OMG: What are they putting in the chicken feed?
I've recently seen a lot of misinformation circulating online due to the latest TikTok conspiracy: Tractor Supply Co. (TSC) branded chicken food called Producer's Pride and Dumor.
Long story short: Producer's Pride and Dumor are white-label brands sold by Tractor Supply, and manufactured by Purina. Purina is owned by Land-O-Lakes, which is not only a popular butter brand, but also supplies eggs to big box stores.
The rumor: Purina is putting Ribonucleic Acid (RNA) in chicken feed. The theory is that this RNA stops chickens from laying eggs. Preventing hens from laying eggs would force everyone, including backyard chicken keepers, to buy high-priced eggs from the grocery store.
People say their hens started laying again once they switched their chicken feed to locally made or higher-quality feed. Surely this means that something in the Purina-manufactured feed prevents hens from laying, right?
Wrong.
The reality: RNA is very similar to DNA and is essentially present in all cells of people, animals, and plant life. It is not a "hormonal additive" that can be added to chicken feed. Big box feed companies are not adding RNA to chicken feed. If there is RNA present, it is simply because of the plants and animal protein used to manufacture the feed.
Addressing the rumor: No, chicken feed is not being pumped full of RNA. No, RNA is not causing your chickens to stop laying.
Chickens may stop laying for any number of reasons, including:
Feed Quality - I've said this before, and I will say it again: cheap feed does not mean good feed. Producer's Pride and Dumor are about as cheap as you can get. In fact, they’re the cheapest feed brands available at my local TSC (and probably yours, too).
Cheap feed often means that your birds may not get the essential vitamins, minerals, protein levels, and amino acids needed to 1. be fertile and 2. produce eggs. With rising costs, it’s no secret that feed manufacturers are looking for ways to cut costs by switching out ingredients for cheaper alternatives (for example: switching out wheat for corn or whole-roasted soybeans for soybean meal). This doesn’t necessarily mean the feed is bad for your birds, but it may mean the feed is less nutritionally beneficial than it was previously. (Still - no, the feed manufacturers are not putting hormones in feed. It wouldn’t be cost-effective or ethical.)
Jeff Mattocks, Rip Stavely, and Karen Johnston of Poultry Keepers 360 (PK360) recently did a fantastic video titled, "Why is that in my feed, and what is it for?" PK360 also breaks down several other crucial topics on raising poultry. I highly recommend their channel and videos!
Anyway, back to feed quality: if your birds are not receiving the proper nutrition, you will have poor fertility, a low percentage of fertilized/developed eggs in the incubator, poor hatch rates, and poor vitality in chicks/juvenile birds, amongst other things (seriously, check out the PK360 video linked above - very helpful information!).
If someone switched their chickens to locally sourced or higher-quality feed than TSC-branded feeds, it should be no surprise that their chickens are laying better. The new feed likely meets more nutritional requirements for the bird. Thus, the bird is happier, healthier, and more apt to lay eggs. It does not mean that TSC-branded feed is tainted with hormones or RNA.
Too Many Treats - too many treats, table scraps, or scratch grains can prevent birds from eating their nutritionally balanced feed. Think of these things as “junk food” for your birds. Scratch grains and treats should be fed sparingly and not as a whole source of food for your birds.
Homemade Chicken Feed Recipes - okay, we’ve all seen them, the recipes circulating TikTok and other social media with all sorts of things mixed in to feed from scratch grains, red pepper flakes, cracked corn, sunflower seeds, and more. I’ve also seen people say they’re feeding Sweet Feed, All Stock, or Goat Feed to their bird (side note: these feeds are not manufactured for poultry and therefore do not provide birds the required nutrients they need to thrive).
While some of these things (such as herbs, sunflower seeds, and scratch grains) are not inherently bad for your birds and may even be beneficial, moderation is key.
Mixing 50 lbs of cracked corn with a 40 lb bag of layer pellets is not necessarily a good idea - the cracked corn is not very nutritionally beneficial to your birds and lessens the benefits of the formulated layer pellets.
My rule of thumb is to look at the guaranteed analysis of the feed and anything I am mixing into the feed and then average out the protein, mineral breakdowns, etc., of anything I have combined.
Example:
Here is the guaranteed analysis of Producer’s Pride Cracked Corn and Producer’s Pride 16% Layer Crumble.
Producer’s Pride Cracked Corn (Left) Producer’s Pride 16% Layer Crumble (Right)
If I were to average out the protein alone: 6 + 16 = 22. 22 / 2 = 11. Basically, mixing 1 bag of cracked corn with 1 bag of layer pellet would result in about an 11% protein level in the feed. That is way too low for hens to produce eggs, and this protein level doesn’t even factor in the rest of the vitamins, minerals, amino acids, etc., that are now less effective because of this mixture. Cutting costs doesn’t mean cutting corners: there are more effective ways to save money on feed without compromising quality. I’m going to plug another PK360 video: Tips for Managing Your Poultry-Keeping Costs (also, I should note: I’m not sponsored or affiliated with PK360, but I’ve watched all of their videos, and they are full of great information).
Molting - chickens regularly molt and will not lay eggs while molting. Molt usually starts in the fall and can continue into winter or even early spring.
Shorter Light Cycles - in winter, light cycles are much shorter, and chickens get fewer daylight hours. Without supplemented light, your hens may lay very little or not at all.
Cold Weather - just like you, your hens may not like the cold. They may not want to lay.
Age - Most commercial breeds (Rhode Island Reds, ISA Browns, White Leghorns, New Hampshires, etc.) have been bred *to lay eggs* for large-scale egg producers. Most of these breeds lay best within the first two years of their lives and drastically slow down production by about 20% annually. This means the older the hen, the fewer the eggs.
Pullets are typically the best producers, but hens may continue to lay into old age. However, it's important to remember that chickens are like people: females are born with all the eggs their bodies will ever release. This means that the more the hen lays while she's young, the fewer eggs she will lay when she's older. Because of this, many commercial egg producers cull or sell their laying hens when they are 18-24 months old. While many backyard chicken keepers don’t follow this same practice, it’s important to note that older hens may not lay as frequently as young pullets.
High or Low-Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI or AI) - this virus has spread across the US and impacted or killed millions of chickens. No, this virus was not planted or created by the US Government as many people seem to think. This virus is commonly transmitted by migrating birds, and in 2022, we saw a severe uptick in cases.
Health Reasons other than HPAI: any number of health reasons can cause a hen not to lay, including coccidiosis, vent gleet, chronic respiratory disease, mycoplasma, mites, lice, and so many more ailments. It is important to recognize signs of illness in your flock and treat them accordingly with proper methods (no, VetRx does not treat respiratory diseases).
TL/DR: TSC feed does not have hormones and is not tainted with RNA that forces hens to stop laying. Hens may not lay for several reasons (including molting, weather, age, and shorter light cycles). A high-quality feed can help meet the nutritional requirements of hens; therefore, they may lay more eggs.
My advice: Please don't use TikTok or "content creators" as a sole source of information. Remember: they're probably making money from perpetuating these conspiracy theories.
Use reputable resources (PK360 is a fantastic one, and there are several options for peer-reviewed studies online), do your own research, and look for unbiased content.
Read the guaranteed analysis on anything you are feeding your chickens! Look at the protein, amino acid levels (especially Methionine, Lysine, and L-theanine), and ingredients list.
And lastly, please, please do not believe everything you see on the internet.
Peace, love, and chickens,
Adrianne
