FEED AND INDUSTRIAL USES FOR CEREALS Maize is easily the most widely used cereal, kind of cereal involved and the proportion of that with about 282 million tonnes being used for cereal in the feed; also on the species of animal animal feed (annually) worldwide in 1984-1986, for which the feed is intended, particularly whether followed by barley(about 127 million tonnes)and for ruminants or for monogastric animals and wheat(about 103 million tonnes)(FAo, 1990). probably also on the stage in the animals life A large proportion of the cereal grains fed to cycle, e. g. thinking of poultry, whether for young animals passes through the hands of animal feed chicks, for broilers, or for laying hens processors’. By way of( xample, of the 5.2 million Some of the treatments applied by animal feed tonnes of wheat used for animal feed in the uk processors to cereal grain, and the resulting 1988/89, 2.87 million tonnes(55%)were used benefits are described below. y animal feed processors (a figure based on returns from compounders only, in Great Britain) Grinding H-GCA, 1990). The remainder, still a consider- able quantity, would presumably have been fed This is the commonest treatment, and relatively directly from the farm to the animals, not via inexpensive. Roller mills or hammer mills may be used but hammer mills are favoured because In the same year, 1988/89, 5.1 million tonnes by choice of a screen of suitable size, the hammer of wheat were used by four millers in the Uk mill can yield ground material of any particular which, besides yielding 3. 954 million tonnes of size from cracked grain to a fine powder. The flour, also produced 1. 132 million tonnes of objective of grinding is to improve the digestibility milling by-products- bran and middlings(fine Coarsely-ground grain is preferred for ruminants offal), most of which would have been used for more finely-ground grain for swine and poultry animal feed. Thus, the total quantity of wheat plus wheat milling by-products used for feeding Soaking animals in the Uk in 1988/89 must have been about 6. 3 million tonnes(NABIM, 1991) Grain may be soaked in water for 12-24 h A similar state of affairs probably exists for followed by rolling, for livestock feeding. The wheat in other countries, and also, to varying soaking softens the grain and causes it to swell extents, for other cereal grains worldwide thereby improving palatability. Processing cereals for animal feed Reconstitution The treatments applied to cereals by animal a process in which grain is moistened to 25- feed processors are both expensive and time- 30%m c and then stored in an oxygen-limiting consuming, and obviously would not be under- silo for 14-21 days. This process is successful taken unless such treatments offered considerable with maize and sorghum, and improves the feed dvantages over the feeding of untreated whole growth ratio for beef cattle grain, and were cost-effective. Both cold and hot dry and wet, mechanical and chemical methods of treatment may be used, with the objectives of Steam-rolling and steam-flaking mproving palatability, avoiding wastage, and Grain is treated with steam for 3-5 min(for encouraging consumption, thus leading to a greater steam-rolled) or for 15-30 min( for steam-iaked) fficiency of food usage and perhaps faster growth. and then rolled between a pair of smooth rollers Other objectives would be to improve digestibility These processes improve the physical texture and and/or nutritive value, to prevent spoilage, soften the grain. Steam-flaking makes thinner and to detoxify poisons and to inactivate anti- flakes than steam-rolling. The heat treatment may nutritional factors improve protein utilization by ruminants. In the The actual treatment used will depend on the steam-flaking process there will be some rupturingFEED AND INDUSTRIAL USES FOR CEREALS 303 Maize is easily the most widely used cereal, kind of cereal involved and the proportion of that with about 282 million tonnes being used for cereal in the feed; also on the species of animal animal feed (annually) worldwide in 1984-1986, for which the feed is intended, particularly whether followed by barley (about 127 million tonnes) and for ruminants or for monogastric animals and wheat (about 103 million tonnes) (FAO, 1990). probably also on the stage in the animal’s life A large proportion of the cereal grains fed to cycle, e.g. thinking of poultry, whether for young animals passes through the hands of ‘animal feed chicks, for broilers, or for laying hens. processors’. By way of example, of the 5.2 million Some of the treatments applied by animal feed tonnes of wheat used for animal feed in the UK processors to cereal grain, and the resulting in 1988/89, 2.87 million tonnes (55%) were used benefits are described below. by animal feed processors (a figure based on returns from compounders only, in Great Britain) Grinding (H-GCA, 1990). The remainder, still a consider￾able quantity, would presumably have been fed This is the commonest treatment, and relatively directly from the farm to the animals, not via inexpensive. Roller mills or hammer mills may processors. be used, but hammer mills are favoured because, In the same year, 1988/89, 5.1 million tonnes by choice of a screen of suitable size, the hammer of wheat were used by flour millers in the UK mill can yield ground material of any particular which, besides yielding 3.954 million tonnes of size from cracked grain to a fine powder. The flour, also produced 1.132 million tonnes of objective of grinding is to improve the digestibility. milling by-products - bran and middlings (fine Coarsely-ground grain is preferred for ruminants; offal), most of which would have been used for more finely-ground grain for swine and poultry. animal feed. Thus, the total quantity of wheat plus wheat milling by-products used for feeding Soaking animals in the UK in 1988/89 must have been about 6.3 million tonnes (NABIM, 1991). Grain may be soaked in water for 12-24 h, A similar state of affairs probably exists for followed by rolling, for livestock feeding. The wheat in other countries, and also, to varying soaking softens the grain and causes it to swell, extents, for other cereal grains worldwide. thereby improving palatability. Processing cereals for animal feed Reconstitution The treatments applied to cereals by animal A process in which grain is moistened to 25- feed processors are both expensive and time- 30% m.c. and then stored in an oxygen-limiting consuming, and obviously would not be under- silo for 14-21 days. This process is successful taken unless such treatments offered considerable with maize and sorghum, and improves the feed/ advantages over the feeding of untreated whole growth ratio for beef cattle. grain, and were cost-effective. Both cold and hot, dry and wet, mechanical and chemical methods Steam-rolling and steam-f,aking of treatment may be used, with the objectives of improving palatability, avoiding wastage, and Grain is treated with steam for 3-5 min (for encouraging consumption, thus leading to a greater steam-rolled) or for 15-30 min (for steam-flaked) efficiency of food usage and perhaps faster growth. and then rolled between a pair of smooth rollers. Other objectives would be to improve digestibility These processes improve the physical texture and and/or nutritive value, to prevent spoilage, soften the grain. Steam-flaking makes thinner and to detoxify poisons and to inactivate anti- flakes than steam-rolling. The heat treatment may nutritional factors. improve protein utilization by ruminants. In the The actual treatment used will depend on the steam-flaking process there will be some rupturing