PROCESSING ▶▶▶
Course on feed processing
All About Feed recently participated in a feed processing course run by Feed Design Lab, a practical research and education centre in the Netherlands.
BY MARIEKE PLOEGMAKERS F
eed design lab (FDL) is located in a distinctive mod- ern building that you can’t miss. Inside awaits a warm welcome for all participants of the two-day course ‘Basis processes in compound-feed production’. Di-
rector of Feed design lab Trudy van Megen and process tech- nologist Eric Vissers ensure everyone is provided with coffee and a ‘limburgse vlaai’, a typical regional cake. After a brief in- troduction it’s time to dive into the process of making feed. The course, guided by Eric Vissers, is interactive and starts off with a group assignment, in which pictures of the feed pro- cess must be placed in the right order. The participants ap- pear to be well informed and the puzzle is solved rather quickly. Next there was a tour of the feed factory, providing an overview of the entire production process. “In our factory all processing machines can be opened and can be viewed from within. That is quite unique in comparison to a tour of an operating feedmill,” Eric Vissers explains.
Theoretical part The first day of the course is all about grinding and mixing. After the factory tour, it is time for the theoretical part, cover- ing the whole process starting with the arrival, storage and dosing of raw materials. After accurately weighing and
Feed Design lab
Feed Design Lab is a research and education centre in the animal feed sector, based in the Netherlands. Feed Design Lab has three primary activities: renting out the test plant, providing training and developing projects. FDL has a net- work consisting of more than 100 partner companies from the feed industry, who participate in different types of projects. Partners use the test plant for feed testing’s or demonstrations. In addition partners participate in innovative pro- jects that contribute to a sustainable animal protein chain.
12 ▶ ALL ABOUT FEED | Volume 28, No. 1, 2020
dosing the raw materials, it’s time for grinding. Grinding is a fifty-year-old procedure, with several benefits, Vissers ex- plains. “Grinding the materials positively influences the ho- mogeneity and digestibility of the feed by the animal. There are a number of machines on the market that are used for grinding, such as the roll and hammer mill.” In the course every machine is discussed in detail, providing a good under- standing of each application. This also applies to the mixing machine and the difference between peddle and ribbon mix- ers. The second day of the course continues with a class on the next steps to take when processing feed. From condition- ing the feed to pelleting, it’s all covered and clearly explained. Regarding the conditioning of the feed there is still room for improvement, according to Vissers. “Nowadays, when condi- tioning the feed, hot steam is used, mainly to destroy bacteria
Eric Vissers explaining to participants which feed sieve to use in the hammer mill.
PHOTO: MARIEKE PLOEGMAKERS
PHOTO: FDL
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