pellets
Recently, Wenger’s began a trial of 1/8 inch pellets at the Spring Glen and Shippensburg Mills. “Our goal was to provide slightly smaller and more durable pellets for specialty feed customers. Unlike chickens, ducks are unable to eat fines, so pellet quality is paramount for this customer,” noted Dan McNally, Account Leader. Since equipment must be changed to make the smaller pellets, several departments are working together to schedule loads and seek other customers with an interest in smaller size pellets to insure efficient operation of the mill equipment.
On-Farm Visits
While testing pellet quality at the mill is important, the pellets must survive their journey into the feed bin and into the feeder—which is where Adam Zurin comes in. Adam, Customer Quality Representative, is starting a pilot program for on-farm visits. The goal of this program is to collect on-farm samples for PDI analysis and insure good communication between Wenger’s and its customers regarding quality issues.
Continuous Improvement
Testing, on-farm evaluation, and equipment changes are just part of the effort to continuously improve customer satisfaction. Wenger Feeds continues to test ingredients and seek customer and employee feedback on improving pellet quality.
