Making sure the particles of your feed are uniform in size is crucial to the mixing process. If some of your particles are too large or too small, they will either sink or rise to the bottom of the batch, making it nearly impossible to create a consistent product for your animals. Ideally, every bite or serving of feed should contain roughly the same nutrients. Poor feed uniformity can result in nutrient deficiencies, excess weight gain, and other health hazards for your livestock.
That’s why it’s so important to make sure your feed is as uniform as possible. Learn more about how to ensure the uniformity of the feed is achieved.
The Benefits of Pre-Grinding
Sequencing can have a major effect on the overall uniformity of your feed. Grinding up your ingredients before mixing them together gives you the opportunity to inspect each ingredient before moving onto the next stage of production. Make sure your ingredients are the proper size before mixing them together. You may have to run these products through the machine more than once if uniformity was not achieved during the first pass.
Make sure your grinder is working properly and address any potential issues before moving on to the mixing process. Every particle should be consistent in size and shape before passing through the screens in the grinding chamber. Such is the case with the Buhler Multi-Impact Hammermill. Particles hit the cutting blades more than once before passing through the screens.
Replace your blades from time to time, keep the interior clean, and consider upgrading to the Buhler Multi-Impact Hammermill for more efficient grinding.
Using the Right Mixer
If your particles are not uniform in size after the grinding process, look for a mixer that will further refine the size of your particles. The Buhler Speedmixer is an innovation in feed mill technology and uses paddles in the mixing chamber that produce a shearing action. This will help you improve the uniformity of the feed, especially if you are adding liquids during the mixing process. The paddles can penetrate large clumps that may otherwise damage the intestines of your animals.
Further grinding up your ingredients during the feed mixing process will help you improve the overall quality of your products.
Proper Cleaning and Maintenance
You need to thoroughly clean out the mixing chamber as well if you want to improve the uniformity of your feed. Poor maintenance can lead to residue, cross-contamination, and large clumps that make it harder for your animals to digest your feed.
The Buhler Speedmixer comes with a door that lets you step inside the feed mixing chamber. This makes it easy to clean or replace the paddles. You can also hose off every corner of the interior for more quality assurance. The cleaner your equipment, the more nutritious and uniform your feed will be.
Use these tips to improve feed uniformity and contact the professionals at Halverson Company for a range of feed mill construction services.