Introduction
Changes in public priorities, consumer trends, and cultural ideas affect every industry. The animal feed industry is no different.
In today’s world, health-conscious consumers who value ethics and quality are only growing in number. To keep up with demand from this and other consumer groups, animal farms must ensure a consistent supply of high-quality, nutritionally-balanced feed for their animals.
Nutritious feed is essential for them to maintain the health, growth, and productivity of their animals. Economical feed is necessary for them to sustain their business. Maintaining this balance between quality and affordability isn’t always easy.
That’s where feed mills come in.
While some agricultural operations carry out animal feed processing themselves to meet their animals’ nutritional needs, other individuals and organisations have entered the feed manufacturing business to supply feed to all the farmers and livestock producers producing meat for human consumption.
If you’re considering setting up a feed manufacturing plant, there’s a lot you need to learn and understand. If you want to build a sustainable, operationally profitable business that can weather the tides of change, you must invest in careful planning, solid execution, and strict compliance with industry standards and regulations. While the feed milling process itself is undeniably important, so are the processes of site selection, procuring equipment (more than just feed mill machines), commissioning, raw material procurement, quality control, etc.
If you’re considering setting up a feed manufacturing plant, you’re in the right place. In this two-part blog post, we’re going to explore everything you need to know to ensure your plant’s quality, efficiency, productivity, and long-term success.
Let’s start with the basics of animal feed, the feed milling process, identifying the right feed mill machine, and setting up your feed manufacturing plant.
What is feed?
Animal feed or fodder produced by feed mills is an agro-product formulated to meet specific animal nutrition requirements. According to the Washington State Department of Agriculture, feed is a mix of whole or processed grains, concentrates, and commercial feeds. The term encompasses custom formulae, labelled feeds, and pet feed.
Different feed for different animals.
Feed isn’t just of one type – there are different formulations for different species of animals at different stages of life. Poultry feed, swine feed, fish feed, and livestock feed differ from one another based on the dietary requirements of the respective animals.
For instance, swine feed generally comprises a ground cereal grain (for carbohydrates), soybean meal (for protein), calcium and phosphorus (as a mineral source), and some vitamins. When needed or custom-ordered by an animal farm, this feed can also be fortified with byproducts of milk, meat, and cereal grains.
Cattle feed, on the other feed, is formulated to support rumen function while delivering the energy, protein, minerals, and vitamins required at different production stages. Feed mills typically combine roughages such as cereal grains and oilseed meals to achieve the desired nutrient balance. Mineral premixes containing calcium, phosphorus, and salt, along with vitamin supplements, are added during formulation to ensure consistency and nutritional accuracy. The formulation varies based on whether the feed is for dairy as well as other factors such as age, growth rate, and milk production, making precise ingredient selection, batching, and mixing critical at the feed mill level.
Feed classifications.
Broadly, animal feed can be categorised into two different types. Concentrates, which are high-energy animal feed containing cereal grains and their byproducts or high-protein oil meal or cake. They also contain byproducts from sugar beets and sugarcane processing. The other type of animal feed is roughage. This refers to grass pastures or plant components like hay, straw, root crops, etc.
The type of feed you, as a feed mill owner, may produce will depend on the market you are targeting. If you intend to sell to livestock farmers, you would want to focus mainly on roughages. But if it’s any other animal, be it swine, poultry or fish, you want to focus on concentrates in your feed processing operations.
Animal feed processing for high-quality feed.
We’ll soon be getting into the specifics of animal feed processing and setting up a feed manufacturing plant. But before we get there, let’s understand one of the primary determinants of feed quality: the ingredients or raw materials that you use.
Raw material quality. Just as any meal you prepare is only as good as the quality of ingredients you use, the quality of animal feed you produce will ultimately depend on the quality of the raw materials you use, how you procure them, and how you handle them.
Since commercial feed manufacturing is an industrial process, it must follow HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) procedures. This science-based system outlines a preventative approach to food safety, covering all aspects of the production process from raw material production, procurement and handling to manufacturing, distribution and consumption. HACCP not only identifies the physical, chemical and biological hazards associated with food production, but it also devises measures to mitigate risk to a safe level.
While this is a legal requirement in the United States and the European Union, adhering to these principles in your feed mills is a good idea, no matter where in the world you are based. It is a sign that you are committed to the health and safety not only of farm animals but also of the human beings who consume animal products.
Regional animal feed safety regulations. In addition to systems like HACCP, as an animal feed manufacturer, you must also adhere to the relevant regulations in your region covering animal food. Like in the United States, it is likely the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) (which also regulates food meant for human consumption) that governs standards that ensure the quality and safety of animal feed. They ensure that feed is unadulterated, prepared in sanitary conditions, and truthfully labelled.
Effective formulation. Feed mills or feed manufacturing plants today are held to a high standard. Feed must be manufactured not just for satiety; it must also provide animals with the right nutrition for their growth needs, which vary during different stages of their lives. At every growth stage, every animal needs a different nutrient balance, which can be determined using different mathematical methods.
Three of the basic methods used to formulate animal diets are Pearson square, algebraic equations, and linear programmes. While developing the right formulation, these equations must also ensure the financial viability of manufacturing it. So, at the end of the day, the right formulation can be the make-or-break factor when it comes to the quality of your product, its acceptability in the market, and the financial health of your business.
That’s all for part one of this guide to building successful and profitable feed mills. In part two, we’ll go over the feed milling process, the equipment you need for your feed manufacturing plant, and a step-by-step checklist for building feed mills that will stand the test of time.
In the meantime, reach out to our team of experts to know how we can solve your food, feed, and fuel needs.
