Rye in livestock feeding
Rye is contained in compound feed . The average German compound feed contains 45% grain , which corresponds to a total mass of 9.8 million tons per year. The grain share is divided into 43% wheat , 18% barley and 12% rye and others. In feeding, rye is mainly used as meal and green grain . Green grain is used as a winter catch crop and as silage in ruminant feeding.
Pig feeding
On light to medium soils, rye achieves higher yields that are more drought-stable than wheat. The production costs for rye are below those of wheat. Thus, rye offers security in feed planning and a potential for cost savings if parts of the feed mixture are replaced by rye. In addition, rye has a higher proportion of digestible proteins than barley. In addition, rye has a very high lysine content of 3.4% in relation to the crude protein - also in comparison with wheat with 2.8% lysine / XP. The relatively low crude protein content makes rye particularly attractive for finishing fattening. If digestible lysine and energy content are used as a benchmark, rye has the same value as wheat as soon as the rye price is 70 to 75 cents below the price of wheat. The low costs for net energy (in MJ NEL) of rye ensure that it can reduce feed costs as a substitute in a feed mixture. The slightly increased costs for digestible crude protein can be compensated for, despite the need for additional amino acids.
Cost calculation
| Type of grain | Yield (t / ha) | Costs (€ / ha) | Costs (€ / t) | XP (g / kg FM) | dXP (%) | Cost of dXP-FM (€ / kg) | ME-FM (MJ / kg) | Costs ME (€ / MJ) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rye | 7.5 | € 975.00 | € 130.00 | 99 | 78 | € 0.01684 | 13.46 | € 0.00966 |
| Triticale | 7.8 | € 1,090.00 | € 139.74 | 128 | 85 | € 0.01284 | 13.6 | € 0.01028 |
| wheat | 8.5 | € 1,225.00 | € 144.12 | 121 | 86 | € 0.01385 | 13.79 | € 0.01045 |
| barley | 7.5 | € 1,040.00 | € 138.67 | 110 | 75 | € 0.01681 | 12.62 | € 0.01099 |
| Cereals | Costs (€ / t) | XP (g / kg FM) | dXP (%) | Cost of dXP-FM (€ / kg) | ME-FM (MJ / kg) | Cost - Buy ME (€ / MJ) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rye | € 143.00 | 99 | 78 | € 0.01852 | 13.46 | € 0.01062 |
| Triticale | € 153.00 | 128 | 85 | € 0.01406 | 13.6 | € 0.01125 |
| wheat | € 161.00 | 121 | 86 | € 0.01547 | 13.79 | € 0.01168 |
| barley | € 148.00 | 110 | 75 | € 0.01794 | 12.62 | € 0.01173 |
DLG recommendations
The German Agricultural Society (DLG) recommends a proportion of rye depending on the weight of the animals. Piglets should receive 10–20%, sows 25% and fattening pigs 30–50% rye in the feed mixture.
| Use at ... | Weight | Rye content up to ... |
|---|---|---|
| Fattening pigs | 28–40 kg live weight (LM)
40-60 kg LM 60-90 kg LM From 90 kg LM |
30%
40% 50% 50% |
| Sows | 25% | |
| piglet | Up to 15 kg LM
From 15 kg LM |
10%
20% |
Rye trials by the LWK Lower Saxony
Tests by the Lower Saxony Chamber of Agriculture have shown that feeding with rye proportions leads to a higher daily gain, while at the same time lower feed consumption per kilogram of gain. It was also confirmed that there were no feeding problems with a rye content of 70%.
