Workin' Mom Homestead

I have recently been doing research on fermenting my poultry’s feed. I feed my chickens and ducks Nature’s Best Organic All Flock Feed crumbles. Fermenting your chicken feed is a great way to save money and boost your birds’ nutrition!

Fermenting feed adds probiotics to it, which improves the digestibility and discourages bad bacteria from developing in the intestines. According to Zhu et al., fermenting feed also improves immune function and antioxidant capacity, resulting in healthier birds. Apparently it leads to heavier eggs with thicker shells as well.

Fermenting feed also improves its nutritional value. It also makes the feed more bioavailable for the birds, so they are getting more vitamins and minerals from the same feed. Soaking it in water doubles the volume, so you’re using less feed AND that feed has more nutrients. Sounds like a win-win to me! It also reduces the need for grit, if that’s something else you’re buying. 

The past few days I’ve been taking half the amount of feed I usually give and pouring it in a jar with well water. You’re not supposed to use chlorinated water, so they say filtered or well water is best. I’m sure you could boil your city water though. I also read that you can leave water to sit out for 24 hours so the chlorine can evaporate off. Once you cover the feed with water, you’re supposed to let it sit for at least 3 days. If you have it in a non-temperature controlled environment, such as a garage or shed, you may need to let it sit longer during the cold months. Give it a stir every now and then to make sure all the feed is covered with water. You may have to add more water to it each day to make sure it stays covered. Other types of food may be different, but the crumbles absorb a lot of water. As you can see in the picture, the first jar I used was too small, or I used too much food, so it overflowed to the point where I couldn’t add more water to cover. But it was the last day of fermentation so I just used it up.

Some things to remember- it should not smell rancid or have mold. Mold or rancid smell means throw it out. The one I fed them this morning reminded me of sourdough when I smelled it, so I knew I had done it right. Some other things to consider are the weather. If too much is given or it is not consumed right away, it can freeze in the Winter since it has a high water content. This has not happened to me yet, but someone on a forum told me that it happens to them. In the Summer, this wet food can attract flies and other insects. Because it can spoil or freeze if left out for too long in extreme temperatures, you wouldn’t be able to use it in poultry feeders that are meant to store enough food for multiple days. I just put the fermented feed in a bowl and when they’re done, I bring the bowl back inside to be rinsed out for the next day. I’ve only been doing this for about it a week, but so far they seem to love it and it’s been working well. Definitely do your research before getting started!

References

1. https://www.aces.edu/blog/topics/farming/backyard-small-poultry-flock-management-series-feeding-the-laying-hen/
2. Zhu F, Zhang B, Li J, Zhu L. Effects of fermented feed on growth performance, immune response, and antioxidant capacity in laying hen chicks and the underlying molecular mechanism involving nuclear factor-κB. Poult Sci. 2020 May;99(5):2573-2580. doi: 10.1016/j.psj.2019.12.044. Epub 2020 Mar 18. PMID: 32359593; PMCID: 
3. PMChttps://organicfeeds.com/how-to-ferment-chicken-feed/7597451.