Part one of this blog post addressed some foundational questions about animal feed, feed classifications, industry standards, and the determinants of quality. Now that you have some context about what you’re getting into by setting up feed mills, let’s dive right into the animal feed processing process.
The feed milling process.
The feed milling process comprises multiple steps, the details of which will vary based on the market, animal, and developmental stage you are targeting.
Formula development. Formulating feed is a technical process. You’ll need nutritionists and scientists working with you to develop a balanced, nutritionally sound feed product for poultry, livestock, or whichever other animals you are developing the product for.
Procuring and handling raw materials. Your feed manufacturing plant will receive raw materials from your suppliers. At the feed mill, you must weigh, test and analyse these inputs for their quality, safety, and nutritional content before you use them for formulation.
Raw material preparation and mixing. The preparation process will differ depending on the ingredients you are using. The process typically involves techniques like material handling and cleaning, grinding, mixing, pelleting, and cooling. Mixing is done in the pre-determined proportions to create a finished product.
Typically, the feed manufacturing process begins with grinding after batching of all the different type of raw materials. Grinding reduces the size of the raw materials to a particle size that can be easily accepted by animals. During mixing, you could be bringing together as many as 10 ingredients to create a balanced meal of protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, and additives, as needed. For standardisation and ease of handling, the ground feed mix is pelleted and cooled.
Packaging and labelling. If you’re preparing animal feed for commercial use, you would pack and ship the prepared feed in bulk. On the other hand, if you’re retailing your product, you would have to pack the product in smaller quantities, labelling it with the ingredients it comprises, the purpose it is made for, and instructions for consumption.
On the surface, feed manufacturing may appear to be a fairly straightforward process, but today, animal feed processing is no longer about just grinding and mixing. It is a strategic process that converts raw agricultural produce like deoiled cakes of oilseeds, grains, husk, minerals, vitamins, etc. into a digestible product that delivers the nutrition that specific farm animals need to grow. Your feed mills will do more than mix; they will house multiple steps in the process, respecting the process as a data-sensitive operation in which precision and quality are balanced with cost control.
Process optimisation and why it matters for your feed manufacturing plant.
The cost of inputs, i.e. deoiled cake of oilseeds and agricultural raw materials, for animal feed processing can be expensive and unpredictable, as it often is with agriculture-based products. To make your product more appealing to your consumers, you must optimise your production process to control costs while maintaining quality. This is particularly important because feed costs account for up to 70% of total livestock production expenses.
Beyond cost concerns, feed mills must refine their processes to one, maintain product consistency batch after batch and two, to meet species-specific nutritional standards. There is no space for error because particle size, nutrient balance, and moisture content all influence feed quality, which consequently affects customer trust, animal health and performance, and ultimately, your bottom line.
At the end of the day, the real margins you make will be determined by process control. The better you manage shape consistency, nutritional consistency, and product integrity, the better cost per tonne you can command.
Your essential checklist to set up feed mills.
Now that you have a good sense of what goes into the feed milling process, let’s talk about the business aspect of setting up feed mills. Because we have to be honest, feed manufacturing is about more than just your feed mill machine. It’s about research, market analysis, site selection, equipment procurement, raw material sourcing, licenses and approvals, quality control, staffing, training, and so much more.
Let’s look at some of the basic steps you need to check off your to-do list before you can start operations at your feed mill.
- Conduct a feasibility study, do a market analysis, and draft a business plan. Your feasibility study and market analysis should include analysing the demand for animal feed in your target region, the competition, the availability and cost of raw materials, regulatory requirements, potential financing options, and environmental impact assessments. Conducting a thorough feasibility study and market analysis will give you the information you need to draft a detailed business plan, including your projected revenues and the road to profitability.
- Select a location for your project. Consider factors like proximity to raw material supply, proximity to customers, zoning regulations, access to a good transportation network, access to skilled labour, and availability of utilities like electricity, water, and fuel.
- Get the licenses and approvals you need. This will require a good bit of research, as the licenses and approvals you need to get will depend on the market in which you operate. Generally, you will need to get approvals like environmental permits, agriculture or forestry department approvals, food regulatory authority approvals, etc.
- Plan, design, and build your feed mill(s). For this process, it’s best to partner with a feed mill manufacturer who understands the industry, the feed milling process, feed mill machines, and the regulatory requirements of installation, commissioning, and ongoing maintenance. The right feed mill manufacturer will offer your feed mill(s) support not only before you begin operations but right through the lifecycle of your feed manufacturing plant.
- Equip your feed manufacturing plant with feed mill machines. You will need a Batching bin, grinder, crusher or hammermill. You will also need a mixer, pelletizer, cooler, dust collectors, weighing scales, shovels, forklifts, trolleys, sack sealing machines, and many other pieces of equipment, depending on the nature and specifics of your feed manufacturing, handling, and packaging processes. Your feed mill manufacturer will typically support you through the process of selecting, purchasing, and installing the equipment needed in your feed mills. After installation, commissioning, and testing, you’re ready to kick off production!
This is a glimpse into the process of setting up your feed mills, but there’s so much more that goes into the process. Staff recruitment and training, quality control, regular maintenance, setting up storage spaces, instituting standard operating procedures, etc. It’s a lot, and you can’t do it all. That’s why we’re here.
At Kumar, we’re experts in all things oilseeds. Food, feed, fuel, and circular economy are our focus. And we’ve been delivering intelligently-engineered, operationally-profitable plants for eight decades now.
If you’re ready to jump into the feed milling process, reach out to our expert team. Let’s discuss how we can solve for you.
