Guides in Feed Mixing

8/12/2019 Guides in Feed Mixing

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Guides in Feed Mixing

Mixing the all the raw materials in a given ration is

important; because, mixing them thoroughly enables the

animal to get the proper nutrition needed.

The amount of feed to mix depends on the number of

animals to feed. To do this, multiply the amount of each

feed in the ration by the number of animals to feed. Then

multiply the answers by the number of days to mix for. The

final answer is the amount of feeds to mix.

To maintain the freshness or prevent rancidity in

feeds, it is recommended to mix feeds once a week. Mix in a

500 kg or 000 kg batch.

Mixing equipment

There are two types of mixer, the batch mixer and the

continuous mixer. !n batch mixer, the e"uipment is charged

with the feedstuffs to be mixed. Mixing takes place for a

prescribed length of time, and then the mix is discharged.

#atch mixers are available in vertical and hori$ontal types.

%ontinuous mixer is used primarily in large feed

manufacturing plant. !n this type, feed ingredients are

continuously introduced at one end and the mixed feeds are

removed at the other end. !t is usually of the hori$ontal

type.

The vertical mixer elevates feed ingredients by means

of an auger in the center of the mixer to the top where

these are discharged into the mixing bin and then permitted

to flow by means of gravity to the bottom of the bin wherethey are again elevated by the auger and discharged. Mixing

is achieved when the ingredients are scattered as they are

discharged from auger at the type but does not in general

make the best &ob of blending the ingredients.

The hori$ontal mixer consists of a large '(shaped bin

which contains a central mixing blade or ribbon mounted on a

rotating shaft. The blade or ribbon of the mixer cuts

through the feed ingredients in the bin thus producing a

mechanical intermixing of the feedstuffs in the ration. This

type of e"uipment costs more than the vertical type and

re"uires more power because the entire mix is agitated inthe mixing process. )owever, the hori$ontal mixer is more

efficient at producing uniform blends particularly where

some ingredients are used only in minute "uantities.


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Mixing *rocedures

Manual mixing. +eed may be shovel mixed on a concrete floor

or homemade box. !f the floor is too rough, mixing becomes

difficult.

Mix effectively with least effort thru the following

procedures

. -ll feed ingredients which constitute less than or

percent of the final mixing volume must be premixed to

avoid poor distribution of ingredients in the feed.

*remixing can be accomplished by blending the minor

ingredients with a "uantity of one ma&or ingredient

such as soybean meal or preferably a carrier. !f salt

and other minerals become hardened during storage, they

must be dried, and then thoroughly pulveri$ed beforemixing. -ll lumps should be removed to attain good mix.

. *remixes should be prepared ahead of time particularly

the mineral premix. -dding commercial premixes to a

mixed feed should follow the directions from the

manufacturer.

/. i"uid ingredient like molasses should first be mixed

with a ma&or ingredient like ground corn. #oth could be

blended manually.

1. 2tart with feeds which makes up the largest part of the

mix. 2pread out the "uantity needed for the mix in a

large flat pile.5. Take the re"uired amount of the feed making up the next

largest part of the mix and spread it out in a thin

layer covering all of the pile of the first feeds.

3. 2pread out each of the other feeds to be mixed so that

when finished, a large flat pile having everywhere the

same number of layers as there are feeds in the mix is

obtained.

4. ith the shovel, a large scoop is best(start at one

side of the pile and turn the entire pile over so that

the layers are mixed.

6. This should be repeated about five times or more toprocedure a homogenous mixture.

Mechanical Mixing. Mechanical mixing can make use of a

homemade, batch or continuous mixer. To get a good mixing in


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the homemade mixer, place first in the mixer about half of

the main ingredients like corn and soybean meal, mix these

for a few minutes, then add the mixture of vitamins, salt,

and other small ingredients. Mix for another /(5 minutes.

-dd the rest of the ingredients and again mix for 5 minutes.

There is longer time of mixing needed in this type of mixer

compared to continuous and batch mixer.

hen using a batch mixer, all the ingredients that

constitute less than 5 percent of the feed formula should be

added after the mixer is 7/ full and before 7/ of the

total weight of feed ingredients has been added. !n the

continuous mixer, anything less than 58 are added during the

mixing time of a particular batch of feed.

+eed +orms

The usual end product resulting from mixing of

feedstuffs is the ground feeds known as mash. hile thismash is usually fed into the form of a ground mixture, it

can be processed to produce other feed forms. *ellets are

mash feeds that have been compressed with the aid of live

steam to produce small chunks of cylinders of feeds.

2ome mash feeds are processed to produce still another

form of feeds known as crumbles. %rumbles are produced by

grinding pellets into a coarse granular form. The crumbles

are better adapted to mechanical feeders and can be used

with animals that are too small to consume the pelleted

form. *elleted or crumbled feeds generally cost slightly

more than the same ration in mash form.

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Guides in Feed Mixing