| 1. Experiment with BHZP animals | Without rye | 64% rye |
| Daily gain [g / d]
Feed consumption / kg increment [kg / kg] Index points / kg SG |
795
2.94 0.964 |
809
2.83 0.987 |
| 2nd attempt with PI x Danzucht | 70% rye | 70% rye + enzyme |
| Daily gain [g / d]
Feed consumption / kg increment [kg / kg] Index points / kg SG |
925
2.45 0.986 |
962
2.41 1.003 |
| 3rd experiment with PI x Hülsenberger | Control 1) | Attempt 1) |
| Daily gain [g / d]
Feed consumption / kg increment [kg / kg] Index points / kg SG |
958
2.52 0.974 |
966
2.56 0.969 |
1) Test group: in the course of fattening, increasing proportions of 10 to 50% rye and 5 to 15% rapeseed meal; Control group: each half of the proportions
Sample calculation for savings potential
The following calculation is an example calculation that is based on economic reality and is somewhat simplified. There are no costs for feed additives, a 1: 1 substitution of feed grain, average feed consumption and a € 1 price difference per 1 dt of feed grain.
Total consumption of dry food / animal: 293.4 kg
Amount of rye / animal : 87.5 kg
At 1 € price difference / German : 0.875 € / animal
Savings potential with 3000 fattening places and 3 rotations / year: 7875 € / year
Ruminant feeding
Rye is a good alternative to barley and wheat for forage production, especially on poor soils . The high nitrogen and water efficiency and the robustness of the rye and especially the hybrid rye ensure high yields on light to medium soils. The costs are also low. Dairy farms can save feed costs by cultivating high-yielding varieties and using them internally by replacing parts of their feed mix with inexpensive rye. Cattle can use a high proportion of the crude protein in rye. This proportion is higher than for winter wheat and winter barley and almost as high as for maize. Thus, rye grains have more usable crude protein than barley and almost as much as wheat.
| Cereal grains | XP | nXP | Share of nXP / XP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rye grains | 112 | 167 | 149.1% |
| Barley grains | 124 | 164 | 132.3% |
| Wheat grains | 138 | 172 | 124.6% |
The KTBL has set a value of −9 for the ruminal nitrogen balance (RNB) of rye. Wheat has a value of −5 and barley of −6. The RNB should add up to ± 0, so rye can compensate for excesses in the RNB better than wheat or barley through, for example, soy meal with a value of +32. The low costs for usable crude proteins (nXP) and net energy (in MJ NEL) of rye ensure that it can reduce feed costs as a substitute in a feed mixture.
Cost calculation
| Type of grain | Yield (t / ha) | Costs (€ / ha) | Costs (€ / t) | nXP (g / kg DM) | Costs nXP (€ / kg) | NEL (MJ / kg) | NEL costs (€ / MJ) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rye | 7.5 | € 975.00 | € 130.00 | 167 | € 0.778 | 8.49 | € 0.01531 |
| barley | 7.5 | € 1,040.00 | € 138.67 | 164 | € 0.846 | 8.08 | € 0.01716 |
| wheat | 8.5 | € 1,225.00 | € 144.12 | 172 | € 0.838 | 8.51 | € 0.01694 |
| Type of grain | Costs (€ / t) | nXP (g / kg DM) | Costs nXP (€ / kg) | NEL (MJ / kg) | Cost per NEL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| rye | € 143.00 | 167 | € 0.856 | 8.49 | € 0.01684 |
| barley | € 148.00 | 164 | € 0.902 | 8.08 | € 0.01832 |
| wheat | € 161.00 | 172 | € 0.936 | 8.51 | € 0.01892 |
DLG recommendations
The German Agricultural Society (DLG) recommends a proportion of rye depending on the weight and destination of the animals. According to this, calves should receive 0–8%, rearing cattle 40%, beef cattle 20% and dairy cows 40% rye in the feed mixture.
