Influence of wheat meal variability upon compacting behaviour during pelleting

The impact of marker selection, in-line near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR), and feed mix time on the coefficient of variation (mix uniformity), body weight uniformity and broiler growth performance during the starter, grower, and finisher periods

“…NIR reflectance is sensitive to physico-chemical characteristics found in raw materials and cereal grains ( Pasikatan et al, 2001 ). Although experiment 1 was designed to evaluate the effects of methodologies on mixer performance, previous research has demonstrated that particle size and variation in nutrient profile of ingredients have an impact on the reported chemical composition of feed analyzed by NIR equipment (Mel-cion, 1974 ; Norris and Barnes, 1976 ; Pedamond, 1977 ; Williams and Starkey, 1980 ; Nathier-Dufour et al, 1995 ). Since the readings of the NIR are affected by the geometry of the particles, the particle size effects on spectra may be considered “noise,” thus the samples collected must be uniformly ground ( Wendtlandt and Hecht, 1966 ; Pasikatan et al, 2001 ).…”