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In a series of five experiments the effects of various soybean meal (SBM) particle sizes on soybean milling efficiency, pullet and broiler performance, feed milling, and broiler digestibility were evaluated. The treatment particle sizes were generated with the screen sizes 3/32”, 7/32”, worn 7/32” and 10/32” at a soybean processing facility in Danville, PA. Results from Exp 1 demonstrated that electrical current draw and power usage of the hammermill motor were similar for the 7/32”, worn 7/32” and 10/32” screens. However, the 3/32” screen drew the most current and required more power to grind the SBM (P<0.0001). The particle analysis using the Ro-Tap tester demonstrated that particle size distribution was similar for the 7/32” (735.41 µm), worn 7/32” (861.12 µm), and 10/32” (891.85 µm) screens. However, the 3/32” screen did generate the smallest particle size at 463.88 µm (P=0.0163). Exp 2 was a 17-week pullet performance study using 400-day-old Hy-Line W36 pullets. Overall, there were pullet trending differences in FCR from 0-17 weeks (P<0.10) but LWG and FI were not different (P>0.05). Soybean particle size had little impact on pullet performance. Therefore, a 21d broiler digestibility study (Exp 3) was conducted to understand how varying SBM particle sizes affects broiler performance and apparent ileal amino acid digestibility (AIAAD). Day 1-20 feed intake (FI)/pen was affected by SBM particle size. The worn 7/32” and 10/32” screens had the highest FI and the 3/32” screen had the lowest. The 7/32” screen was intermediate for d1-20 FI (P=0.0494). However, when FI was adjusted to a per bird basis, FI differences were no longer apparent (P=0.10). The AIAAD % of all essential and nonessential amino acids demonstrated differences (P<0.05). For all essential amino acids, the 3/32” screen had the lowest AIAAD % with other treatments similar to each other except for threonine where the 3/32” and 7/32” screens were similar. All nonessential amino acids followed a similar pattern with the 3/32” screen having the lowest AIAAD % (P<0.0001). Exp 4 was a feed milling exp conducted at West Virginia University to study pelleting effects of various SBM particle sizes. Feed milling data showed no differences in hot pellet temperature or production rate (P>0.05). There were differences in pellet quality with the 3/32” screen having the highest pellet durability index (PDI) (P<0.05). The 7/32” and 10/32” screens reduced pellet quality parameters. An important consideration is the tendency for small SBM particles to cause the pellet die to plug. This phenomenon was apparent across all three replicate feed runs for the 3/32" particles. Exp 5 was a broiler study to evaluate effects of SBM particle size on performance and carcass yield of 1,152 Hubbard x Ross 708 male broilers. Results of the day 1-42 broiler performance demonstrated higher live weight gain (LWG) when the 3/32” screen was used to produce the SBM. The 7/32” screen resulted in the lowest LWG while the 10/32” screen was intermediate (P<0.0001). The 7/32” and 10/32” screens resulted in similar and less FI than birds consuming SBM produced with the 3/32” screen. Day 1-42 FCR was highest for the 3/32” screen and improved when the 7/32” and 10/32” screens were used to create the SBM (P=0.0002). Soybean meal particle size did not affect processing yields (P>0.05). These 5 experiments indicate that soybean meal particle size influences energy use and processing cost at the soybean plant, amino acid digestibility for broilers, feed milling and quality parameters, and broiler performance when provided in a pelleted diet.
A final video report can be found at the following site: https://youtu.be/eZxdu1U1WQw