| Use at ... | Rye content up to ... |
|---|---|
| Calves | 0% in the starter feed
5–8% in calf rearing feed |
| Rearing cattle | 40% in concentrated feed |
| Beef cattle | 20% in concentrated feed (max. 1 kg rye / day) |
| Dairy cows | 40% in concentrated feed (max. 4 kg rye / day) |
Limiting effect
Rye has a high proportion of non-starch polysaccharides (NSP), which are difficult to digest. Particularly pentosans are contained in the cereal to a large extent. To reduce this effect, NSP-splitting enzymes can be added to rye, which leads to good results, especially when feeding young animals. Another limiting factor are mycotoxins . For many years, rye has a significantly lower exposure to mycotoxins from Fusaria, such as deoxynivalenol and zearalenone , than wheat. This speaks in favor of rye as a feed grain. However, ergot can attack rye , which used to lead to major problems with poisoning in animals. In modern hybrid varieties, the pollen-plus technology ensures that the ergot infestation in rye has decreased significantly. A technical problem is the increased foam formation with liquid feeding with over 30% rye content. Wheat and barley also have this disadvantage, as the foam is created from dissolved proteins. The addition of 1–2% vegetable oil can help.
Improvement of the forage suitability of the rye
Older observations show that rye in the mixed ration reduces the total amount of feed consumed. This was justified with the high amounts of bitter substances and non-starch polysaccharides. Bitter substances are no longer important in modern hybrid varieties and thus no longer impair feed intake. By adding NSP-splitting enzymes, the digestibility of non-starch polysaccharides can be increased. In experiments with pigs, feed with up to 70% rye could be fed without any problems.
Phytase
Phosphorus (P) is present in feed as phytate , which is why monogastric animals, which have a low phytase activity, have a P deficiency. Of all feed grains, rye has the greatest phytase activity in the feed. This can be used to balance feed products with low phytase activity, such as corn. Experiments by A. Pointellart showed a linear increase in phytate digestibility and a decrease in hypophosphataemia and hypercalcemia when the amount of rye used increased. Furthermore, the rye diet increased the phosphorus storage from 36% to 55%. This is an economically very relevant point, as P-mineral feed is one of the most expensive components in pig feeding. In addition, a vitamin D antagonism, as observed by Mac Auliffe and Ginnis 1976, could not be confirmed. An associated tendency towards osteoporosis was not observed. On the contrary, the bones actually became more stable.
literature
- General figures for agriculture . 14th edition. KTBL e. V. Darmstadt 2009
- For the use of rye in feeding . DLG e. V., Frankfurt am Main, May 2006
- Maxima of the DON content in the crop in wheat and rye 2006-2015 . Bavarian State Institute for Agriculture for KWS, 2015
- Luise Hagemann: Rye - inexpensive alternative in pig fattening . pigpool.de; accessed on September 21, 2016
- Andrea Meyer: Save costs with rye now . Lower Saxony Chamber of Agriculture
- A. Pointillart: Enhancement of phosphorus utilization in growing pigs fed phytate-rich diets by using rye bran . In: J. Anim Sci , 1991, pp. 1109-1115
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d Andrea Meyer: Save costs with rye now . Ed .: Chamber of Agriculture Lower Saxony.
- ↑ a b c d e f KTBL e. V. Darmstadt (ed.): Figures of thumb for agriculture . 14th edition. 2009.
- ↑ a b table. In: raiffeisen.com. Land24 GmbH, accessed on September 23, 2016 .
- ↑ a b Hybrid rye - LfL contribution margins and calculation data. In: stmelf.bayern.de. Retrieved September 23, 2016 .
- ↑ a b Bremen: Grain and feed prices from 08.09.2016. In: proplanta.de. Retrieved September 23, 2016 .
- ^ A b c Andrea Meyer, Gerd Lentföhr Gerhard Richter, Walter Staudacher Manfred Weber: On the use of rye in feeding . Ed .: German Agricultural Society. Frankfurt am Main, May 2006.
- ↑ A. Pointillart: Enhancement of phosphorus utilization in growing pigs fed phytate-rich diets by using rye bran . In: J. Anim Sci . tape 69 , no. 3 , 1991, pp. 1109-1115 , doi : 10.2527 / 1991.6931109x .