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Tips on storing feed
We are all aware of the necessity to give our animals good quality food, but how the feed is stored is equally as important. By following the guidelines below it will help to ensure that feed remains fresh, palatable and in optimum condition.
- Store feed in a cool, dry place. Heat and sunlight will dry the feed making it less palatable, and heat combined with moisture from the feed will provide ideal conditions for spoilage.
- Feed sacks that are stored on pallets should have enough room so that air can circulate freely around the sacks. Care should also be taken that the feed sacks are not stacked against walls which will also damage the sack and feed inside.
- Opened feed sacks should be resealed between use or put into lidded bins. If feed bins are used the bin should always be thoroughly cleaned before it is refilled. Old feed left in the bottom of bins provides the ideal breeding ground for mite.
- The feed room itself should be kept clean and tidy as spilt feed will encourage vermin.
- If you have several sacks of feed make sure you always check the labels and use the oldest feed first. As feed is a perishable product, it is important to use it as soon as possible after purchase.
- The ‘best before’ date is an indication of the nutritional integrity of the feed, i.e, the vitamin and nutrient feeding value will be at the declared levels. However, it does not provide a guarantee that the feed will still be fit to feed after a period of time. A poorly stored bag of feed can ‘go off’ in less than a week if stored incorrectly.
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