Understanding corn variability: Part I

Corn is the most common physical and biochemical factor affecting the bird’s intestines after drinking water. Therefore, its variability...

Edgar O. Oviedo-Rondón

Profesor y Especialista de Extensión en Nutrición y Manejo de Pollo de Engorde en el Departamento “Prestage” de Ciencias Avícolas de la Universidad Estatal de Carolina del Norte (NCSU). Médico Veterinario Zootecnista por la Universidad del Tolima de Ibagué, Colombia.

Corn is the most common feed ingredient used in poultry nutrition worldwide. Consequently, it is the most common physical and biochemical factor affecting the bird’s intestines after drinking water. Therefore, its variability has several effects during feed manufacturing and animal performance that will be discussed below.

• Maize contributes with up to 65% of the metabolizable energy and 20% of crude protein in poultry diets.
• Its average nutritional value is well known, but the variability in its energy value is a very common issue with a great impact on poultry performance and health.

Corn variability affects:

• feed processing,
• growth,
• feed conversion ratio,
• flock uniformity,
• digestibility,
• digesta viscosity,
• gut microbiota composition,
• intestinal health, and
• efficacy of exogenous enzymes

Poultry professionals can either forget about the sources of corn variability, keep using the same average values, consider corn as a stable commodity, and just deal with the multiple consequences that this variability brings in the final results.

An alternative pathway is to understand better the parameters affected for each factor, determine key indicators, measure them, and generate strategies in corn production and processing that minimize the variability.