Effect of Feeding Plant By-Product Diets on Growth and Egg Production

Commercial strain-cross egg-type pullets were grown from 8 weeks of age to maturity on a diet containing 68% rice bran, 25% alfalfa, 5% dried molasses, and mineral, vitamin, and amino acid supplements. Similar diets in which wheat millfeeds or brewers dried grains replaced the rice bran produced satisfactory pullets but growth was slower and efficiency less than with rice bran diets. Laying diets containing up to 39.7% of rice bran supported egg production which was not significantly different from that produced with a standard corn-soy diet. A diet containing 74.7% of rice bran resulted in inferior production. A diet containing 74.7% of autoclaved rice bran resulted in egg production which was significantly better than that on the basal rice bran diet and not significantly different from that on the standard corn-soy diet.