Digestibility of Dry Rolled and Steam Processed Flaked Barley

Abstract

Two digestion trials were conducted to determine the effect of steam processing and flaking on the digestibility of the proximate fractions and TDN of an 85.5% barley ration. In trial 1, processing did not significantly affect digestibility of the proximate fractions or the TDN of the ration. The barleys used in trial 2 were obtained from two sources. The digestibility and TDN of the barley ration in the second period of trial 2 were significantly (P<.01) higher than for the barley used in the first period. Steam processing and flaking improved the TDN of the barley which originally had a lower TDN. Production of a flat flake did not improve digestibility compared to dry rolled and steam processed regular flaked barley. The calculated TDN of the barley on a dry matter basis was 83.3 and 83.2% for trials 1 and 2, respectively.