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When we talk about selecting feeds and evaluating feeds it's important to be

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able to understand and read the labels that come with these manufactured feeds

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or pellets or whatever you might have. Nearly all of them have the same flow

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and it's kind of a regulated aspect as well from labeling, but the first thing

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they'll normally always have on the label is the crude protein content and

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that's a guaranteed analysis normally it'll be that or perhaps a little higher

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sometimes but for the most part these are formulated to be at or somewhere

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around that guaranteed level. If you notice on this tag it's listed as a

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minimum of 12% based on ingredient cost or whatever it may actually be cheaper

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for them to formulate a feed that might be a little higher than that in protein

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and still meet the other label requirements. Next is listed crude fat

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it's also listed as a minimum. In this particular one it's a 3% fat which is

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kind of a normal range on fat content in a lot of feeds. Once again it can range

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and vary from if they're using rice bran or whatever it may actually elevate the

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fat level in a ration above that. In beef cattle nutrition that's not really a

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problem when we get into issues in equine nutrition and elevated fat

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contents and some other things may come into play a little more but we'd like to

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know at least what that minimum level is. Next is a measure of fiber content for

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crude fiber maximum level of in this particular feed of 13% that refers to

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the ingredients that go in and it's somewhat confusing now because of wheat

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meds, soybean hulls that have a fiber content that's not just indigestible

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fiber so we really need to then once we look at the fiber content on a feed we

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also have to refer to the ingredients to know exactly what that's going to mean

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from an energy standpoint. Back before we started using a lot of those feeds the

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fiber content was a really good indicator of overall energy value of

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that feed now it's going to be probably lower than what the actual energy value

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might be in some of the feedstuffs. Once we have the protein fat and fiber the

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next thing to be listed in there would be the mineral content of these, calcium

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they'll normally have a minimum and maximum level of calcium listed on the

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tag, phosphorus, salt content, potassium and vitamin content on these particular

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feeds. So those are the ones that would be listed here on the label as you look

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down through here the crude protein, fat, fiber. Once again those are indications

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of what the formulation guarantees as a minimum and maximum level. Below that on the feed tag

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you'll have the ingredient list and there's not as much restriction perhaps

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in that as would be in the actual formulation and calculation but it will normally list

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the main ingredients first, grain products being descriptive in some of

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these feeds. If it's all corn based ration it might have corn listed but it'll have grain

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products, molasses products, roughage products and they can be from varying

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sources that allows a lot of flexibility in the manufacturing of feeds to where you're

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not limited to changing your label every time you change ingredients in the

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formulation of a feed and once again the unique ability of the cow to take

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various feedstuffs and convert them into a meat product or milk product is

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something that is really advantageous to the industry so it doesn't really

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matter what those particular products are that go into that ration as long as

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these crude protein, fiber and fat levels are met.