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Recent trials at the University of Minnesota offer insight into the impact that dried distiller's grains with solubles has on growth performance and pork quality.

University of Minnesota animal scientist Gerald Shurson admits there are limitations to feeding dried distiller's grains with solubles (DDGS). But it is a by-product of inherent value that shouldn't be ignored in these times of high-priced corn, he stresses.

“Corn DDGS contains about 10% corn oil, which is very important because it allows DDGS to retain about the same amount of energy as corn. As a result, the energy value of swine diets is maintained when DDGS is added to replace some of the corn and soybean meal,” he says.

For those who question its value, Shurson suggests it's time to understand its benefits and manage its limitations as the industry continues to incorporate DDGS into swine diets.

“There are growing supplies of this ingredient, so rather than trying to avoid the inevitable, let's understand the nutritional value and feeding applications of this alternative feed ingredient and figure out how to use it most effectively,” he declares.

DDGS Use Climbing

Roughly 15% of DDGS currently being produced is being used in swine feeds. Production of DDGS has gone from 77,000 tons in 2001 to an estimated 1.76 million tons in 2006, Shurson says.

Compared to its long-term use in the cattle industry, DDGS use has been limited in U.S. hog operations, he says, with the majority of DDGS being added to grow-finish diets and lesser levels in sow diets and late nursery diets.

Studies from Shurson's research group have shown consistently that swine diets containing 10% DDGS will provide the same growth performance in grow-finish diets as pigs fed typical corn-soybean meal diets.

If more than 10% DDGS is added to grow-finish diets, rations should be formulated on a digestible amino acid basis, to account for differences in amino acid digestibility among DDGS sources, to achieve good performance.

In the latest University of Minnesota study on growth performance, presented at the Minnesota Pork Congress, Shurson explains that when diets are properly formulated (See Table 1), average daily gain is maintained, feed intake declines slightly, and feed conversion is improved as the level of DDGS increases to up to 30% of the diet.

Feeding Debate

“There are still segments of the swine industry that are reluctant to use DDGS due to differences in performance responses being reported, while at the same time, other segments of the pork industry want to use increasing levels of DDGS in grow-finish diets when the price is right,” Shurson says. “The issue of feeding 10% DDGS is a no-brainer. The real question is how high can we go when the price relationship is right, or before we run into performance or pork quality issues?”

Others have reported performance lapses when DDGS was fed at higher inclusion rates of 20-30% of the diet.

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