High performance vs. economic efficiency on layer nutrition

Profitability is essential for any layer farmer and egg producer. Feed prices around the world have increased, some more than double over the past year. Considering that feed can be 70% of the cost to produce an egg, what is a farmer to do to maintain profitability when egg prices do not also increase?

1. KNOW WHAT YOU NEED AND WHAT YOU DON’T NEED

There are 3 fundamental components to any layer diet that impact productivity – energy, amino acids and minerals. But how much of each is really necessary?

Energy: In general, feed 300kcal per bird, which is the necessary average energy intake requirement of a layer. This can vary slightly depending upon the variety of the bird, egg mass and temperature.

Amino Acids: Know your target for egg weight to better define amino acid intake. For heavier eggs, you need higher amino acid intake per bird per day.

Alternatively, there is no need to waste resources and money to feed more amino acids if do not need heavier eggs.

>>For example, the nutrition recommendations in the Hy-Line W-80 India management guide accounts for the relatively smaller egg weight desired in this market compared to the global average. This diet requires less Lysine, making it 5.5% to 6% less expense than the nutrition recommendations in the international version of the W-80 management guide.

Minerals: Understand your sources of minerals and digestibility to allow for accuracy without excesses. The main minerals in layer diet are calcium and phosphorus.

2. KNOW THE TRUE COST OF ENERGY INTAKE VS. FEED INTAKE

Decreased energy in a layer diet will always lead to increased feed intake. However, this is never an equal exchange. Stocking density, temperature, feather score and housing layout are all factors influencing the outcome of feed intake. Decreasing energy may or may not be profitable at different ingredient costs.

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