VALUE OF BRAN

Hawera Star, Volume LI, 21 May 1932, Page 7

VALUE OF BRAN

EXCELLENT STOCK FOOD. In view of the fact that under the scheme of marketing wheat this year growers will receive some return for bran and pollard, provided the average realisation is over £4 10 a ton, it is worth while pointing out the value of wheat offals from a stock feeding point of view. The fallowing article on the subject is by an expert: — In the manufacture of flour from wheat, bran and pollard, or middlings, are produced as offal, and are generally useful in the feeding of live-stock on’ the farm. The wheat kernel is covered with three straw-like coats or skins. Beneath these comes the fourth, called the “aleurone” layer, rich in crude protein, and which in milling goes with the other coats to form bran. The germ, or embryo plant, in each! kernel is rich in oil, crude protein and mineral matter. The remainder of the kernel consists of starch grains packed in tiny cells; interspersed between the starch grains are protein particles, called “gluten.” In producing it the miller aims to secure all the starch and gluten possible from the whole grains, while avoiding the germ. Bran, which consists almost entirely of the coarse outer coverings of the wheat kernel, is fairly rich in digestible crude protein, containing 12.5 per cent. It has twice as much fat as the wheat grain, but it is a light, bulky feed, and contains nearly 10 per cent, of fibre. It is therefore lower in total digestible nutrients than such concentrated feeds as linseed meal or cake. However, for dairy cows, to which wheat bran is mostly fed, it has a somewhat higher value than is indicated by its yield of digestible nutrients. On account of its laxative effect on dairy cows, bran is eminently suitable for newly-calved cows. It assists to bring them up to their flush of milk earlier than would otherwise take place. This is probably due to ..ie fact that bran; is a very palatable feed. The laxative effect of bran has been found to be due to an organic phosphorus containing a compound called phvtin, which forms oto 7 per cent, of bran. On bran is eminently suitable for part of account of this richness of phosphorus, the ration of high-producing dairy cows, its crude protein and phosphorus being vital to the formation of milk. For the same reason, and because of its laxative action, bran is of real value for pregnant mares, cows and sows. Bran is also a useful feed for horses, especially on idle days, because of its bulk and its laxative effect. It is frequntlv supplied at least once a week in the form of a bran mash, wet or steamed. Bran is also frequently used as a part of the ration for brood sows. Bran is commonly prescribed for animals recovering from or attacked by any form of sickness, such as indigestion or other stomach trouble. In such cases a bran mash is often beneficial, whereas other foods, are often positively harmful. A course of bran mashes is often given to a horse prior to a dose of physic or other laxative medicine.

Bran may- lie fed dry, mixed with crushed oats or other foou. By this method, however, a certain amount of bran may be blown from the feeding box and lost. It is. therefore, more economical to damp the bran when it is being fed to Stock. A very- common method of feeding bran is as a bran mash. The objection to this method is the necessity- for warm or boiling water. Most dairy-men require boiling water for dairy utensils, so that this objection is easily- dealt with. A quantity of bran is placed in a water-tight feeding box or trough, and sufficient hot or boiling water is poured on to the bran to soak thoroughly the bulk of the feed. The box or trough is then covered over with sacks to retain the heat, and when cool enough the bran mash is divided out and fed to the different cows, each receiving a portion according to its milk yield or other requirements.

Dairy- farmers who require to maintain a milk supply- throughout the winter months will find bran a useful addition to the winter food supply-.