Feeding DDGS?

Close-up of fibrous crust taken from a pit. They are feeding 20% DDGS. Extra fiber from DDGS causes crusting (breeding ground for flies) and hard to pump solids.

From the paper entitled, Impact of Feeding Dry Distillers Grains on Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plans for Swine, written for a consortium of Universities (Nebraska, Kansas State, Iowa State, Missouri and Region 7 EPA), “Typical nutrient concentrations of DDGS are about three (3) times greater in protein, fat, fiber, and minerals when compared to corn.”

What this Means to You

Three times the fiber means three times more non-digestible material (hulls, pericarb, etc.) in your pit. Whether it is thick solids on the bottom or more crusting, more non-digestible fiber means more problems with flies, pumping and lost storage capacity.

Another Major Concern

Quoting from another paper written at South Dakota State University in June 2008, entitled, Sulfur in Distillers Grains for Dairy Cattle, “Sulfur in distillers products has become a recent concern. When starch in corn is fermented to ethanol, other nutrients in the kernels are concentrated approximately three fold. Therefore, the 0.1% sulfur in corn should translate to approximately 0.3% sulfur.”

However, a recent study by the University of Minnesota of DDGS from 40 ethanol plants in the Midwest indicated an average sulfur content of 0.7% with range of 0.3% to 1.93%. Although there is some additional sulfur in DDGS from sulfur containing amino acids locked in proteins, the majority of the extra sulfur comes from the chemical, sulfuric acid, which is added during the processing and cleanup. This sulfur passes through the pig and ends up in the pit where sulfate is then converted to hydrogen sulfide by anaerobic bacteria. This leads to a dangerous scenario because of the potentially elevated levels of hydrogen sulfide coming from pits during agitation. An increase of 0.1% to 0.7% is a seven (7) fold increase in hydrogen sulfide release.

So What Can Be Done?

DDGS have only been fed for a couple of years but the one constant we have found is that if you stay ahead of the problem by digesting and liquefying the manure, the fibrous material doesn’t lock onto it. The fiber is still there, but it can be agitated and pumped.

DDGS are not going away as a feed source. Producers need to stay ahead of the resulting problems or face the long-term reality of lost storage capacity.

If you are feeding DDGS and are having these problems, give us a call so we can address them before they become severe problems.

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