How to prepare soybeans for chickens?

Soybean meal is an ingredient widely used quite a lot as pet food. According to the American Feed Management Association, soybean is a product obtained after extracting most of the oil from soybean seeds.

Therefore, it can offer your poultries a lot of benefits to maintain good health. But are there any requirements for soybeans for chickens?

How to prepare soybeans for chickens?

All chickens can eat different types of soybeans available. There are many ways for you to prepare soybeans for chickens. And each method has some discrepancies in the required ingredients as well as the implementation guide.

Soybeans for chickens
Soybeans for chickens

The nutrition value of soybeans

After the extraction process, soybean is in the form of a fine, porous powder with a light yellow-brown color and a characteristic aroma.

Besides, according to the Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score, dry soybean has 36% protein, 19% oil, 35% carb (in which 17% is dietary fiber), 5% minerals, and other nutrients like vitamins.

Soybean meal is the main and best source of protein in animal feed, with a crude protein content of 43-49%, rich in essential amino acids, especially Lysine accounting for 2.88% (Source), essential amino acids are very important.

Soybean meal has a fragrance that increases the appetite for livestock. Good for the growth of a variety of livestock and poultry. When applying this way of incubating soybean meal for chickens, beneficial microorganisms in the intestines of animals are active.

Soybean
Soybean

The ways to prepare soybeans for chickens

There are 2 main ways to make soybeans powder for your chickens’ diet. Here are the details of all ingredients and steps necessary to prepare suitable soybeans for them:

Way 1:

Materials to prepare:

  • 200kg of crushed and dried soybean meal
  • 1kg brewed yeast
  • 200L water
  • Large capacity container

Implementation guide:

  • Step 1: Use 1kg of microbial yeast mixed with 8kg of soybean residue. Put all ingredients in a container with 200 liters of water. The water should be noted that it does not contain iron, is not salty, and is clean. Stir ingredients well for 2 hours.
Soybean meal
Soybean meal
  • Step 2: The remaining bean residue, mix well, and then slowly put in the pot with yeast water until all. Note, the water must cover the surface of the beans, if it is not enough, you can add more water. Fermented water stir well and pour into the pot
Ferment soybeans
Ferment soybeans
  • Step 3: The mouth of the pot needs to be left open for 5 to 6 hours. If applying the method of incubating soybean meal for chickens in the summer. Materials should be stored in a cool, dry, and clean place. In winter, it should be kept in a place away from the wind to help the best quality of ingredients.

The advantage of this method is that it is easy to do, simple, and does not take much effort. The fermentation process is quite fast, you can apply it to strong beans, vegetables, or fermented foods.

Way 2:

Materials to prepare:

  • Soybeans
  • Molasses sugar
  • Probiotics
  • Clean water

Implementation guide:

  • Step 1: Collect soybean residue.
  • Step 2: Add 2 packages of yeast with 40kg of soybean meal mix well.
Adding yeast to soybean meal
Adding yeast to soybean meal
  • Step 3: Mix 4 liters of clean water with 500g of molasses sugar. Mix in the ingredients above.
  • Step 4: Stir well, sprinkle the deodorizing package on the surface and incubate.
  • Step 5: Incubate soybean residue for 1 month, then you need to mix 1.5 packages of yeast, 500g of molasses and 20 liters of water. Mix the ingredients well, then cover and store for 15 days. When the bean residue is fragrant and expands, take it out and feed the chickens.
Offer completed mixture to your chickens
Offer completed mixture to your chickens

Some questions related to the preparation of soybeans for chickens

Which type of soybean meal is a good option as animal feed in financial terms?

On the market, there are currently 2 popular types of soybean meal: imported soybean meal (USA, Australia, Argentina, ..) and domestic soybean meal. In particular, domestic soybean meal is usually cheaper than imported soybean meal, the price of the residue can also change depending on the quality as well as the processing of the residue.

Can your chickens eat raw soybeans?

All beans and peas contain a high level of protein which seems to be the most important nutrient in your poultry diet. However, if you offer raw soybeans to your chickens, this could cause some serious issues for them. Therefore, it is the best idea when you let your soybeans be processed before feeding it to your chickens.

How long should you ferment your chicken feed?

Under moderate temperature conditions, the process of fermentation should last from 3 to 4 days. It is necessary for you to check and stir your ferment container each day to make sure that it has enough water. After 3 or 4 days, you can serve it to your chickens.

You may also like: 21 Best Chicken Keeping eBooks

Conclusion

In conclusion, soybean meal is an ideal food for your chickens. The diversity of nutrients available inside, it can help to improve your chickens’ health in all aspects.

There are 2 main ways to prepare soybeans to feed your chickens. For each method, you should prepare some different ingredients. However, in general, both ways are simple to make at your home.